12-Month Lobbying Summary - In-house Organization

Subject Matters

• Agriculture
• Consumer Issues
• Employment and Training
• Health
• Immigration
• Industry
• Infrastructure
• Internal Trade
• International Trade
• Labour
• Taxation and Finance

Subject Matter Details

Legislative Proposal, Bill or Resolution

• Canada-EU: the Canadian Meat Council is advocating for commercially viable access to Europe for Canadian beef and pork under the provisions of the Canada Europe Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement -CETA.
• Canada-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement: the Canadian Meat Council is very supportive of this Agreement and is providing input for an ambitious outcome.
• Canadian Food Inspection Agency and User Fee Act: The Canadian Meat Council is advocating for a review of the CFIA fee structure and establishment of service standards as required by the User Fee Act.
• International Barriers to Trade: The Canadian Meat Council seeks to eliminate or prevent out-dated, overly burdensome, discriminatory or otherwise inappropriate technical requirements in other countries that can create unnecessary obstacles to trade, reduce competition and prevent Canadian exporters from participating in global supply under the WTO SPS and TBT Agreements. The Canadian Meat Council is advocating for strengthened regulatory cooperation initiatives in regional, plurilateral and multilateral trade agreements to further facilitate trade.
• Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement- the Canadian Meat Council is advocating for the Government of Canada to ratify the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement Negotiations. Canada should be seeking an ambitious free trade agreement with all parties in the negotiations.
• World Trade Organization Doha Round Negotiations: the Canadian Meat Council supports an ambitious trade deal at the World Trade Organization to gain better access to important export markets. We need a significant reduction in import tariffs, the elimination of export subsidies and greatly reduced domestic support that distorts pricing and international markets.

Legislative Proposal, Bill or Resolution, Regulation

• Canada US Regulatory Cooperation: The Canadian Meat Council is advocating for greater regulatory alignment between Canada and the U.S. to achieve enhanced equivalency of inspection systems.
• Interprovincial Meat Trade Pilot Project:the Canadian Meat Council is advocating that all meat processed in Canada should be inspected by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency under the new Safe Food for Canadians Act and Regulations.

Policies or Program

• Access to Labour:The Government of Canada should create a 10-year $50 million tax credit for the adoption of automation and industrial robotics in the Canadian meat industry to help Canada’s meat packing and processing industry become more productive during this time of chronic labour shortages.
• Capital Cost Allowance: The Canadian Meat Council is advocating for the permanent adoption of the temporary increase to the depreciation rate for manufacturing and machinery and equipment from 30% to 50% on a declining balance basis upon the expiry of the accelerated capital cost allowance. This would allow Canada to close the productivity gap with the U.S. and ensure that Canadian manufacturers, including meat processors, are on a level playing field with their U.S. counterparts.
• Employment Insurance: The Government of Canada should amend its Employment Insurance rules and have one single national standard for Employment Insurance Eligibility.
• Express Entry: The Canadian Meat Council is advocating that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada accommodate all “high demand occupations” including industrial butchers in the Express Entry Program that came into effect on January 1, 2015 without quota limitations. We are advocating for an adjustment to the National Occupation Classification for industrial butchers to Group B.
• Increased Budget for CFIA: The Government of Canada should contribute an additional $10 million to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency for food safety compliance promotion of the new Safe Food for Canadians Regulations over the period 2015-20. The Agency needs adequate resources to ensure that compliance with the new requirements is achieved quickly to ensure that Canada’s food safety system remains one of the very best in the world.
• Increased budget for CFIA: The Government of Canada should contribute an additional $5 million to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency for their new initiative “Safe Food Canada: the Learning Partnership” for the period 2015-2020. The Government of Canada is taking further action to strengthen Canada's world-class food safety system with the launch of the Safe Food for Canadians Action Plan.
• Labour Mobility Incentive Program: The Canadian Meat Council is advocating for a new 5-year $50 million Labour Mobility Incentive Program targeted at Canada’s youth to strengthen Canada’s labour market.
• Manual of Procedures: the Canadian Meat Council is requesting that the Government update policies on animal transportation and welfare issues- Chapter 12 of the Meat Hygiene Manual of Procedures.
• Market Access for Canadian Meat Exports Program: The Canadian Meat Council is advocating for a 5-year $10 million Market Access for Canadian Meat Exports Program to help Canada’s meat packing and processing industry take full advantage of the export opportunities created by new international trade agreements.
• Meat Safety Tax Credit: the Canadian Meat Council is advocating for the creation of a new Meat Safety Tax Credit based on eligible expenses for Canada’s food processing industry for a safer food supply for Canadians.
• Refugees: We are advocating for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada to initiate efforts to direct refugee settlement to locations where individuals may be qualified, with training, to fill meat industry job vacancies. The Canadian meat industry also welcomes any other initiatives that will facilitate inter-provincial labour mobility of unemployed, under-employed and disadvantaged Canadians willing to work in our industry.
• Temporary Foreign Worker Program: the Canadian Meat Council is advocating for the continued access for the Temporary Foreign Worker Program for Canada's meat industry. Nevertheless, and notwithstanding extensive efforts to recruit domestically, it is the reality of our industry that the number of workers required exceeds, by far, the number of both “lower-skilled” and “higher-skilled” Canadian candidates who are both willing and able to work in Canada's meat processing industry. There is now an application fee of $1000 per Temporary Foreign Worker- if a form has 1 employee or 100 employees the charge is $1000 per worker applied for. If the request is rejected the fee is not refunded. These fees seem much higher than a reasonable cost to process- especially when the request for multiple employees is rejected.
• Veterinary Import Policy: Animal Health Risk Assessment: the Canadian Meat Council has requested an updated risk assessment on the importation of live American hogs for slaughter in Canada.

Regulation

• Food and Drug Regulations: the Canadian Meat Council is advocating for the approval of new regulations to extend the use of food irradiation in Canada to include ground beef, poultry, and beef carcasses.
• Health Canada Own Use Drug Provision: the Canadian Meat Council supports the introduction of amendments to the Food and Drug Regulations to restrict personal use importation of unapproved veterinary drugs intended to be administered to food-producing animals.
• Product of Canada Guidelines: the Canadian Meat Council supports a review of the Product of Canada Guidelines with regard to labelling of meat products.
• Safe Food for Canadians Act: The Canadian Meat Council is advocating for the development of outcome based food safety regulations under the Safe Food for Canadians Act. The Canadian Meat Council is advocating for the development and implementation of a risk-based and evidence-based food inspection safety system.