CFIA wants feedback from stakeholders

Ottawa – The federal government wants to hear what matters to stakeholders in Canada’s food industry — specifically when it comes to food safety, meat inspection and certification, animal health and plant health.

In a statement, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) says it has launched a new online tool that’s open to those interested parties.

Click here to access the site.

The CFIA wants “feedback on the current Canada-US Regulatory Cooperation Council (RCC) work plans” and is looking for “input on future opportunities.”

The CFIA, the US Food and Drug Administration and the US Department of Agriculture created the RCC in 2011. The aim, says the statement, is “to facilitate closer cooperation between Canada and the US to develop smarter approaches to regulations and to make both economies stronger and more competitive, while meeting the fundamental responsibilities to protect the safety and welfare of citizens.”

“Trade between Canada and the US generates many jobs for hard working Canadians,” Lawrence MacAuley, Canada’s minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food.

“The government of Canada is committed to streamlining regulations between our two countries while protecting health, safety, and the environment. We are committed to working with our US partners through the RCC to achieve better efficiency on both sides of the border.”

Since 2012, all three organizations have developed annual joint work plans in animal health, food safety, meat inspection and certification and plant health. The RCC prioritizes those plans based on what it gathers from stakeholders.

The online tool is open until Oct. 31, 2017.