CPC is pleased to see biofuels emerge as an important additional opportunity for revenue generating for our grains and oilseeds producers, a sector that had serious income challenges in recent years and whose economic health is crucial to the long-run viability of our industry.
CPC only asks that policies designed to encourage the production of biofuels in Canada do not operate to disadvantage the international competitiveness of our pork industry. The pork council also asks that there be a federal research focus on maximizing opportunities for feeding by-products to swine in the emerging industry.
It's not in your package, but we want to comment on labour, recognizing that labour is a crucial limiting factor right now for our hog processors, in particular, and also for hog producers.
We think there are some immediate changes that could happen to various programs, for example, by extending the one-year limit for unskilled labour to two years.
Thank you once again for this opportunity to discuss pork sector issues with you. We look forward to addressing any and all of your questions.
Thank you.