Bill C-355

Prohibition of the Export of Horses by Air for Slaughter Act

An Act to prohibit the export by air of horses for slaughter and to make related amendments to certain Acts

This enactment prohibits the export by air from Canada of live horses for the purpose of being slaughtered or fattened for slaughter.

[The Chair, Liberal, Kody Blois]

Thank you, Mr. MacGregor.

Colleagues, that brings us to the end of the first panel.

There are a couple of housekeeping issues. You would have received from the clerk a proposed budget for both this study, Bill C-355, and the horticulture sector. We're seeking unanimous consent to approve the budget as distributed.

[Yves Perron, Bloc, Berthier—Maskinongé, QC]

Thank you very much for the clear answer, once again.

If Bill C‑355 were to be passed, it would require people who export horses for purposes other than slaughter to provide a certificate proving that.

If I understood the opening statements correctly, this type of certificate already exists, so would it really increase the administrative burden?

[Tim Louis, Liberal, Kitchener—Conestoga, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I appreciate everyone's patience throughout our voting.

I also appreciate my Conservative colleagues comparing horses to other companion animals, like cats and dogs. That's one of the reasons Bill C-355 is a stand-alone bill specifically targeted to end this practice and ban the export of live horses for slaughter. It does not affect any other sector. Putting food on the table I fully support.

I would like to direct my questions to Dr. Ireland, who is no stranger to this committee, from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

There is a big difference between the conditions for horses exported live for slaughter versus those for breeding horses, racing horses, horses for pleasure riding or horses for non-competitive entertainment. From my understanding, I think there's only one airline left that will export live horses for slaughter. The other airlines are no longer interested in doing that.

Is there any way that exporting live horses for slaughter could be mistaken for the exporting of breeding horses, racing horses or horses ridden for pleasure or competition?

[Alistair MacGregor, NDP, Cowichan—Malahat—Langford, BC]

Thank you.

Ms. Nix, I'd like to turn to you.

Since the ministerial mandate letter at the beginning of this Parliament, your agency has had a lot of time to consider this question and the policy implications of it. You've talked about the consultations.

In the meantime, we have two bills. We have Bill C-355, which is before this committee right now, but we also have a bill from Senator Dalphond in the Senate. We have two different legislative approaches. We have private members' bills looking at this.

In all of the time the department has had to consult the major stakeholders and really dive into the implications of this, the implications of the ministerial mandate letter and now two bills, what was the AAFC's preferred policy approach in dealing with this and executing the ministerial mandate letter? Do you see a path through Bill C-355? Is that what the department was considering? Was it Bill S-270, or was it something completely different?

Committee members would really like to judge this piece of legislation against what the department itself was considering.

[Yves Perron, Bloc, Berthier—Maskinongé, QC]

Thank you very much for your clear answers, Ms. Ireland.

I see the conditions are no different. However, people in the industry or people who want us to pass Bill C‑355 tell us that the transport conditions are vastly different. We are told that horses are in much smaller wooden cages, that several animals are placed together and that they have less room to move around or absorb shocks upon takeoff and landing.

I'm curious about cases where people transport animals in different ways. For example, when a person transports a horse to a competition alone in its crate and accompanied by someone, does that mean that the person has gone beyond the standards? Have I understood correctly?

[Tim Louis, Liberal, Kitchener—Conestoga, ON]

Can you also speak about some of the other countries or jurisdictions that have legislation similar to what's being proposed in Bill C-355? Do you have insights into their rationale and their implementation process as well?

[Shannon Nix, Assistant Deputy Minister, Strategic Policy Branch , Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.

Thank you for inviting me to be part of your discussion on Bill C‑355.

The issue of the export of horses for slaughter has garnered significant public and social media attention, and the Canadian public has expressed concern over the practice. Through letters received by the department from Canadians, petitions presented in the House of Commons and public opinion polls, it appears that many Canadians are opposed to the practice of the live export of horses for slaughter.

In June 2021, petition e-3187 was presented to the House of Commons. It is one of the most signed e-petitions on record, with over 77,000 signatures. More recently, petition e-4190 was presented in February 2023 and garnered over 36,000 signatures.

As you know, this bill addresses the Minister of Agriculture and Agri‑Food's mandate letter commitment to ban the live export of horses for slaughter.

Agriculture and Agri‑Food Canada, or AAFC, has been working closely with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, or CFIA, and the Canada Border Services Agency to analyze the bill.

This is a complex issue that touches on a number of key considerations, including legal obligations; international trade commitments and relations; acts and regulations involving animals more broadly; and mechanisms for implementation and enforcement.

Given the complexity of the issue, I will provide some quick data points and context that I hope will be helpful for your review.

According to Statistics Canada, in 2023 about 2,500 horses were exported from Canada for slaughter, valued at about $19 million. Foals aged between six and nine months are sourced from Canadian horse breeders and transported to one of about five feedlots in Canada, where they're raised until about the age of two. The horses are then flown overseas from Edmonton, Calgary and Winnipeg. Once the horses reach the country of destination, it is the authorities in that country that are responsible for regulatory oversight.

Compared with other meat sources, such as cattle and pigs, the horsemeat sector is relatively small and data is quite limited. As this is a relatively small sector with very little available information, gaps in knowledge do exist, including the degree to which indigenous people participate in the trade. Within the Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food, we've been working hard to gather additional data and information to better understand the sector.

As part of the department's work to provide advice on the minister's mandate commitment, we reached out with CFIA to key stakeholders in the sector. We connected with most exporters, a major freight forwarder, several animal welfare organizations, individual producers and indigenous organizations.

Our initial discussions with industry point to about four active exporters of live horses for slaughter in Canada. These exporters purchase horses from a few hundred producers and keep the horses on feedlots until they're ready to be exported.

The producers operate many different types of farms. Some are far more dependent than others on the horse export market. While some horse breeders raise horses specifically for the live export market, it appears that most horse breeders supplying this market mostly breed horses for other purposes. Some of the producers told us that the export market provides a valuable secondary market to support their businesses.

We will continue to engage and consult as needed to better understand how this bill could impact producers and the sector. From the correspondence that our department has received and from our conversations with animal rights organizations, it's clear that many Canadians view horses differently from other livestock.

To conclude, I'd like to note that our department considers very carefully any policy change that impacts agricultural producers. As I noted at the outset, this is a complex issue. As Bill C-355 moves through the parliamentary process, we will continue to work closely with CFIA to identify any potential impacts and provide advice to the government to mitigate any unintended consequences.

I hope this overview is helpful. I welcome any questions the committee may have.

[Dr. Mary Jane Ireland, Executive Director, Animal Health Directorate, and Chief Veterinary Officer for Canada, Canadian Food Inspection Agency]

Thank you very much.

I'm very happy to appear before this committee as part of your study on Bill C-355.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency regulates horse exports under the Health of Animals Act and health of animals regulations. I would therefore like to describe the CFIA's current role in the process.

The Health of Animals Act and its regulations establish the requirements on the export of live animals. This includes the requirement that livestock, such as cattle and horses, being exported from Canada are inspected by a veterinarian and accompanied by an export health certificate that is signed by a CFIA veterinarian. The export health certificate is a legal document confirming that an animal complies with the sanitary requirements of the importing country.

The regulatory requirements for the humane transport of animals were updated in 2019. The goal of these amendments was to prevent avoidable suffering of animals throughout the transport process by setting out the conditions for humanely transporting all animals by all modes of transport.

Exporting a horse is a multistep process that requires the CFIA to certify that the horse meets all requirements for Canada and those of the importing country.

First, the exporter notifies the CFIA of their intent to export a horse. Import requirements may vary by country. Many countries require that the horse begin an isolation period before it can be exported. During this period, the CFIA tests the horse to confirm that it does not carry any diseases that are of concern to the importing country, which are listed on the export health certificate.

Once this testing is complete and the horse is found to meet all the requirements, a CFIA veterinarian provides the exporter with a signed export health certificate. The horse is loaded into a livestock trailer to travel to the airport. At the airport, CFIA veterinarians confirm that the horse is properly certified, is not showing any signs of distress and is fit to travel, and will be humanely transported based on Canadian regulatory requirements. Once a horse has landed in the importing country, the CFIA does not have any control or authority over its treatment and care.

Thank you very much for the opportunity to speak with you today on the CFIA's role in regulating the export of live horses.

I welcome any questions the committee may have.

[Graeme Hamilton, Acting Director General, Traveller, Commercial and Trade Policy Directorate, Strategic Policy Branch, Canada Border Services Agency]

Mr. Chair and members of the committee, I appreciate the opportunity to contribute to the committee's study of Bill C‑355.

We are present today to share with the committee the roles and responsibilities of the Canada Border Services Agency, or CBSA, in monitoring the export of terrestrial animals, including horses.

As many of you already know, the CBSA facilitates the flow of billions of dollars of legitimate trade, and administers more than 100 acts and regulations at our borders. These efforts are designed to support the economic prosperity of our country while also keeping our country and Canadians safe. The CBSA plays a supporting role in verifying that other government department requirements are met for goods being imported into or exported from Canada, as well as administering the Customs Act.

Given the wide variety of acts enforced at the border, the CBSA works very closely with a number of government departments and agencies to ensure that the goods being imported to and exported from Canada are compliant with any act of Parliament that prohibits, controls or regulates their importation or exportation. In the context of agricultural imports and exports, we work very closely with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, which establishes the requirements for importing and exporting food, plants and animals into and out of Canada. CBSA officers follow its guidance and instructions and will detain goods when imports or exports fail to meet the requirements under the governing act.

This concludes my opening remarks. I'll be happy to take any questions you may have.

[The Chair, Liberal, Kody Blois]

I call the meeting to order.

Welcome to meeting number 94 of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri‑Food.

I will start with a few reminders. Today's meeting is taking place in a hybrid format. The proceedings will be made available via the House of Commons website. Just so you are aware, the webcast will always show the person speaking, rather than the entirety of the committee. Screenshots or taking photos of your screen is not permitted.

Pursuant to the order of reference of Wednesday, January 31, 2024, and the motion adopted by the committee on Thursday, February 8, 2024, the committee is resuming consideration of Bill C-355, An Act to prohibit the export by air of horses for slaughter and to make related amendments to certain Acts, an act to prohibit the export by air of horses for slaughter and to make related amendments to certain acts.

I would now like to welcome our witnesses for the first panel.

From the Canada Border Services Agency, we have two officials with us. First, we have Graeme Hamilton, acting director general, traveller, commercial and trade policy directorate, strategic policy branch.

We also have Cathy Toxopeus, director general of commercial programs in the commercial and trade branch.

No stranger to this committee, from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, we have Dr. Mary Jane Ireland. Thank you for being back. She serves as the executive director of the animal health directorate and as the chief veterinary officer for Canada. Joining her today is Dr. Rick James-Davies, director general of western operations. Thank you both for being here.

We also have Ms. Shannon Nix, assistant deputy minister of the strategic policy branch, with the Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food. Thank you for being here today.

We're going to allow five minutes for opening remarks from each organization. I'm going to start with the Canada Border Services Agency.

It's over to you for up to five minutes.

[The Chair, Liberal, Kody Blois]

Thank you, Mr. Louis, and thank you, Minister Champagne.

Colleagues, on your behalf, I'll thank the minister for his appearance and for his work on behalf of all Canadians.

Minister, the one thing that I will say personally after your testimony is that I think it's extremely important that there be a grocery code of conduct if the voluntary process can't work itself out. I can appreciate that you might not be in a position today to say when that would happen, but our committee would like to see that code of conduct as soon as possible. I know you'll take that under consideration, alongside your provincial and territorial colleagues, and we thank you for being here today.

Colleagues, in terms of some reminders, the recommendations on this study are due tomorrow. Minister Champagne was our last element of the study, so please submit your recommendations to the analysts by tomorrow.

On Thursday, we will be studying Bill C-355.

The meeting is adjourned.

[Warren Steinley, Conservative, Regina—Lewvan, SK]

Thank you very much for clarifying that.

I have a list of stakeholders who do not support Bill C-355. It's something that I'd to put into the record. Some of my colleagues have said that this is a pan-Canadian approach and that lots of people across the country are in favour of this, but lots of groups have questions and concerns about this.

The list includes the following: the Air Line Pilots Association Canada; Alberta Auction Markets Association; Alberta Beef Producers; Alberta Breeder Finance Inc.; Alberta Grazing Leaseholders Association; Beef Farmers of Ontario; British Columbia Cattlemen's Association; Canadian Cattle Association; Canadian Equine Exporters Association; Canadian Meat Council; Canadian Federation of Agriculture; Egg Farmers of Alberta; Equestrian Canada; Feeder Associations of Alberta Limited; Horse Welfare Alliance of Canada; Livestock Markets Association of Canada; Les Producteurs de bovins du Québec; Manitoba Beef Producers; members of the Métis Nation of Alberta; New Brunswick Cattle Producers; Nova Scotia Cattle Producers; Saskatchewan cattle producers; Spruce Meadows; Prince Edward Island Cattle Producers; Western Cash Advance Program Inc.; and Western Stock Growers' Association.

How many of these groups have you discussed this with and heard their concerns when it comes to Bill C-355?

[Tim Louis, Liberal, Kitchener—Conestoga, ON]

Thank you, Chair.

It feels great to be here in this room, but in a different chair.

I'm also honoured to be here in Ottawa as I appear before you on unceded Algonquin Anishinabe territory. Also, today we're celebrating Canada's Agricultural Day, in celebration of the hard-working farmers who feed us.

I'm honoured to appear before you, my colleagues on the agriculture committee, to speak on behalf of my private member's bill, C-355, which aims to prohibit the export of live horses for slaughter by air.

As a member of Parliament and a Canadian who values our special relationship with horses, I bring forth this bill, convinced that this practice must come to an end.

It's time for Canada to join other countries that have already banned the export of live horses for slaughter.

Horses hold a revered place in Canada's history, serving as steadfast companions in our fields and communities. From Mennonite families in my community relying on horses for traditional transportation and for farming to this day, to the iconic images of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, our bond with these majestic animals is deeply ingrained in our national identity.

Every year in Kitchener—Conestoga, in the township of Wilmot, our community hosts the New Hamburg fall fair. The first event of the fair is always the draft horse pull event, where the strength and grace of these majestic animals are showcased.

These are the same breeds of horses that are being exported for slaughter by air to be eaten raw as a high-end delicacy.

However, despite our reverence for horses, thousands are exported by air annually for slaughter, subjected to distressing conditions during transportation. It's unacceptable that these intelligent and sensitive companion animals endure such suffering, especially considering their significant roles in our history and our society.

Having engaged in consultations with stakeholders, I've worked hard to understand various perspectives. Bill C-355 specifically targets the export of live horses for slaughter by air, reflecting our commitment to animal welfare, while also acknowledging the importance of farming communities feeding Canadians.

Bill C-355 is a stand-alone piece of specific legislation that will not disrupt other livestock sectors, but focuses solely on banning the export of live horses for slaughter by air.

With approximately 2,600 Canadian horses exported for slaughter by air annually, this practice constitutes a relatively small industry. Most exports originate in western Canada, with horses raised on feedlots before enduring long journeys in cramped conditions.

With regard to the timeline to implementation, the bill allows for an 18-month implementation period to align with the natural life span of horses raised for slaughter.

This 18-month timeline strikes the balance between practical considerations and the commitment to ending this practice as soon as possible.

Since the beginning of this practice, I've worked inclusively, considering perspectives of stakeholders from various backgrounds. The bill has garnered support from both sides of the House, reflecting a shared belief in the importance of stopping the practice of exporting live horses for slaughter by air.

Canadians overwhelmingly support this initiative.

In conclusion, let's work together across party lines and put an end to this cruel practice.

I thank you for this opportunity, and I look forward to your questions.

[The Chair, Liberal, Kody Blois]

Colleagues, we're going to bring the meeting back to order.

Welcome to the second hour.

Colleagues, pursuant to the order of reference of Wednesday, January 31, 2024, and the motion adopted by the committee on Thursday, February 8, 2024, the committee is commencing its consideration of Bill C-355, an act to prohibit the export by air of horses for slaughter and to make related amendments to certain acts.

I would now like to welcome the sponsor of the bill, who is no stranger to this committee, Mr. Louis, the MP for Kitchener—Conestoga.

Mr. Louis, it's good to see you.

Of course, this is traditionally where we have an hour of opening panels from the private sponsor, so I'm going to allow you to make an opening statement.

Colleagues, we are pushed a little bit for time. I'm going to try to go until about 1:10 or 1:15, which should give us at least two rounds, if not more, to ask Mr. Louis questions, and then we'll go from there.

Mr. Louis, it's over to you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Kody Blois]

Thank you very much, Mr. Riel.

We're going to suspend, colleagues, for just two minutes, and then we'll have Mr. Louis up for Bill C-355.

Thank you.