subject: Government Introduces New Safe Food For Canadians Act [print this page] The federal government today introduced the Safe Food for Canadians Act, which would bring several current food-related acts under one umbrella.
The act would consolidate the Fish Inspection Act, the Canada Agricultural Products Act, the Meat Inspection Act, and the food provisions of the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act.
"The Safe Food for Canadians Act strengthens and modernizes our food safety system to make sure it continues to provide safe food for Canadians," Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz said in a release.
According to the release, the proposed act will improve food oversight by:- instituting a more consistent inspection regime across all food commodities;- implementing tougher penalties for activities that put the health and safety of Canadians at risk;- providing better control over imports and exports; and- strengthening food traceability.The act will also implement tougher fines for activities that put the health and safety of Canadians at risk. Previously, anyone convicted of a serious offence could have been fined up to a maximum of $250,000, but the penalties could be as high as $5,000,000, or even higher at the court's discretion, under the new act.New penalties are also being added for recklessly endangering the lives of Canadians through tampering, deceptive practices or hoaxes."As a mother of a young child, I understand how important food safety is to Canadian families," stated Minister of Health Leona Aglukkaq. "This is another example of our government taking action to help protect the health and safety of Canadians."The proposed act would align inspection and enforcement powers across all food commodities, improving the safety of food as well as reducing overlap and helping industry better understand and comply with food safety law. The act would also provide a new mechanism for regulated parties to seek review of certain decisions made by CFIA officials.According to the release, the proposed act is the result of extensive consultation over a number of years with industry, consumer groups, provincial and territorial governments, and other stakeholders. It also builds on the government's commitment to address recommendations from the Weatherill Report that followed the 2008 listeria outbreak.Representatives for the Canadian Meat Council (CMC), Canadian Poultry and Egg Processors and Further Poultry Processors Association of Canada(FPPA) in a separate release said Canada's meat and egg processors welcome the introduction of the bill. With some 67,500 employees and annual sales exceeding $21.3 billion, the meat and egg processing industry is the largest segment of Canada's food processing sector."The proposed Safe Food for Canadians Act will improve food oversight by instituting a more consistent inspection regime across all food commodities and introduces better controls on imported foods," FPPA general manager Robert de Valk stated."We look forward to working closely with the government and elected officials at parliamentary hearings to ensure that the new act sets up an internationally competitive regulatory framework that enables and encourages the Canadian meat industry to achieve the highest levels of food safety," added CMC executive director Jim Laws.]by: ilcmicrochem
