Ottawa Citizen blows whistle
on Cdn. Food Inspection Agency
Tuesday, March 13, 2001
Kelly Cryderman of the Ottawa Citizen reported this week that "the latest auditor general's report hints the Canadian Food
Inspection Agency may be a bit too cosy with the industry it's
supposed to be watching over."
| "The (CFIA's)key stakeholder group, the "Group of
Thirty,'' includes 30 industry groups, but only seven academic and
professional groups and one consumer group." |
The 2000 Auditor General's report (which was released last month) notes that agency boards such as The Ministerial Advisory Board have a significant percentage of "industry representatives" as compared to a paltry few academics and consumer
representatives.
Cryderman writes "The agency's key stakeholder group, the "Group of
Thirty,'' includes 30 industry groups, but only seven academic and
professional groups and one consumer group."
The report further states that in a number of areas "the agency did not maintain sufficient
dialogue with stakeholders, particularly Parliament and the public,''
This included "the implementation of the Hazard Analysis and
Critical Control Points (HACCP) food-safety system" says the report.
|
| "the fact that the (CFIA) -- and Health Canada -- is both regulating and promoting the industry is a conflict
of interest, giving the appearance of being "more closely allied with
the industry interest than with the public good." |
Citing agency commissioned ads in major canadian magazines that promoted the 'safety of biotech food', The Citizen referred to a member of the Royal Society of Canada, noting "the fact that the agency -- and Health Canada -- is both regulating and promoting the industry is a conflict
of interest, giving the appearance of being "more closely allied with
the industry interest than with the public good." "
The Royal Society of Canada is a national
body of senior Canadian scientists and scholars, who, in their January report, blasted Health Canada and affiliated agencies for not properly safeguarding the health of Canadians.
They recommended "Canadian regulatory agencies and officials exercise great care to
maintain an objective and neutral stance with respect to the public
debate about the risks and benefits of biotechnology in their public
statements and interpretations of the regulatory process."
The question is, will Canadians ever be assured of the safe food supply that Canadian governments have been promoting for decades.
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