I don't think I disagree that we have to be careful before we commercialize these genetically modified products, and that's what we do through the Canola Council of Canada. As an industry, in the canola industry there is an assessment made. The important distinguishing factor is that it's market based, and that decision is made by industry, not by the government. This bill is proposing that the government make that assessment and ultimate decision on whether or not these technologies should be commercialized.
There's no doubt that in the canola experience, farmers have wholeheartedly adopted GM canola. On the last page of our written submission, you can see the transformation away from conventional canola to herbicide-tolerant canola, and that was a voluntary move by farmers who had the choice to grow either conventional or genetically modified. It is very clear that there were significant benefits to growers of adopting that technology. They did it willingly, and they did it very quickly, because they had to maintain their competitiveness in the world market.
So was every market onside when we went to genetically modified canola? No. But there was a calculated risk taken in terms of assessing the ability of the Canadian canola industry to expand. There were some risks involved, but the industry came together and made the decision of whether that risk was appropriate or not. The risk at that time was whether or not Europe would accept it. That was a key market at that time. Canola went forward even without the European market in place, and it has grown and thrived and survived over time. It's become a success story like no other in Canada regarding a “made in Canada” crop, because the decision was made by the right people, at the right time, with the right information.
This bill, I think, puts the decision-making into the hands--with no disrespect--of the wrong people.