New anti-terrorism measures being implemented by the U.S. government shouldn’t have negative effects on exports of food across the border, says a federal government official.
As long as Canadian exporters follow the rules and do what they’re supposed to, they shouldn’t encounter serious problems in terms of access or added costs, said David Cox, trade policy analyst with Agriculture Canada.
“The (U.S.) Food and Drug Ad-ministration has been mandated by Congress not to do anything that will stop trade,” he said in an interview. “The expectation is that shouldn’t happen.”
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But at the same time, he added, some of the new regulations are vague and ambiguous and lots of questions remain to be answered. That was clear last week during a Saskatchewan Food Processors Association seminar on the impact of the U.S. Bioterrorism Act on cross-border trade.
As Cox described the new rules, which among other things require exporters to register with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and to give prior notice of any cross-border shipments, he was peppered with questions about the ins and outs.
What about products shipped through the U.S. to another final destination? How do companies with multiple export facilities register? Who should be named as the U.S. importing agent? What about products picked up from farms and shipped directly to the U.S.? Are samples shipped to potential customers or to testing labs subject to the new rules?
Cox could answer many of the questions, but not all, saying that either because the issue isn’t addressed in the FDA regulations or the wording is open to various interpretations.
“Call the FDA’s help line,” he said on more than one occasion, emphasizing that’s the only way to get an official interpretation of the rules. “I’m not the U.S. government and they’re the only ones who know.”
Todd Russel, manager of trucking logistics for Saskatchewan Wheat Pool, said his main concern is whether farmers must register if their grain is picked up on farm by a grain company and then trucked directly to the U.S.
“That could be a problem,” he said.
That’s one of the issues Cox said remains somewhat unclear, adding that if in doubt, one should register.
The Bioterrorism Act was signed into law by U.S. president George Bush in June 2002, a response to the terrorist attacks on Sept 11, 2001.
Final interim rules governing registration of food facilities and prior notice of food shipments go into effect Dec. 12, but the FDA will be accepting comments from interested parties until Dec. 23. Proposed rules on record-keeping and detention of products in case of terrorist threat will be announced within weeks.
