Agriculture Committee on May 16th, 2019

[The Chair, Liberal, Pat Finnigan]

Welcome, everyone, to meeting 143 of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food.

Today, pursuant to Standing Order 108(2), we have a short study on the African swine fever.

I want to thank our panel for coming over so fast on short notice. Of course, it is a very important topic and something that could certainly be of concern to our pork producers. It's good that we have you here.

Before we move on, I'd like to thank Kelsey Johnson. She's been a familiar face at our committee for so long and I just learned she has a new position with Reuters. Congratulations. We're going to miss you. I'm sure you'll remember us in your statements and you'll always have a good word for us, I hope, in the future. Thanks very much.

We'll start with our panel.

From the Canadian Pork Council, we have René Roy, Vice-Chair; John Ross, Executive Director; Audrey Cameron, Director, On-Farm Programs; and Gabriela Guigou, Manager, National Swine Health Service Initiative.

Welcome to all of you.

Mr. Roy, you have the floor for ten minutes.

[René Roy, Vice-Chair, Canadian Pork Council]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

My name is René Roy. I am a pork producer from the Beauce region in Quebec and the 2nd Vice-Chair of the Canadian Pork Council.

Thank you very much for inviting me today. I would also like to thank the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food, which has shown leadership by agreeing to look into the issue of African swine fever.

African swine fever, or ASF, does not pose a problem in terms of food safety.

However, the virus does kill pigs and could destroy a a growing and globally competitive industry valued at $24 billion.

The pork industry generates more than 100,000 jobs both in rural municipalities and urban centres. The risk of losing their operations constitutes a very serious threat to the mental health of a good number of pork producers.

Canada exports 70% of its production, either as live pigs or pork products.

An outbreak of ASF would immediately close our export markets and, unless we can react quickly, lead to the decline of the pork industry. Canada's experience with bovine spongiform encephalopathy gives us a clear indication of what could happen. However, the situation in the pork sector would be even worse.

This disease is present in Africa, Europe and Russia and is currently spreading across China and Southeast Asia. The fact that both personal travel abroad and international trade between Canada and these regions is growing, and that the viral load is quickly increasing, has boosted the risk of ASF being introduced in North America.

Fortunately, all is not lost. Canada has a well-established and rigorous animal health monitoring system. Our producers know how to raise healthy pigs and have the support of various types of animal health experts, such as internationally renowned veterinarians and researchers. This system is also supported by a vast network of animal health laboratories and rigorous regulations, both at the federal and provincial levels.

Producers know they have a critical role. They have invested heavily in traceability, biosecurity, extension and research. They collaborate with their colleagues across Canada and work closely with their local government. They are also active at the international level.

ln the case of ASF, producers are seeing the benefits of a close working relationship with officials at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Canada Border Services Agency, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and Global Affairs Canada. Together, we have taken some very significant steps to help prevent and prepare for ASF.

Pork organizations have developed a series of products highlighting the potential impact of the disease and the necessity of strengthened on-farm biosecurity. Producers are funding a Canadian Food Inspection Agency research project to develop faster diagnostic tests for ASF. The CBSA has strengthened its vigilance at the border and committed an additional $30 million to increase the number of detector dog teams.

The CFIA has implemented new control measures to mitigate the risk associated with imports of potentially contaminated feed grain. Representatives of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Global Affairs Canada and industry are working closely to secure zoning recognition agreements with key trading partners. These bilateral agreements are critical to mitigating the impact of a disease outbreak in Canada.

Perhaps more importantly, the commitment to co-operate has taken hold. Federal and provincial governments, producers and processors are all stepping up to address the challenge. The four cornerstones of an effective emergency management plan are prevention, preparedness, response and recovery.

Recognizing that investing heavily in preparedness and planning is the most efficient, cost-effective use of resources, we have focused our effort in these areas. Within this space, there remains much work to be done.

The pork sector believes there are four key priorities. The risk posed by wild pigs must be addressed. This invasive species must be eradicated. Biosecurity measures, both on farm and at the border, must be enhanced to prevent disease entry. Our traceability, biosecurity and surveillance systems must be strengthened to ensure they support rapid zoning and the reopening of our export market. The challenges of communicating with a wide range of differing stakeholders both before and during an outbreak must be addressed.

To date our response has simply been to roll up our sleeves and work harder with the resources at hand. Less important tasks are being pushed aside. Very few new resources, apart from detector dogs, have been brought to the battle. While this has yielded good results over the short term, it is not sustainable.

At its May 8, 2019 meeting, the industry members of the Pork Value Chain Roundtable recommended that a letter be sent to Minister Bibeau asking her to take immediate action to address the need for more resources, specifically to ask departmental officials to work with the pork sector to develop a funding proposal under the Canadian agricultural partnership program to address the priority issues and establish the pork promotion and research agency as a new source of long-term, private-sector funding.

The creation of the pork promotion and research agency has been a long-standing request of the Canadian pork producers. Check-off agencies are established under the authority of the Farm Products Agencies Act, which falls within the mandate of the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-food. A beef check-off agency was incorporated in 2002 and similar organizations exist within the United States.

In 2016, the Farm Products Council of Canada, which administers the act, recommended that the Government of Canada establish a pork promotion agency. Unfortunately, no action has been taken to date, and access to an estimated $1 million in additional private-sector funds has been denied.

Much has been accomplished and much remains to be done. Canada can prevent and prepare for ASF. Armed with additional resources, we will protect the sector and ensure its continuity to provide Canadians with a readily available source of high-quality protein and remain an important contributor to the Canadian economy.

I thank you for your attention. I, along with the Canadian Pork Council animal health team, would be pleased to address your questions.

[The Chair, Liberal, Pat Finnigan]

Thank you, Mr. Roy.

We will now move to question period.

Monsieur Dreeshen, you'd be the first for six minutes.

[Earl Dreeshen, Conservative, Red Deer—Mountain View, AB]

Mr. Roy, you said there is some specific monitoring for feed grain. Are you speaking of feed grain, or are you talking about processed feed that would be coming in for the animals to eat?

[René Roy]

Go ahead.

[John Ross, Executive Director, Canadian Pork Council]

We're talking about both spaces and the risk is associated with either product. A processed feed like soy meal is different from what we would see with a whole grain, if we're just importing the soybean directly.

The import controls that the Food Inspection Agency has brought forward recognize those two risks in those two different spaces. If a product is properly processed in the exporting market, meaning heat-treated for the most part—so we're going to run a soybean through a mill and heat it—it will kill the virus. That product can be moved in with certification that it was in fact treated properly in the exporting country.

Secondly, if you're bringing in a whole grain, you would have to provide assurance to the Food Inspection Agency as an import condition that the product is going to be moved into a mill in Canada where it would be processed properly. The import conditions cover both of those aspects.

Where they may not apply and were not intended to apply.... We do import a lot of feed ingredients—vitamins, minerals, those sorts of things. There are some recommendations available on our website that we've made available to producers about storage times for those products and the temperatures at which they're stored. If that's done, that will help manage the virus load as well.

[Earl Dreeshen, Conservative, Red Deer—Mountain View, AB]

My main reason for saying that is we have a very good supply of feed in Canada that we use for our hogs and so on. I understand that is specifically imported feed or processed feed from—

[John Ross]

Largely, it's organic feed that's being brought in.

[Earl Dreeshen, Conservative, Red Deer—Mountain View, AB]

I just wanted to make sure that people understood and recognized that we did leave that lie.

I have an article here that talks about CFIA working closely with North American partners and counterparts to harmonize testing protocols. What testing protocols are they using as they harmonize between Mexico, Canada and the U.S.? Do you have any information on that?

[John Ross]

You will have the benefit of Dr. Komal, who will be here in about 60 minutes. He'll be able to answer your questions specifically.

What we've seen and been most encouraged by is that when a suspect sample comes into a animal health laboratory, exactly the same testing protocol is being used in Canada and the United States, and I believe—Jaspinder will know better—being extended into Mexico. It is of critical importance to us that the animal health laboratories on both sides of the border are using exactly the same tests in exactly the same manner, if for no other reason than it enables some confidence in the tested results that come out.

Secondly, if we do get into a run, it provides you a little more access to get capacity that might not be there.

[Earl Dreeshen, Conservative, Red Deer—Mountain View, AB]

On the point of the wild boar risk, the point was that we have to get rid of them. My question is: How do we do that? You will have to deal with other animal rights groups and so on, because there will be people saying that they're the same as people and all these kinds of things.

How do you propose going through that particular process?

[John Ross]

The eradication of wild boar is going to be a many-year process, depending on the province. I think the population is such in Quebec and Ontario that it might be eradicated quite quickly. They have a little bit more of an extensive range in western Canada. It's going to be a little more of a challenge. In your home province you got rid of the rats, so you're presumably going to figure out how to get rid of some wild pigs.

We're going to have animal activist problems regardless of what we do. When we're dealing with an invasive species and the harm that it is wreaking on the environment, we might have to set aside animal rights guys and think a little bit more about the environmental perspective in Canada. From our perspective, there is the disease issues that fall from wild pigs.

Eradication of them directly is going to require some new science. Quite frankly...and perhaps manage the populations a little bit easier. Clearly, running a bunch of hunters into the field and chasing them around is not going to get the job done. It'll take a little more of a sophisticated strategic approach to clearly identify where they are, get them trapped and take out the entire sounder, one at a time.

It will be a lengthy process for sure. In the interim, there are a number of steps that need to be taken in terms of how we do a better job at biosecurity with our smaller holdings—places that might have outdoor pigs—where you could see that interaction. I think there are some opportunities to improve there as well.

[Earl Dreeshen, Conservative, Red Deer—Mountain View, AB]

As far as the rats are concerned, I've been around for a long time. I've never seen a rat. From talking to other people, I do know the damage that is done. The fact that the eradication has taken place is certainly worthwhile.

[John Ross]

Perhaps, more importantly, in Alberta they've actually managed to keep them out as well.

[Earl Dreeshen, Conservative, Red Deer—Mountain View, AB]

We have our rat patrol, so we'll work on that.

Maybe CFIA would be the ones to speak to this, but the concern, of course, is that China can't ship any pork to us because the vaccination against FMD and so on. You can't really tell what's happening there.

When you have processed pork dumplings and that sort of thing, that kind of meat isn't supposed to be there, but how—

[The Chair, Liberal, Pat Finnigan]

Mr. Dreeshen, we'll have to wait. Maybe somebody will ask that same question.

Thank you, Mr. Dreeshen. Unfortunately, your time is up.

Mr. Breton will now have the floor for six minutes.

[Pierre Breton, Liberal, Shefford, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I would like to thank the witnesses for being here with us today.

Mr. Roy, you touched on what I want to ask you about. Which countries exactly are affected in eastern Europe and Asia? Do you know? After all, Asia is a large continent.

I imagine that China is one of these countries?

[René Roy]

Yes. However, Eastern European countries are mostly affected.

[Pierre Breton, Liberal, Shefford, QC]

Really?

[René Roy]

Yes.

I will name a few from memory. The European countries affected are Georgia, Poland, Hungary, Russian, Romania and Belgium. There is a list that we could give you.

[Pierre Breton, Liberal, Shefford, QC]

What about Asia?

[René Roy]

In Asia, China is affected. However, the disease is spreading to Southeast Asia.

[Pierre Breton, Liberal, Shefford, QC]

China remains an extremely important market, and Canada's exports to China are already significant. Is that correct?

[René Roy]

Yes.

[Pierre Breton, Liberal, Shefford, QC]

This may sound a little odd, but this situation could result in an economic benefit to Canada. Our main concern, of course, is to prevent this disease from entering Canada. That said, do you believe that the problems China is experiencing could result in our exports to China increasing? Do you think this could be an opportunity to be seized?