Western Producer staff
It is hard to imagine a more cumbersome and less satisfying way to make a significant policy decision. For more than a year, the federal government has been dithering over whether to approve use of bovine somatotropin (BST).
Agriculture Canada organized a task force study that appeared weighted in favor of the benefits of using the drug to enhance dairy cow milk production.
But it is not Agriculture Canada’s decision to make, as agriculture minister Ralph Goodale has pointed out at every opportunity. It is Health Canada’s decision and despite widely held suspicions that departmental officials will eventually give the seal of approval to the drug, it has yet to finish its study.
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Meanwhile, a political debate that is undermining public confidence has been allowed to take root and flourish.
There are allegations of biased research, bad science, pre-drawn conclusions and a faulty regulatory process.
Proponents, including lobbyists for Monsanto and Eli Lilly, some university researchers and a group of vets and dairy farmers, insist the drug is safe and necessary if Canadian dairy farmers are to remain competitive with Americans who have access to BST. They accuse opponents of being anti-science.
Opponents, led by an umbrella group under the auspices of the Council of Canadians, claim the process has been rigged in favor of the companies.
They accuse the manufacturers of buying the views of scientists with research funding. They accuse the BST task force, which included senior civil servants, company, processor, dairy farmer and consumer representatives, of doing a one-sided investigation that looked mainly at things favorable to BST.
“There is a scandal here that is not being covered,” a Council of Canadians spokesperson said last week.
In the House of Commons, Bloc QuŽbecois MPs who oppose use of BST have been alleging that it already is being used illegally. Health minister Diane Marleau has denied it but not very convincingly.
Meanwhile, two groups with the credibility to influence the debate – dairy farmers and the Consumers Association of Canada – have been sitting on the fence. Officially, they are leery of rushing into a BST world. Practically, their message has been diluted by soft or mixed messages.
So while Health Canada dithers, the dairy industry may be getting the worst of all worlds.
If BST is to be approved for use, it should happen quickly so farmers can begin to learn its potential uses and hazards as quickly as possible.
If it is to be rejected, the government should quickly say so, explain why and assure consumers that it will not be used.
The debate is making the public suspicious of the product and the process.
In the Commons last week, Goodale urged BQ MPs not to make allegations “that question the safety of Canadian milk.”
He should take his concerns to Marleau. It is government dithering that has caused the problem and allowed the debate to undermine confidence.
