This is a very delicate topic. You are asking the right questions. I will try to give you the right answers, insofar as producers are concerned.
I will not hide from you the fact that producers are concerned about this push for change. They are considering it and wondering how they are going to be able to adapt to the pressure they are feeling at this time.
The adoption of a code of practice represents the first step. Everyone has to sit down at the table to determine the best conditions to raise these animals. As producers, that is what we do every day. On our farms we have to find ways of raising animals that are productive and profitable if we are to honour our obligations. The consumer has to understand that the additional requirements he is placing on the producer will come at a cost. The retailers who are around this table must know that. When a large chain says what it wants, it should also suggest paying more and organizing itself to help the producers that are the pillars of the system. We are at the start point of this chain and we produce every day.
I raise 25,000 hogs a year. In order to raise them while respecting the requirements of the bank and those of society, I need an income. Like other Canadian producers, I am willing to meet the consumer's demands. By the same token, people have to realize that this responsibility of raising animals or demanding certain conditions is not the business of the producer alone. It is the responsibility of the entire chain, of all of the links that make it up. Producers will adapt to the demands of the consumer. However, they are also going to need some help.