Agriculture committee  We can definitely follow up with a more fulsome recommendation, but it does start with the baseline or the benchmark tools. The regulatory model has to be in play. As Mr. Bonnett noted, if that alignment with the regulatory systems is not in place, then the other elements that industry can then support and drive will not be manageable.

Agriculture committee  Very quickly, it is supported by regulation in Canada. It is structured in a similar manner to the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act in the U.S. on the slow pay and no pay model. In short, the dispute resolution corporation was created with a membership-based framework. To sell or market in Canada you are required, at this point, to either have a CFIA licence to sell interprovincially or import product or have a DRC membership.

Agriculture committee  It's a membership-driven cost. There's no cost to the government. We were very fortunate in that the previous government, back in 1998-99, invested $1 million in the research and the initial seed money to determine if this was even possible. Those funds from the government set the stage, but the program is fully funded by industry.

Agriculture committee  That's a very valid question. When we're looking at phytosanitary, and at trying to position plant health as a competitive advantage in terms of the negatives in the market, there's also food safety. We're also seeing the food safety movement, where the buying community may be looking at different requirements from what the market is requiring.

Agriculture committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. Members of the House committee on agriculture and agrifood, thank you for the opportunity to speak with you today. As you know, the Canadian Produce Marketing Association represents over 840 companies across the fruit and vegetable supply chain, from farm gate to dinner plate.

Agriculture committee  And linking through at the provincial level as well. We can't forget the provinces.

Agriculture committee  We are very different industries, but so similar in some ways.

Agriculture committee  It does occur across the fruit and veg sector. I mentioned Peak of the Market in Winnipeg, and it's a co-operative. Ocean Spray is another one. There are numbers of them across the country. Success comes in partnership. It doesn't necessarily need to be a co-operative per se, but the philosophical approach of that partnership delivery of consolidating many small growers and delivering product through consistent quality, the right food safety and assurance system, and a common dealer has potential to grow.

Agriculture committee  Industry provides 25%, and government 75%. That's the ideal model.

Agriculture committee  For the produce sector, I can say that the current cluster model seems to be working, as managed through the Canadian Horticultural Council. The direct question should be asked of Rebecca Lee, the CEO at CHC. I do feel that there has been success, but there is potential to continuously improve.

Agriculture committee  Within the science, research, and innovation side—the innovation side, definitely—we all laugh about autonomous vehicles, but in that last leg of delivery, going back to the labour and the issue around transportation and not having enough truck drivers, as an example, there are current tests under way in Europe that are looking at that final leg of delivery using autonomous trucks.

Agriculture committee  No, there isn't one that I'm aware of in the current framework. How we enable an industry to access labour is a collateral component that we need to look at under the new framework. We're fortunate within the produce industry with our foreign worker program. We do have access to some labour, but there are challenges with that, especially in Quebec with the visas; we are having challenges actually getting them approved and moving through the system.

Agriculture committee  Similarly to Greg, the produce industry relies heavily on the current business risk management tools that are in place within the current Growing Forward framework, and the development of those tools and improved access to them. The biggest piece I'm going to add as an element into this is the question of transitioning existing farmers to new generation farmers within the business risk management model.

Agriculture committee  I agree that the investment in the infrastructure is essential. Is there an opportunity to access funding that can support the development of the housing and the development of the tools that can provide education to the workers when they are here in Canada? The bigger piece around all this is that we have multiple generations of workers within the produce sector—and I can only talk to the produce sector—who have come from the Caribbean, as an example, and who are experts in their field.

Agriculture committee  I agree with my colleague. It has to be a full system approach, not just at the grower level. We have to recognize also that Canadians are price sensitive and ask ourselves if we are doing enough as industry and as government to ensure that we deliver the most cost-effective price to our food and are putting the right systems and regulatory framework in place to enable consumers to access low-cost, highly nutritious food that is grown locally or grown somewhere in the country.