Agriculture Committee on Nov. 1st, 2011

[Bob Zimmer, Conservative, Prince George—Peace River, BC]

Good.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Conservative, Larry Miller]

Thank you very much.

We'll now move to Ms. Raynault for five minutes.

[Francine Raynault, NDP, Joliette, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

My question is for Mr. Lampron.

Aside from dairy production, what areas do you intend to do research in over the next few years?

[Pierre Lampron]

Since we represent all dairy farmers, all the research is related to the dairy industry. But we need to do research into animal welfare to meet the consumer's need. We also need to document the facts in this regard. We are hearing a lot of different things, but it's important to know what the cow really needs. These results will be easy to implement because it has been proven that if the animal's welfare is respected, production usually increases. This is a point that will need to be addressed in the coming years.

We will also continue to do research into the nutrients and benefits of dairy products, including vitamin B12 and other ingredients to find out what impact they may have on human health.

[Francine Raynault, NDP, Joliette, QC]

Thank you.

Do we have to worry about the disappearance of small dairy farms in the next few years?

[Pierre Lampron]

I don't think so. Supply management enables farmers to produce anywhere in Canada and have the same income and the same marketing costs. It is a system that protects small farms. In Quebec—I am talking about Quebec because that is where I come from—there are small family farms with just a few cows and they are still operating. Families are able to survive because the income is stable and guaranteed all year round.

[Francine Raynault, NDP, Joliette, QC]

Earlier you talked about the welfare of animals. I live in the Lanaudière region, more specifically in Joliette, and I am seeing more and more animals out on pastures. This is something that we didn't see a few years ago. When I go to the countryside, I see that dairy farmers are leaving their animals outside in the fields. Does that have to do with the concept of animal welfare?

[Pierre Lampron]

Research shows that animals need fresh air, water and light. Those are all major factors. That is why farmers follow those proven practices. It might be more complicated, but there are ways to make sure that it does not get more complicated. Research is good because it validates methods that have been tested and that work. That means that we don't need to proceed by trial and error.

[Francine Raynault, NDP, Joliette, QC]

That certainly means more work for farmers, but...

[Pierre Lampron]

There are ways of doing things that do not require more work. We have to address them as well.

[Francine Raynault, NDP, Joliette, QC]

Mr. Bell, you talk about strengthening national markets. How can we do that?

[Jon Bell]

I'm sorry, it's not coming through. The volume is very low.

Can you please repeat your question?

[Francine Raynault, NDP, Joliette, QC]

You are saying that we have to strengthen national markets. What do we have to do for that to happen?

[Jon Bell]

I'm not quite sure; when you say “strengthening national markets”, do you mean from the small producer providing food into a hub that can then be exported across Canada? Is that what you mean when you ask that question?

[Francine Raynault, NDP, Joliette, QC]

Yes, and there are also the small markets in towns and villages.

[Jon Bell]

Thank you.

We are representing just the farmers' markets in British Columbia, but I think what goes for our association probably would fit nationally. We're all looking at providing support and increasing the numbers across Canada to try to provide more locations for farmers to come together and sell their goods and gain further income.

[The Chair, Conservative, Larry Miller]

You lost a bit of time in there, Madame Raynault, so I'll give you a little bit more. Ask another quick question.

[Francine Raynault, NDP, Joliette, QC]

Thank you.

Would it be beneficial for producers to form cooperatives? Have you looked into that possibility?

[Jon Bell]

One of the tenets of a farmers' market is make it, bake it, or grow it in British Columbia. We like to have a person who actually grew the product there to have that communication with the consumer.

A number of trials have actually been done where three or four farmers will provide product to another grower, who will then sell that to the consumers. There has to be a good exchange of information beforehand to make sure that the person selling knows the information of what is the product, how was it grown, what's its organic status, if any, whether there are any treatments on it, all those sorts of things.

It does seem to work, but on a very small scale.

[The Chair, Conservative, Larry Miller]

Thank you.

We'll now move to Mr. Lobb for five minutes.

[Ben Lobb, Conservative, Huron—Bruce, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

The first question is for Mr. Lampron. On page 5, near the bottom, it says in your presentation, “A future research program under Growing Forward 2 should contain more efficient streamlined administration and auditing process to reduce the administrative burden.”

You've been through this process. Obviously your organization's been through the process. Can you give the committee some tangible comments on what this looks like, in your mind, or maybe some issues that you've experienced and what you'd like to see improved?

[Pierre Lampron]

We have always invested in research. Funding used to be on a 50-50 basis from both side. With the cluster, the parties invest 25% and 75% respectively. The cluster is larger. The researchers from those research groups really have a lot of ideas. At some stage, you have to make a choice. Of course, with less money, you cover less areas, and with more money, you can go wider with the research.

Your question was more specific. I think that, in analyzing the life cycle, we are dealing a bit more with the environment. As for nutrition, it has always been something that we have worked on and we will continue to do so. The clusters have allowed us to continue doing what we have been doing and to focus more on the environment and on animal welfare.

[Ben Lobb, Conservative, Huron—Bruce, ON]

Okay. Well, you mentioned at the beginning that you're going to submit the technical pieces that you'd like to see improve and streamline through the process, so I hope the clerk and the analyst have a chance to add that to the report.

To Mr. MacLeod, when CropLife is doing the research, how do they interact with other organizations or entities in other countries to get a footing or framework on the best practices as kind of a starting point, and incorporate that into the innovation? The point is that as government you don't want to duplicate research that was done in some other part of a region. How do you do that and incorporate it into fast-tracking the research you want to do?

[Peter MacLeod]

I think there are a couple of avenues that really work well in that regard. A lot of it is communication and making sure that partnerships are established, whether it's with academia through the university system, or through government research institutions. That communication among industry, government, and academia is critical to make sure things aren't duplicated and things are coordinated to get the end result, which is a new innovation that's accepted and can help society and farmers.

[Ben Lobb, Conservative, Huron—Bruce, ON]

Right. So it's an informal process. Or is there a formal process?