Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for raising this important point in the context of the debate this evening. In my view, we do not talk about agriculture very often and yet agriculture is central to our economy, Canadians' lives and food security, as my colleague referred to. A country that does not feed its people is a country with few options, as our Prime Minister said so well. I would add that, today, the issue of food security is more important than ever.
I am pleased to rise in the House and have the opportunity to speak to the proposed amendments to the plant breeders' rights regulations. I want to talk about the importance of plant breeders' rights in Canada and how they relate to the long-standing practice of saving seed for replanting. I also want to talk about the ongoing consultations with farmers, which my colleague spoke about earlier.
The government remains steadfast in its support of our vibrant agricultural sector, which benefits Canadian farmers and our wider agri-food industry. A direct way we can support this sector is by modernizing our regulations, and the sector all across Canada is asking for that. The proposed amendments are designed to foster innovation in plant breeding and address key challenges such as climate resilience, crop yield and sustainable production.
Plant breeders' rights are a vital form of intellectual property protection. They provide an incentive to plant breeders to invest time and money into creating new resilient plants, which we need. We want to help protect plant breeders' rights in the same way we are protecting other inventors and their creations.
We know that our hard-working farmers face serious threats from increasingly unpredictable and extreme weather events, as well as other dangers that threaten crops and orchards. Our goal is to support them by reducing crop losses and improving innovation and productivity. We can achieve this by encouraging breeders to develop varieties that are resilient to climate change.
That will help Canadian farmers adapt to the effects of climate change, offering options to fight drought, heat and disease, and I have a lot more I want to say.
Last year, the CFIA held consultations and then published a “what we heard” report that indicated strong support. The report showed that 90% of the feedback received supported those amendments.
The most recent consultation period is coming to an end, and we are now reviewing the new comments we have received, including those presented here by my colleague. This will be completed in the coming weeks.
That said, I thank my hon. colleague for his question. We remain fully available to all Canadians who may have concerns about this issue. Consultations are still ongoing.