Mr. Chair, members of the committee, thank you for inviting me to participate in this important study on food security in the face of global instability.
My colleague Dimitri Fraeys and I represent the Food Processing Council of Quebec, or CTAQ, which brings together hundreds of food processing companies of all sizes and from all sectors. Our members transform agricultural raw materials into affordable, safe and readily available food for consumers here and abroad.
Food security is often associated with the ability to produce food. However, it depends just as much on our ability to process, distribute and make food accessible under all circumstances. The events of recent years—the pandemic, supply chain disruptions, inflation, climate change and geopolitical instability—have shown that food resilience depends on the entire value chain.
In this regard, food processing plays a strategic role. Our sector is Canada's largest manufacturing sector in terms of shipments and jobs, and it supplies the vast majority of the food consumed by Canadians. However, Canada is still showing a concerning lag in terms of investment in its agri-food sector, as highlighted in the motion that prompted your study.
That is why we welcomed the launch of Canada's first-ever national food security strategy on June 11. The CTAQ shares many of the stated objectives, including the commitment to process more food right here in Canada, support innovation, modernize processing capacity and reduce certain regulatory barriers that hinder business competitiveness.
In particular, we believe that the creation of the $1‑billion agri-food project finance fund, through Farm Credit Canada, is a positive step. For years, our industry has highlighted how difficult it is to finance certain food processing projects that are nonetheless essential to creating added value in Canada. That said, we must now ensure that these measures translate into real investments on the ground and that they are accessible to food processing companies of all sizes. The details of implementation will be crucial to ensuring the success of this strategy.
Canada's food security can't be strengthened through new programs alone. It also requires a business environment that fosters investment, innovation and productivity. Food processing companies continue to face significant challenges: labour shortages, rising operating costs, regulatory pressure, international competition and the need to invest heavily in automation and digitization.
That is why we believe that creating value within Canada's food production chain must remain a priority. Every time we process more of what our farmers produce right here, we create jobs, strengthen our regions, increase our food self-sufficiency and keep more wealth in Canada.
We also believe that consumers have an important role to play. The growing interest in locally produced and processed foods represents an exceptional opportunity to strengthen our food systems. However, businesses must have the tools, infrastructure and conditions necessary to meet this demand.
In light of these observations, we would like to submit three recommendations to the committee.
First, we need to facilitate the interprovincial movement of Canadian food products by continuing efforts toward regulatory harmonization and by supporting provincially regulated establishments in meeting federal standards in order to expand their access to markets across the country.
Second, we must accelerate investments in food processing capacity, particularly by ensuring that new federal programs meet the real needs of businesses and encourage private investment.
Third, we must continue efforts toward automation, robotization and the digital transformation of food businesses to improve their productivity and competitiveness.
In conclusion, I would say that Canada has everything it needs to become a global leader in food safety. Recent announcements demonstrate a commitment to taking action.
The challenge before us now is to turn this vision and determination into concrete results that will help build a more resilient, competitive and self-sufficient food system.
Thank you for your attention.
We'll be happy to answer your questions.