Evidence of meeting #24 for Agriculture and Agri-Food in the 39th Parliament, 2nd session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was product.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Conservative
Carol Skelton Conservative Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar, SK
We talk about the safety of our food, and Canada is testing for BSE, or CFIA is. Are our regulations stricter than those of the United States?
Executive Director, Food Safety Directorate, Canadian Food Inspection Agency
As it relates to--
Conservative
Carol Skelton Conservative Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar, SK
Testing on our products. If you yourself looked, are our regulations tougher than the United States' regulations, in your opinion?
Executive Director, Food Safety Directorate, Canadian Food Inspection Agency
I don't think I'd be able to assess whether they're tougher. We certainly feel that the regulations we have in place put us at least on an equal step with those of our trading partner.
Conservative
Carol Skelton Conservative Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar, SK
You don't have statistics on how many letters you've received that talk about “Made in Canada” or “Product of Canada”?
Executive Director, Food Safety Directorate, Canadian Food Inspection Agency
We have statistics on recent correspondence we have received that relates to consumer concerns regarding “Product of Canada” claims, yes.
Conservative
Executive Director, Food Safety Directorate, Canadian Food Inspection Agency
Yes, we can.
Conservative
Carol Skelton Conservative Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar, SK
Will you give them to the committee for us?
Executive Director, Food Safety Directorate, Canadian Food Inspection Agency
Yes. I asked about that before I came to the committee. We received just over 200 letters that related to “Product of Canada” statements. That may not sound like a lot of correspondence, but when it comes to labelling issues we receive consumer letters that relate to labelling issues on an ongoing basis at the agency. This is certainly more than we have received in the past on “Product of Canada” labelling.
Conservative
Carol Skelton Conservative Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar, SK
Are some products checked more than others and the compliances checked more than others?
Executive Director, Food Safety Directorate, Canadian Food Inspection Agency
No, there hasn't been any particular target or area identified as a result of consumer complaints.
Conservative
Carol Skelton Conservative Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar, SK
You don't look at the import lists from all these companies with high imports and check to see what's going on with them?
Executive Director, Food Safety Directorate, Canadian Food Inspection Agency
As it relates to “Product of Canada” labelling, no, we don't do that.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Bezan
Ms. Skelton, your time has expired.
For the benefit of the committee, after our study in the summer on the APF, we sent a letter off to the minister's office asking for more information on imports of products and how they're used within Canada. Canada does not collect any of that data. Once it crosses the border, it doesn't determine whether it's going for further processing, going direct to retail, going for re-exportation. None of that is taken into consideration. The resources just don't exist, and the data's not collected.
So we aren't going to be able to get that data unless we try to commission it ourselves. But I'm not sure, if the numbers aren't out there.... It would take a survey of every business that we think is bringing in product from offshore and refurbishing it into a “Product of Canada” or “Made in Canada” commodity good, which we'd have to try to track down. We don't have the resources, probably, to undertake such a big study.
Conservative
Larry Miller Conservative Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound, ON
Mr. Chairman, could I have a clarification on something Ms. Bryanton said?
Conservative
Larry Miller Conservative Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound, ON
Yes.
You said 200 letters. Would that be over a week, or a month, or how long a time period?
Executive Director, Food Safety Directorate, Canadian Food Inspection Agency
That was since the summer of 2007.
Conservative
Executive Director, Food Safety Directorate, Canadian Food Inspection Agency
It's about six months.
Liberal
Lloyd St. Amand Liberal Brant, ON
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, sir and ladies, for coming and for your cogent presentations.
We've heard numerous examples, but—only because I want to be considered brilliant by Mr. Bevington—my example is this: I buy a bunch of grapes, and they clearly have to be marked as from California, or “Product of New Zealand”, or something, as I understand it. I buy grape juice with grapes made Lord knows where, and the grape juice can say on the item “Made in Canada” or “Product of Canada”, even though the grapes are perhaps from California, New Zealand, or some such place.
That's the case, is it not?
Executive Director, Food Safety Directorate, Canadian Food Inspection Agency
Yes.