One of the many lobbying activities KAP deals with is presenting to legislative committees on proposed changes to legislation and regulations affecting Manitoba farmers. The most recent Food Safety and Related Amendments Act went before committee on Thursday, June 4, 2009, and KAP was there to present.
Bill 7 essentially covers regulations to ensure the safety of food by requiring those who operate commercial premises where food is grown, produced, processed or sold to be licensed and to follow food safety standards.
“It’s basically a restructuring of all food safety regulations relating to the farm into one package, and hopefully it will help make this clearer for producers,” said Ian Wishart, KAP President.
President Wishart spoke in front of the committee and KAP was successful in its attempt to bring about amendments at that level.
The amendments included: legal protection for owners regarding reporting food safety risks, an extension from one week to two weeks for the submission of appeals if an operator is given an order by an inspector, and requiring inspectors to issue receipts when they remove or copy information from a premise. A clarification was also made regarding a requirement that inspectors must have consent of the owner/occupant or the authority of a warrant before entering a private dwelling.
KAP would like to thank the Hon. Rosann Wowchuk, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives, and the committee for adopting the suggested amendments.
“It shows a great responsiveness on the part of the government to make changes to ensure that the bill is more workable for producers,” said Wishart.
The details of this bill will be in the regulations, and KAP calls upon the government to further consult with producers on any regulations under the act.
To view the amendments to Bill 7, click here.
