NIAGARA-ON-THE-LAKE, Ont. – By 2011, all Canadian livestock sectors including poultry will be subject to mandatory traceability requirements, federal and provincial agriculture ministers decided last week.
It is a huge commitment requiring tens of millions of dollars in investment, regulations and industry buy-in.
The Canadian Cattlemen’s Association quickly indicated it did not support the announcement.
On July 13, the CCA complained that the 2011 deadline may be unrealistic and the commitment amounts to more regulatory burden on producers already facing low market returns.
“There may be a time when the industry would collectively agree to mandatory measures, but it sure isn’t now,” CCA president Brad Wildeman said in the statement.
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“We need more announcements of support to the industry and less on implementing more regulations.”
At the minister’s meeting, Saskatchewan was the only dissenting voice.
“I don’t like the mandatory when it comes to traceability,” said Saskatchewan agriculture minister Bob Bjornerud in a July 10 interview.
“We’re working in Saskatchewan and putting money into it on a voluntary basis. My concern overall is that we are going to download onto producers another expense at a time they can’t afford it.”
But he said if there is a national agreement, Saskatchewan will be part of it.
“We will abide by the laws of the land but I don’t agree with where we’re going. I’m not arguing against the premise but there is a lack of detail and a cost to producers.”
Bjornerud said he was a solitary voice of caution at the ministers’ table when they met July 9-10.
Despite the tight time line and the tens of millions of dollars in cost, federal agriculture minister Gerry Ritz said Canada has no choice.
South Korea, Japan and China all have said they will buy only age-verified and traceable product. Australia and Argentina have a traceability system in place and the United States has announced it will move that way quickly.
“We were global leaders when it came to traceability,” Ritz said as he announced a $20 million, three-year contribution to help auction marts deal with traceability issues.
” We’ve now slid behind Argentina, Australia and a number of other countries so we have very little choice and the industry understands this.”
Ritz insisted that while there will be some cost at the farm level – $3 per head for a tag – this will not be a program totally paid for by producers.
Governments will be picking up their share and there will be more government funding.
“The only obligation (on producers) will be to have the proper tag in place that can be read at any juncture down the road,” Ritz said in an interview.
“The flip side is if we don’t do it, with the speed of the Argentineans and Australians and now the Americans coming onside, we are being left behind so a fight to save $3 at the farmgate will mean we have lots of animals here we can’t export.”
Provincial ministers generally agreed.
Quebec has been operating an age verification system for years.
Alberta has tied livestock support payments to a requirement for traceability.
Alberta minister George Groeneveld said a national mandatory system is necessary. His province tried a voluntary approach that Saskatchewan is championing and it did not work.
“It had to go to a national mandatory system,” he said. “In Alberta, we tried to do it when Mr. (Doug) Horner was minister a few years back and he had good buy-in because he threatened mandatory so he backed off and then it just plummeted after that. Markets demand that we do this. There is a small cost but it is time to roll up our sleeves and get the work done.”
Ritz said the Pacific Rim is a key target market for increased Canadian meat exports.
“Those are markets we should be leading in,” he said. “We used to. We can again but it’s going to take traceability to do it.”
Ritz said last week’s promise of $20 million over three years to help livestock auctions deal with traceability issues is just the beginning of government support for the initiative.
He acknowledged producer skepticism.
“Their concern is who pays,” he said. “I’m here to assure them that this isn’t one of those programs where all the farmers see is the bill is in the mailbox.”
He said a traceability regime will help farmers receive higher premiums from processors for higher value cuts and help Canada get to the root of an industry disease problem when it arises.
After the national announcement, the Alberta Livestock and Meat Agency issued a statement praising the move to mandatory traceability, “taking bold initiatives to build on what Alberta has already begun.”
The Saskatchewan Cattlemen’s Association supported its minister in opposing mandatory rules.
“It is essential that neither governments nor industry move in isolation, resulting in a system that does not meet the requirements of our consumers or unfairly burdens our producers,” said a statement from SCA chair Jack Hextall.
