I'm happy to do that, Mr. Atamanenko.
I want to take exception to the line you started with, saying our current system isn't working. I would take exception to that. Audits from other countries around the world are showing that our system is extremely good. Japan seeks to emulate it. It has one of the highest food safety records in the world. The latest OECD report says we have a superior system, so I would take exception to that comment.
When you compare the efficacy of one country's system to that of another country's system, you have to look at equivalency and outcome. I think we have that with the Americans. Certainly they do things differently.
What Mr. Caron is talking about is a bit self-serving, because he owns a customs house. He's talking about the old customs house system. What that did was create unnecessary stress if the animals were live or, if it's processed product, unnecessary work in handling it again.
What we've done is gone to a system whereby the product is tested at point of unload, as opposed to rerouting it to a customs house. Mr. Caron has a problem with that because he owns a customs house. He wants the old system put in play.
What we've done is put in place, through CFIA, a system under which last year, or to this year alone, we've done 480 border blitzes, so to say we don't check at the border is a complete misnomer. We don't do it in a way Mr. Caron would like, because his customs house is not used as it was at one point. That's unfortunate for him, but at the end of the day the system we now have in play is much more effective and much more efficient than it was.