Dairy sector to develop traceability program

Ottawa, Ont. – The federal government is investing close to $1 million in the dairy sector to help it develop a national traceability program and implement an assurance program for dairy production.

Approximately half that amount will go to the Dairy Farmers of Canada to help the organization design and launch a traceability program for dairy cattle. The funding will also allow it to update standards for milk producers to meet traceability requirements, and assist provincial dairy organizations in implementing the program at the producer level.

The rest of the funding will go towards the proAction Initiative, a national assurance program for dairy production with six focus areas: milk quality, food safety, livestock traceability, animal care, biosecurity, and environment.

The program will help demonstrate the sector’s commitment to providing safe, high-quality dairy products to consumers. It will also include farmer training, as well as on-farm pilot testing of assessment tools.

“Dairy farmers in Canada already invest in various products and services to improve the quality of milk and care for their animals. As we proceed with the proAction Initiative over the next 10 years, we want to demonstrate to our customers our responsible stewardship to our animals and to the environment, as well as our commitment to produce sustainable, high-quality, safe and nutritious food,” says David Wiens, vice-president of the Dairy Farmers of Canada. “We are very grateful for this investment and recognition of our initiative by the federal government.”