Mr. Speaker, this year marks the 50th anniversary of the Canadian Health Food Association. As the voice of the natural health product industry in Canada, the CHFA represents manufacturers, retailers and distributors of natural health and organic products.
CHFA has become Canada's largest trade association dedicated to health products with a membership of over 1,000 businesses and operators, predominately small and medium-sized enterprises, contributing over $6 billion to the Canadian economy.
From prestigious conferences and trade shows to advocating and informing of regulatory changes, the CHFA now offers an educational course providing retail staff and suppliers an opportunity to enhance their understanding of natural health products.
As 70% of Canadians regularly consume NHPs, we see the importance of CHFA's raison d'être.
On this Natural Health Products Week, I am pleased to welcome president, Helen Long, and delegates to Ottawa, and wish them continued success in building healthy Canadians through high-quality natural health products.