Thank you to our guests for being here this afternoon.
In the last panel we had, there was a discussion about various groups that actually look at moving agriculture backwards. The analogy I presented was that we simply take a look at what happens when they get ahead of industry—I'm from Alberta, and we saw what happened with the oil sands activists—and industry isn't there to stand up for the real scientific aspects that are taking place.
Again, Mr. Thiel, there was a discussion about neonicotinoids, and you spoke about canola. I mean, that's where the beekeepers take the bees, to where the canola is, so the real reasons, and the discussions and concerns we have, are I think critical discussions that need to take place.
I'm just wondering what we are doing in order to ensure that the proper scientific information gets out to the public. The reason I say that—I mean, I am a farmer, but I also come from a rural area—is that I've had people write me letters about how we should get rid of neonicotinoids, because in Ontario and Europe that's what they're doing. I've realized that people don't understand agriculture anymore. I was a teacher as well, so I also know that you're going to teach those things that you know.
Industry has to be challenged with going in and getting the right messages out there. Otherwise, you're going to see these fancy lessons put up from all these activist groups about how farmers are doing evil things to animals and how all of these things are causing problems around the world. It's all complete nonsense. Where is industry standing up to protect the integrity of our Canadian agriculture and agriculture around the world?