Madam Chair, I would like to thank the House for agreeing to hold this emergency debate on BSE this evening.
Tonight I will speak not only to the farmers who certainly understand the situation, but I will try to inform all Canadians, those who are not as close to the problem, to help them understand what our farming sector is going through. We needed to have an open, frank and factual debate on the current situation to discuss ways to help the industry.
Canadian farmers in all sectors are feeling the negative impact of BSE at this time. As a government and as the member for Lambton—Kent—Middlesex in which agriculture is a primary industry, it is our duty to take any and all possible steps to make sure the sector regains the position as world leader in beef production. The government is here for our farmers and we will continue to act in the best interests of the industry.
Prior to Christmas the Canadian agricultural industry appeared to have a positive outlook on the BSE situation. The United States had proposed a rule that would possibly allow livestock under 30 months of age to enter the United States from Canada. Although the comment period on the proposed rule ended January 5, 2004, everything has changed since the discovery of the first reported BSE cow in the United States.
Therefore, we as the federal government need to ensure that we do everything possible to convince the international community that Canadian beef is safe and that borders should be completely open to Canadian livestock. We also need to ensure that there is enough financial support to sustain our beef industry.
Since the discovery and confirmation of a single BSE infected cow in Canada, the beef industry has not been the same. Just when things were starting to look up and we were convincing the United States to open its border to livestock under 30 months of age, our beef industry took another devastating hit.
My hon. colleagues and I understand what the agriculture sector is going through and we are committed to helping the industry through this most terrible time. We need to continue to convince countries to open their borders to Canadian beef and livestock.
Over the summer the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food, for which I was vice-chair, held three emergency meetings to examine the BSE situation in Canada. In January I read an article in the National Post by Diane Francis, who made a comparison that I thought summarized the effect BSE has on our country and the farming community. She stated, “Mad cow disease, for those unfamiliar with its economic effects, is the agricultural equivalent of a bioterrorism attack. It can be fatal, wreaks financial havoc and creates trade panic”. That quote from Diane Francis pretty much says it all.
Since May 2003 federal and provincial governments, along with industry officials, have been working tirelessly on this issue. I cannot remember a time when all levels of government and industry officials have worked in such a cooperative manner in order to achieve the same goal, that is, to completely open international borders to Canadian beef and livestock.
We all know it does not matter where the cow was born. What is important is that we work together to convince the international community that our beef is safe and that decisions to open or close borders need to be based on sound science, not politics or trade protection, which in my opinion is the problem.
As we know, the BSE infected cow found in the United States was born prior to the feed ban that was put in place in August 1997. Current investigations in both the United States and Canada are concentrating on the potential contaminated feed that the cow could have consumed and where that feed came from. Therefore, it is imperative that we ensure that both Canada and the United States have 100% compliance with the feed ban and that additional measures be taken to ensure that the possibility of consuming contaminated feed is eliminated.
In terms of the investigation, Canadian officials are focusing on determining the source of infection through a rigorous assessment of feed sources. They are conducting a comprehensive and thorough investigation which includes collecting, cross-referencing and validating information at all levels. This includes farm retail distribution levels, production levels as well as the source of raw materials.
In addition, the CFIA is mapping the movement of any animals which may have been born within the 12 month window of the animal and may have been exposed to the same feed. Such animals would be candidates for testing.
On July 18, 2003 new measures were introduced by Canada that required specified risk materials, SRMs, to be removed from cattle at slaughter. The effective date for these regulations was August 23. However, federally registered establishments, CFIA directed, required SRM removal as of July 24, 2003. Since the infected cow that was found in Washington state, the U.S. has taken similar actions.
The federal government is currently establishing a national network of labs that will focus on downer animals and those born before the start of the North American safety restrictions on cattle feed in 1997.
Although the circumstances around the two cases are different, both countries are now considered as minimal risk countries for BSE among the international community. Therefore, I do not believe there is anything to be gained by pointing fingers at each other. Instead we need to work together to resolve the situation and convince the world that our beef is safe.
In January Canada announced additional measures to support public confidence in Canadian beef products, including: enhancing measures related to animal identification, tracking and tracing; increasing the level of surveillance with the emphasis on testing of higher risk animals; and working to develop with the United States a North American approach to adjustments in our respective feeding restrictions that reflect the integrated nature of the cattle industry in North America.
The CFIA will be enhancing BSE surveillance, progressively increasing the number of animals tested annually, so that Canada will meet the anticipated new international standard and retain its status as a low risk country for BSE. That standard involves testing to a level capable of detecting the disease when it is at a level of prevalence as low as one case in one million cattle.
The CFIA will aim to test a minimum of 8,000 animals over the next 12 months and then continue to progressively increase the level of testing to 30,000 animals a year. The ultimate number of animals tested will reflect international standards, which are expected to be revised over the next two years. Testing will be focused on those animals most at risk for BSE. These include animals demonstrating clinical signs consistent with BSE, so-called downer animals, those unable to stand, as well as animals that have died on farms, are diseased or must be destroyed because of serious illness. A sample of healthy older animals will also be tested.
Everyone knows that the beef industry has taken a devastating hit since the first discovery of BSE on May 20 and the new case has not helped to improve the situation. In order to help support the beef industry through the difficult times, the federal government has provided more than $520 million.
The most recent funding announcement was made at the end of November, dealing with the cull animal program. This program is aimed at helping Canadian cattle producers deal with older animals that need to be culled from herds. The Government of Canada is committing $120 million as base funding for all regions of Canada. It has offered to cost share the program with provincial and territorial governments on a 60-40 basis, which could bring the funding to $200 million.
Now that there has been a new case of BSE discovered in North America and it is unknown when international borders will completely reopen to Canadian livestock, we should find out why prices at retail levels have not lowered, even though cattle prices have been reduced dramatically. We need to ensure that a fair share of the money that consumers are paying for their beef is getting back to the primary producers. Far too often, primary producers do not receive their share of the finished product that they produce and this has to stop. Producers will not be able to afford to farm if this continues.
Despite the international standards set by the Office International des Épizooties, Canada was able to regain access to the United States, Mexico and Russia in just over 100 days as opposed to the recommended seven years. No other country hit by mad cow has been able to reopen its borders so quickly, albeit to boxed beef. This proves that the international community has confidence in the surveillance and testing we have in place and the efforts by the federal and provincial governments, along with industry, have been successful in that respect. CFIA proved that the agency had the proper tools to do its job in tracing back in such a short timeframe. I commend it on its work.
North America is a highly integrated beef industry and has functioned as a single market, with an invisible border. In the last five years two-way trade totalled $13.6 billion U.S. for 7.3 million animals. Canada exports about half our total production to the United States and 97% of all live cattle imported to the United States comes from Canada and Mexico.
Mr. Chair, I say to the farmers listening to this debate, whether it is here or in our communities, that we will continue to do everything in our power to convince the United States and other countries to open their borders to good Canadian beef and livestock.
