When our food system fails, who pays the price?

We place a lot of trust in our national food system. We assume that our foods are produced safely and humanely, and that the animals in our food system are afforded a high standard of care. In reality though, Canadian regulations governing food production do little to ensure the ethical treatment of farm animals, as evidenced by two developments in the agricultural sector this month. First, NAFTA discussions surrounding supply management erupted into a near trade war with the U.S., raising a big question: how do Canadians feel about supply management? Supply management restricts the production of dairy, poultry and eggs to match anticipated demand, thereby ensuring a guaranteed market for these items at an artificially high price. The system has proponents and opponents, but most people would agree that such a protectionist system should require the industries it protects to have some of the best food safety and animal health and welfare standards in the world. Sadly, however, Canada has managed to protect its domestic poultry, egg and dairy industries while maintaining lax requirements for animal health and safety. After all, what incentive do farmers have to strive for better products and better animal care if they are guaranteed a good market price? The answer may be foreign trade. Canada’s supply management system has become a controversial topic in the stalled NAFTA renegotiations, threatening to undermine trade relations with the United States. The situation will likely worsen as our trading partners increasingly demand higher animal welfare standards. California just approved a proposition for inclusion in its November ballot; if passed, it will protect farm animals by prohibiting the use of cruel cage confinement systems and the sale of products from operations that use such cages. There are also rumours that the European Union will tighten its trading requirements to ensure that imported goods match the animal health and welfare standards adhered to by domestic producers—standards which are significantly more stringent than those in Canada. Ultimately, supply management simply protects industries that are struggling to keep pace with changing consumer interests and expectations. Canada’s per capita consumption of dairy milk plummeted by 22 per cent from 1996 to 2015, but the non-dairy milk market is booming. Similarly, 43 per cent of Canadians are actively consuming less animal proteins in favour of plant-based proteins. Consumer patterns are shifting, but the economics of Canadian agriculture are lagging behind. In fact, we just missed an opportunity to improve our national food system regulations. This brings us to the second development: on June 13, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency released the new Safe Food for Canadians Regulations, which will come into effect in January 2019. Over the past few years, Canadians have said they want the animals we raise for food to be treated humanely. We want animals to be freed from crowded cages and to have space to roam around, and we expect our government to enact laws that mandate humane treatment. Our new regulations should reflect that. But they don’t. The new Safe Food for Canadians Regulations do not prohibit things like the regular use of highly-painful electric prods, even though international best practice dictates that electric prods only be used in emergency situations. There are no express prohibitions on poor animal handling techniques aside from hitting, leaving animals vulnerable to being kicked, dragged and painfully poked. The regulations also do not require that sick or injured animals be euthanized immediately. Most importantly, the regulations allow chickens and turkeys to be suspended by their legs while fully conscious, prior to slaughter. This is a terrifying and painful experience for these birds, who are selectively bred to grow heavy breasts that put immense pressure on their young legs, so much so that broken or amputated legs are common on slaughter lines. These sensitive creatures often thrash while suspended, missing the electrified bath that is supposed to stun them before they are slaughtered. Like other federal regulations that govern the care and handling of farm animals, these new food safety regulations fall short of ensuring animal welfare. Clearly, there are significant issues in Canada’s food system and they will remain until we see meaningful action from decision-makers. In the interim, we will all continue to pay the price with a broken food system that compromises animal well-being, food safety and our values. Riana Topan is a campaign manager for Humane Society International/Canada. The Hill Times