We were talking about food sovereignty earlier on. We agree with food sovereignty. Being recognized everywhere, that is a good thing.
Why is so much required of Quebec and Canadian producers? The demands are huge. And yet, we buy agricultural commodities that are sprayed with DDT and all the pesticides that have been banned in Quebec or in Canada for 20 years now.
Why are the standards not the same? If we had the same requirements for imported agricultural commodities that we have for our domestic production, there would be no problem. In that way, no one could overwhelm us so much.
Labelling is also very important. When the contents of a jar of pickles, for example, are worth 10¢ and the container is worth 20¢, people have the right to label the jar "Made in Canada". It's the container that is produced in Canada; it is not the cucumbers because we don't grow those here any more. They come from Bangladesh where they are sprayed with any old thing, and we accept that. It is unacceptable. Our cucumber producers shut down their operations because the produce coming from China, from Bangladesh or from wherever was selling for less. If only we demanded the same quality here and we set the same standards for imported agricultural commodities as for those that we produce, that would already be a big step in the right direction.
We must also stop buying modified milk ingredients which create obstacles for our dairy producers. I work in the dairy production sector and therefore, this greatly affects me. The processors are making a lot of money, millions of dollars, at our expense. Often we are members of our own cooperatives and we are being greatly undermined by our own companies. These are all issues that must be studied, and it is an urgent matter.