Mr. Speaker, the adjournment debate relates to a question that I raised last October 2.
I want to put the question into context and hope for a detailed answer from the parliamentary secretary. Beyond that, I want to raise some concerns going forward with respect to the same agency, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and proposed regulatory changes.
My question of October 2 was about the most recent crisis in the food sector, which concerned XL Foods in Alberta. The government and the minister deliberately misled Canadians on the crisis by constantly attempting to minimize the crisis, when in reality more than 1,500 meat products were recalled in all Canadian provinces and territories and in 41 U.S. states.
The record of the minister is he has presided over the largest meat recall in Canadian history after previously being in trouble over a food safety issue which caused the death of quite a number of Canadians.
What have Canadians heard from the government on the issue of food safety? Basically what they have heard is meaningless talking points about how much the government claims to care about the safety of Canadians. The fact is the government failed Canadians four years ago when it failed to implement the recommendations of the Weatherill report, and the government has continued this legacy of failure.
Why has the government not taken the action promised? If it did, why the failure?
I would say for the parliamentary secretary that it is not enough to say that we have more inspectors. We need to know what they do. Do they inspect actual products, not just paper?
As I said a moment ago, in an approach of being proactive going forward I would just note for the government a couple of serious concerns related to the CFIA proposed changes in the regulatory framework that governs potato movement.
First, is the proposed elimination of standard containers and ministerial exemptions. This is a serious matter. Imports and interprovincial trade already regularly occur, without damaging the stability of supply and price in the marketplace that could be in jeopardy with the deregulation of container sizes. Standard containers allow for predictable, standard inventory of packaging material with minimal waste and allow retailers to efficiently utilize shelf space by stocking a limited number of standard sizes. Standard containers allow consumers to more easily make price comparisons between equally sized products.
Negotiations on standard containers and ministerial exemptions with the United States took three years to achieve. An elimination of this policy without a reciprocal elimination or a change in marketing orders in the United States puts Canada at a severe trade disadvantage.
Second, changes to the seed potato quality management program are a huge concern to the P.E.I. seed potato industry. The primary concern relates to amending these regulations without acceptance or harmonization with the 17 seed certification agendas in the United States which will put at risk our ability to export seed to the United States for re-certification. There is also the issue of cost.
There is the issue of past practice, but in fairness to the government I lay out those concerns going forward in a proactive way to give it a heads up that we are concerned and to allow the consultations and discussions to meet the needs of Canadian farmers rather than just the desires of deregulating on the part of CFIA.
