Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I want to commend all of the witnesses this morning. I think you presented well. You've given us a lot to think about, and I think there's a lot that I certainly totally agree with.
I think it was mentioned by Mr. Laforge, who we had earlier at committee meetings, a number of years ago. He talked about truth in advertising. I think this is what this is all about. We don't have truth in advertising, even at the level we're talking about this morning. You are referring specifically to dairy terms, and that is something we still haven't come to grips with, and we need to. That's just one area. I certainly agree with you.
I do want to make a few brief comments. There are some things I have taken from this discussion. What I've been hearing through forums we've done throughout the country is that “Product of Canada” should no longer be used. That needs to be abandoned. It doesn't give a clear understanding of what we mean when we say “Product of Canada”.
I've been thinking and talking about this for a long time and asking a lot of questions. It needs to be clear. We need to keep it simple: “Grown in Canada”, not “Raised in Canada”. We don't “raise” cherries, we “grow” cherries. We also grow hogs, we grow beef, we grow oats, barley, and wheat, and all of these commodities. We grow dairy products. We don't “raise” milk, we “grow” milk. I happen to be a farmer, so I know these terms.
I think it's important that we keep it very simple--“Grown in Canada”--and then do the advertising and promotion around that concept so that Canadians come to understand when they see “Grown in Canada” on a label that it is a Canadian product.
Whether it's Quebec, B.C., Nova Scotia, Ontario, with rutabagas, or apples in Nova Scotia, or your veal from Quebec, it doesn't really matter. You can put your own label along with that, but that doesn't take away or denote anything less than what the meaning really means when it says “Grown in Canada”.
We know Canadians understand CFIA, PMRA, Health Canada. All of these agencies have done their great work in promoting safety and efficacy in food production. Canadians understand that, but we are misled by this whole area of difficulty in understanding our advertising.
I would like to have your comments on whether “Grown in Canada” is something we can take forward, on whether we can further recommend that these be changed in our regulations so that we can go on, and then promote it from there.