Canada’s national organic regulation has yet to be implemented and already groups are calling for a major overhaul of the rules.
The Organic Trade Association (OTA) wants the regulation expanded beyond the realm of food and livestock feed to include pet foods, textiles and health and beauty care products.
“We don’t see much difference between organic cottonseed oil in the food market and organic cotton in the apparel market,” said Matthew Holmes, newly appointed Canadian director for the OTA.
His association represents 1,600 organic businesses in North America, some of which are branching into those sub-sectors of organic agriculture. Holmes said organic pet food and textile sales are growing at a rate of 40 percent per year.
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“There is huge consumer demand.”
The association said it makes sense to provide the same safeguards to those consumers that grocery store customers will be getting once the organic regulation is fully implemented by
December 2008.
Holmes recognized there could be some bureaucratic hurdles in expanding the regulation since it falls under the domain of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, while health and beauty products would be Health Canada’s jurisdiction. But those details could be worked out.
“It’s something we would like to see,” he said.
The association also wants a long-term financial commitment from the federal government to fund the Canada Organic Office, which is the CFIA department charged with overseeing the regulation.
Ottawa has agreed to pay the estimated $1.5 million annual administrative costs incurred for the first two years of the regulation. What happens beyond then remains a mystery.
“It has really fallen off the map as a discussion piece, so that makes us a bit nervous,” said Holmes.
The inspection agency has long said it intends the program to be operated on a cost-recovery basis, meaning the industry will pay for at least some of the policing costs.
Holmes said organic businesses are becoming increasingly concerned the federal government intends industry to pick up the full tab after the December 2008 implementation date, costs that could easily balloon beyond the $1.5 million estimate.
He said it would be short-sighted for government to view the program as falling entirely on the cost side of the ledger without acknowledging any of the benefits it provides in terms of an upsurge in organic businesses, increased tax revenue, job creation and expanded trade relationships.
As a minimum, the association would like some clarification of the government’s long-term funding plans so the organic industry can prepare for the future.
The association is also seeking clarification on some details of the regulation, such as how imports will be handled.
The guidelines call for a letter of attestation for all imported goods. Some packaged food manufacturers bring in shipments of 80 crates of goods from as many as 138 different countries of origin. The association worries it would be far too onerous to fill out 80 forms to accompany those goods.
The good news is the industry has until the end of 2008 to iron out those details before the Canada Organic logo starts appearing in stores.
