Evidence of meeting #21 for Finance in the 43rd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was industry.
A recording is available from Parliament.
5:25 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Wayne Easter
Okay. Mr. Cooper came on too soon there. That's okay. There's nothing we can do about it.
Ms. Dzerowicz, are you back on?
5:30 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Wayne Easter
Am I the only one not hearing her? No, I see Peter shaking his head no.
We can't pick up your sound at all, Julie.
5:30 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Wayne Easter
We'll have to come back to you, Julie, if there's time. Talk to David or the technicians.
Annie, you're on.
5:30 p.m.
Liberal
Annie Koutrakis Liberal Vimy, QC
My question is directed to the meat producers. Canadian food security continues to be a priority during this pandemic. What are your facilities doing to ensure that production can continue while protecting the safety of your staff? What role can the federal government play in enhancing on-the-job safety for workers in the agriculture and agri-food industries?
5:30 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Wayne Easter
Who wants to start first, the cattlemen or pork producers?
Go ahead, Dennis.
5:30 p.m.
Executive Vice-President, Canadian Cattlemen's Association
Thank you, Wayne.
That's a great question. We're in daily contact with our processors. They have been introducing a plethora of enhancements to their operations. Obviously, you want to create distancing. Where you can't, you create barriers that, effectively, are similar to the distancing. Even on arrival, you ensure that you're able to bring in the shifts efficiently. Many of those workers travel distances to get to the plant, and that has to be done safely. There's a whole range of solutions constantly being evaluated and worked on. Ensuring that enough personal protective equipment is available is another piece of this.
Getting back to our own members, we've been trying to provide weekly guidance out there on everything they can do. We all view them as front-line food workers, though what they're doing is really essential to maintaining food security in our country and assisting around the world where there are food shortages developing. So it's a great question. We want to sit down every day and figure out how to get as much reliability as we can in our system, moving forward. Of course, we have to protect our workers. We can't run these operations unless we're able to do that.
5:30 p.m.
Liberal
5:30 p.m.
Liberal
Annie Koutrakis Liberal Vimy, QC
What changes in consumer behaviour are you expecting as a result of COVID-19, how should small businesses adapt to these changes, and what role can the federal government play in supporting the transition to new business models that address the needs of consumers in a post COVID-19 economy?
5:30 p.m.
Liberal
5:30 p.m.
President and Chief Executive Officer, Canadian Federation of Independent Business
I was trying to switch to a telephone. I don't know if this is any better.
5:30 p.m.
President and Chief Executive Officer, Canadian Federation of Independent Business
Okay.
Look, many changes have already happened during the crisis. In any crisis there are some takeaways that will be beneficial for businesses to continue with afterward. Canada has been slow to adopt online commerce. I know that throughout the emergency, many firms have been moving quickly to try to ensure that they do have some online sales capacity available to them. Some have been looking at more take-out delivery and curbside pickup options. Some of that will stick. They will continue with that afterward, as they have the ball rolling now.
I would imagine that telecommuting will continue to grow even more significantly as a result of this. More and more firms will be looking to see what they can do by having staff work remotely, with all the positive, and some not-so-positive, implications of that. You would imagine also that automation in Canadian businesses will increase, because of course the firms that were earlier to automate may be a bit more insulated from some of the worst of this.
I think it will include a number of positive trends, but those trends also have implications for Canadian employers and for workers that we have to make sure we're careful to think about. It's one of the reasons I think it's so critical that we put in place some thinking around what we'll do to get us out of this situation. Of course, we're focused on the emergency phase right now, but keeping an eye on what measures we'll put in place to help guide and support businesses as they begin to reopen will be a critical element of this.
5:35 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Wayne Easter
Thank you.
We will try to go to a series of questions, if we can. We'll go to Gabriel Ste-Marie and Mr. Julian. Then we'll try Julie again. After that, we'll go to Mr. Poilievre and Elizabeth May.
Mr. Ste-Marie.
5:35 p.m.
Bloc
Gabriel Ste-Marie Bloc Joliette, QC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
My question is for Mr. Roy, from the Canadian Pork Council.
What measures do you think are necessary to support your industry?
April 23rd, 2020 / 5:35 p.m.
First Vice-Chair, Canadian Pork Council
We need swift and effective assistance. In the short term, we estimate that we'll need $20 per hog if we're going to survive this crisis. The demand for food is still there, and we are continuing to export, but the crisis could last months. We hope that will be enough. Beyond the crisis, it will help us to keep employing people and producing food for Canadians. Family-run farms are the ones doing this important work; they want to be farmers and are passionate about what they do.
5:35 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Wayne Easter
Thank you.
It might have been the translation, René, but it came through that the help you require is $20 per share. Could you explain that a little more?
5:35 p.m.
First Vice-Chair, Canadian Pork Council
Yes. What I was saying is that we are looking for financial support of $20 per hog.
5:35 p.m.
First Vice-Chair, Canadian Pork Council
If I may add to that, the reason is that it's also a matter of mental health. Right now, people are desperate to find solutions for their business. They have invested not only in their time, but must also have help so they can get through this.
