Health Committee on June 17th, 2020

[Helena Jaczek, Liberal, Markham—Stouffville, ON]

What sort of infection control procedures do you have as a minimum in all of the establishments that CFIA inspects? Obviously there's a risk to employees, your inspectors, in terms of those infections such as E. coli, where there is a risk to the individuals handling the meat. What is your normal practice in terms of infection control on behalf of your employees?

[Colleen Barnes]

As you've mentioned, there are hazards in a meat plant, so we would generally have proper hygiene that our inspectors would respect, generally speaking. With COVID, we've added that they do a check before they go into the plant and that they then check to make sure they're feeling well after a shift. They inform their manager how they're feeling. Those are added steps we've taken. Then there's the addition of PPE. Where we have had these issues of not being able to keep the two-metre distance, as Theresa mentioned, we've provided our staff with masks and face shields.

[Helena Jaczek, Liberal, Markham—Stouffville, ON]

Well, I was getting to the normal practice, not that in the COVID-19 situation. What sort of personal protective equipment do you provide to your inspectors on a regular basis?

[Colleen Barnes]

I don't know if Theresa can respond to that or if we can get back to the committee if the translation issue is a problem.

[Theresa Iuliano]

Mr. Chair, the type of equipment that we provide staff is very much tied to the requirements of the job. In a meat processing plant, they are provided with appropriate equipment such as coats, boots and hard hats where they're required.

A hazard assessment would be done in other situations that might be more dangerous, like working in a barn, where there is an animal disease situation. If risks were identified, the appropriate equipment would be provided to staff.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ron McKinnon]

Ms. Iuliano, is it possible for you to try that in French as well?

I will pause Dr. Jaczek's time.

[Theresa Iuliano]

Under normal circumstances, we provide inspectors with equipment.

[Tamara Jansen, Conservative, Cloverdale—Langley City, BC]

On a point of order, is it possible for Ms. Iuliano to go onto the French when she speaks French so that we don't get the English-French, and she doesn't either? If she toggles to the [Technical difficulty—Editor]

[The Chair, Liberal, Ron McKinnon]

Yes.

Please try that, Ms. Iuliano. It might help.

[Theresa Iuliano]

The necessary equipment is provided to staff. We also conduct hazard assessments.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ron McKinnon]

Thank you.

Dr. Jaczek, you may carry on. You have 15 seconds.

[Helena Jaczek, Liberal, Markham—Stouffville, ON]

I'm wondering if CFIA has ever been involved in any sort of pandemic planning, given that obviously so many people are working in very close proximity to each other. Prior to COVID-19, had there ever been any exercise related to the possibility of a pandemic?

[Colleen Barnes]

Mr. Chair, we can get back with specifics that I'm sure we have, because we are responsible for the animal health area as well, so we've definitely exercised around major animal health diseases, and I do believe that in some of the human health pandemics we have been involved, but we'll have to get back to the committee with specifics.

[Helena Jaczek, Liberal, Markham—Stouffville, ON]

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ron McKinnon]

Thank you, Dr. Jaczek.

We now move on to Mr. Thériault.

Mr. Thériault, you may go ahead. You have two and a half minutes.

[Luc Thériault, Bloc, Montcalm, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Temporary foreign workers are essential to our farmers. Mr. Seppey, you mentioned areas of production that have faced serious challenges, namely, asparagus and mushroom production.

In addition to being on thin ice because of this unprecedented pandemic, like everyone else, farmers in my riding weren't given timely information that would have informed their decision-making around production capacity.

My fellow member Mr. Powlowski wants to close the farm to fork gap, but doing that means people have to want to produce something.

Mistakes were made, and we are here to find solutions. Would you now agree that the $1,500 should have been a lump sum, because it didn't incentivize people to engage in food processing?

Some of the witnesses we heard from said the government should have been responsible for the quarantining of workers. I imagine you agree with that. What else needs to happen to ensure that farmers, be it before, during or after a second wave, receive timely information and can actually get down to the business of farming, so we don't have a food supply problem?

[Frédéric Seppey]

Mr. Thériault raised a number of points, so I'll start and my colleague Mr. Jurgutis may have additional comments.

You're right, vegetable growers, in particular, needed decisions to be made quickly. We were in contact with them throughout the crisis. Bringing as many temporary foreign workers to Canada as possible, as quickly as possible, was crucial, and significant efforts were deployed to that end.

As far as the quarantine program is concerned, whether the responsibility falls on businesses or the government is a matter of policy. As public servants, we can't offer an opinion on that, but I can assure you—

[Luc Thériault, Bloc, Montcalm, QC]

You can make recommendations, though. What would you recommend to reassure farmers? Is it appropriate to create programs that don't cause them to lose money if they seed more than half their fields, for example?

[Frédéric Seppey]

The need to reassure farmers was part of the discussion. Nevertheless, at the end of the day, it is up to each farmer to decide what they are going to plant and how much.

As for the quarantine support program, which, of course, stems from a public health decision, the amount is basically a lump sum. The $1,500 remains available until the $50 million in program funding is depleted. In implementing the program, we tried to streamline the process as much as possible, precisely so that farmers could be confident they would receive the support they were entitled to. Clearly, supporting documentation is still required.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ron McKinnon]

Thank you, Mr. Thériault.

Mr. Davies, you have two and a half minutes.

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

My question is for the Department of Agriculture.

We know that in April the federal government announced the $50-million program to help farmers and fish processors who were bringing in temporary foreign workers during the COVID-19 crisis. We know that at the end of that program employers are eligible for up to $1,500 per foreign worker to help cover the costs of complying with the mandatory two-week quarantine upon their arrival in Canada. We know that employers must provide accommodation for those employees during that self-isolation period and pay those workers during the 14-day period.

According to a spokesperson from the Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food, if an employer is found not to be compliant with those requirements under the Quarantine Act with the TFW program, they would no longer be eligible for the $1,500.

Could you inform the committee of how many inspections have been conducted to ensure employers are compliant with the requirements under the Quarantine Act with the TFW program to date?

[Steven Jurgutis]

I wouldn't have specific information in terms of how many have been done. Part of the processes do involve, as I mentioned earlier, some of the other jurisdictions from local health units as well as other requirements that are in place. That type of information isn't something that I readily have at hand.

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

How will you enforce the federal requirements if you're not taking responsibility as a federal government for enforcing the very criteria that the government has implemented? Surely, it's not the provincial government's responsibility to double-check your requirements, is it?

[Steven Jurgutis]

No. Correct. Sorry if I misled.

What I'm trying to indicate is that it's part of a process that we're working on, primarily led by PHAC. It has been doing a number of inspections. The indications we have so far, in terms of what has been done, is that fairly minor difficulties have been corrected. To my understanding, as it stands right now, in terms of the level of inspections that are done, they are in compliance as they pertain to the 14-day quarantine period.

I'll have to get more specific information and get back to the committee as that unfolds.

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Thank you. I would appreciate that.

To CFIA, according to a June 12 article in Food in Canada, CFIA has announced that it is now in a position to gradually resume some inspection services that were temporarily suspended because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Could you tell the committee specifically what inspection services were temporarily suspended? In your view, what impact did the suspension of those inspections have on food safety in Canada, if any?