Canada’s new agriculture minister has instructed the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) to reduce red tape and harmonize certain regulations with trading partners.
“I’ve established an agreement with the CFIA that they are going to be taking forward measures to reduce red tape, to be able focus on the registration of farm products more quickly, particularly with trusted jurisdictions, and other initiatives we can do to advance the sector at a very crucial time,” says Kody Blois, in a video posted to social media late Tuesday.
The timelines for implementing the changes are not clear, with the uncertainty around a looming federal election, but the CFIA says it is working on the following measures (descriptions supplied by the CFIA):
- Speeding up product approvals to provide alternatives to U.S.-sourced animal feed.
This measure will alleviate the burden of tariffs on animal feed producers, by increasing the number of approved feed ingredients from within Canada or from other countries. The CFIA will work with industry to understand prioritization needs and provide new guidance to facilitate the pre-market evaluation process for the approval or registration of some feeds products which are already authorized by a trusted foreign regulator. Together, these measures will enable quicker access to alternative feeds, reduce costs to farmers in the short-term, and support future supply chain sustainability for Canadian producers for years to come. - Aiming to harmonize our bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) enhanced feed ban with U.S. requirements. Globally, the incidence of BSE has declined significantly and in 2021, the World Organisation for Animal Health recognized Canada as a country with negligible risk for BSE. Currently, differences between Canadian and U.S. requirements put our beef industry at a competitive disadvantage to their U.S. counterparts. We are working with industry on options to reduce unnecessary costs and improve competitiveness while continuing to protect animal health and maintain Canada’s international trade access.
- Addressing stakeholder irritants and leveling the playing field for Canadian producers through advancing key regulatory changes that support industry growth and enable fair trade. Canada will explore increasing the maximum slaughter age for feeder calves from 36 to 40 weeks to permit a higher market price for Canadian producers. (Editor’s note: weeks is correct – veal.) We are also working to ensure parity between Canadian hatcheries and U.S. hatcheries by harmonizing testing requirements for salmonella enteritis, in line with recent updates to Canadian hatchery regulations.
- Removing outdated prescriptive requirements and supporting innovation to enable industry-led actions to meet consumer demands and evolving market conditions. We will examine removing unnecessary or outdated labelling requirements for fresh fruit and vegetables. In addition, we will continue work on a new approach to modernizing fresh fruit and vegetable grades, with the goal of having grades that are outcome-based, harmonized with trading partners where possible, and align with the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations. The CFIA is committed to working with industry to understand obstacles and consult on requirements like standardized food container sizes, which can create unintended trade barriers within Canada, and internationally.
In 2023, as a Liberal backbencher, Blois introduced a private member’s bill in the House of Commons aimed at speeding up regulatory approvals of new seed genetics, feed products, and crop protection products for Canadian farmers, but the bill did not make it past first reading.
Blois was sworn in as ag minister in Mark Carney’s cabinet on Friday, March 14. It’s expected Carney will trigger a federal election within the next week, leaving limited time for the new ag minister to implement changes before the government goes into caretaker mode.
At a crucial time for Canadian farmers, I’m doing everything in my power to ensure a level, competitive playing field.
With the support of the CFIA, we’re working to remove unnecessary red tape, speed up product approvals, and reduce costs for producers, all while maintaining… pic.twitter.com/XQGtdlxjJo
— Kody Blois (@KodyBloisNS) March 19, 2025
