Agriculture committee  So we should understand that some of our customer base will use it as a marketing ploy. At the Canadian Meat Council, which Rory and I are both members of—active members—we look at food safety and animal welfare as non-competitive issues. It's allowed the organizations of all s

Agriculture committee  But keep in mind that when we think that, it also has to be appliable.

Agriculture committee  It's like having science but you can't apply it. What good is it?

Agriculture committee  Yes, and I think I have to touch on your crate issue.

Agriculture committee  What has happened in the beef industry, which I never thought of.... I got into a labelling dispute on vitamin D made from lanolin, from sheep's wool. They call it a byproduct in Canada, which is an issue. But I did get into that issue simply because that's what the consumer is

Agriculture committee  I'll leave it there. There was a little ranting there. Sorry about that, Mr. Chair.

Agriculture committee  Rory touched on the two-year issue. The Brooks plant employs about 2,900, and we're proud to say that only 35% of them are foreign workers; the rest are all domestic people. Part of the issue ends up being that two-year program. It takes you three months to make an employee eff

Agriculture committee  We'll take full advantage of it. We appreciate it.

Agriculture committee  Do you want to start with the pork?

Agriculture committee  You're close.

Agriculture committee  I can't quantify it in dollars, but I would say that if we got an FTA with Japan, we'd see the disappearance of our middles, which is our critical one. That would be a big market for us, probably about 20% of their marketplace. We moved that bar from 21 months to 30 months and un

Agriculture committee  People say you should do a business plan in one, two, five, 10. In the meat business, in the beef business, and I think for red meat in general, five years is a lifetime. It's big money. There are big investments. We're proud of what we do. If we're unable to make the regulatory

Agriculture committee  At this point I would say absolutely not. Two wrongs never make a right.

Agriculture committee  But the issue is that if you don't have something to give away, you're negotiating with only one hand, and it's kind of hard. So we look forward to the success of the border cooperation. We really do.

Agriculture committee  No, it shouldn't happen at all. We have equivalent inspection systems. We strongly believe the two countries have equivalent systems and they should both recognize that, and these trucks should move freely. That would help us tremendously as well.