Lacks information | Some question how the government will use its regulatory power
Food industry and producer groups are praising new federal food safety legislation as a significant strengthening of Canada’s food safety rules.
However, there were also criticisms during hearings last week about what is not included in the legislation, which was tabled in June in the Senate, and the potential dangers of some of the bill’s vague language about new regulatory powers proposed for the government.
The Safe Food for Canadians Act, Bill S-11, is now the subject of public hearings before the Senate agriculture committee.
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It could be sent from the committee to the Senate for final approval within weeks and then go to the House of Commons, where it may face a tougher political ride.
Albert Chambers, executive director of the Canadian Supply Chain Food Safety Coalition, typified the mixed message that senators heard from the industry Sept. 27.
He said his coalition welcomes the bill with its call for stronger food inspection powers, mandatory traceability across the system, licensing of food importers and the potential for multimillion-dollar fines for industry players who break the rules.
“Bill S-11 provides a strong legislative framework for a new federal inspection and enforcement regime and a new and apparently comprehensive tool kit for creating regulation,” he told the committee.
“However, the bill has been put forward without a clear statement as to how the framework and the tool kit are to be used.… No road map or strategy has been articulated by the government. This is of great concern to the members of the coalition.”
At an earlier hearing, Canadian Association of Regulated Importers executive director Robert Devalk offered his own ambivalent message. Association members import products that the supply-managed industries do not supply in sufficient quantities for Canadian consumers.
He said the bill will set a “food safety culture” for Canada that is needed.
However, he also worried about how the government will use its new regulatory powers over inspection and food safety standards.
“This bill could become a bludgeoning hammer to put food safety into the industry (and) we do not want that,” said Devalk.
“We want food safety to be a co-operative effort between industry and government.”
This week, the Senate committee begins detailed debate on the bill. Manitoba Conservative Don Plett, sponsor of the legislation in the Senate, will propose that the government be forced to review the impact of the legislation every five years.
There were complaints that the legislation does not include all the elements that a national food safety bill should encompass.
Bill Jeffery, national co-ordinator for the Centre for Science in the Public Interest, argued that it does not try to regulate the “healthy food” aspect of food safety.
University of Manitoba food science professor Rick Holley argued that provincial and local food plants escape the new requirements be-cause federal legislation deals only with federal food standards and inspection.
“This is an inspection bill,” he said. “This is not, in my view, an overall food safety bill.”
Still, for all the quibbles, the overwhelming industry reaction was positive.
Dairy Farmers of Canada vice-president Ron Versteeg told senators his sector fully supports the legislation, including mandatory livestock traceability.
And Chambers said that while there are details to be worked out or clarified, consultations with the government and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency are going better than they have in the past.
“We are in a very positive situation, the first in my experience, where we have the government fully engaged as the proposed legislation is moving forward,” he said.
