by Christopher Kelly-Bisson

Leaders of the major Canadian political parties have focused largely on issues of economic growth and government accountability this election campaign. Yet, there still remains a national concern that has fallen by the wayside: food. Regulating the production, transportation, and quality of food is not an election issue that has gained any attention, despite the myriad roles the federal government plays in keeping us fed.

Perhaps one of the reasons for this is that food and agriculture are some of the few issues the Conservative Party appears comfortable dealing with. Agricultural and rural communities represent some of the most secure Conservative ridings across Canada. Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz, for instance, who has held the riding of Battlefords-Lloydminster since 1997, is currently running unopposed.

However, there is a large and growing number of food producers and consumers who are dissatisfied with changes that have taken place since Stephen Harper took office in 2006. The Harper government has left us with a more precarious, inequitable, and unsustainable national food system.

There is a lot that you, the voter, need to think about in this election. The next time a candidate comes knocking on your door, consider bringing up these five federal-level issues facing Canada’s food system.

1) Supply Management

Since 2011, Harper has weakened Canada’s supply management system. This is most notable with the majority stake purchase of the Canadian Wheat Board by the Saudi Global Grain Group. This massive sell-off set in motion a cascade of foreign multinational acquisitions. Some of these include imminent plans to accept Peruvian blueberry imports, as well as American flour corporation Ardent Mills’ purchase of Mondalez Canada in Mississauga. These deals are threats to the livelihood of local producers.

2) Trade Agreements

Harper’s compromises on supply management pale in comparison to what could be coming if Canada signs on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) or the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) with the  European Union. Canada has already liberalized our seed supply through the passing of Bill C-18, which extends the ability of global seed corporations to claim royalties on unpatentable seed varieties. The Harper government has already stated that they would permit greater dairy imports in order to join CETA, which would force Quebec and Ontario dairy farmers to accept lower prices for milk products. Canada has even gone further than the United States in deregulating food exports by opposing mandatory Country of Origin Labelling (mCOOL) for meat products.

3) Food Safety Cuts

The Harper government has also weakened Canada’s ability to keep our food safe to eat. It was this past July that Bob Kingston, Agriculture Union President, raised the alarm that, with cuts to food inspectors, there is an imminent and increased risk of food safety incidents. In article he wrote for iPolitics, he claimed that “there have already been five times as many recalls due to listeria contamination this year (2015) than in the year before.”

Livestock import provisions have recently been lightened, raising concerns over the spread of Porcine Epidemic Diarrhoea from the U.S. In addition, cuts were recently made to the Agriculture and Agri-Food Research Lethbridge Research Centre, which resulted in the closure of their library, an important resource centre for food safety.

4) Local and Sustainable Food Production

Major reforms are needed to the CFIA in order to support sustainable and local food production.

Cheese producers have been demanding permission to use unpasteurized milk for the production of higher quality dairy products. Collaboration with provinces also needs to be emphasized to allow lower quota thresholds and establish smaller-scale, local abattoirs so that small farms can enter domestic markets.

Significant reforms and greater funding is needed for the Nutrition North program to help Arctic communities access more affordable food. Regulatory reforms in butchering and transportation are also needed in order to support traditional country food production and transportation.

5) Seed Supply and GMO Regulations

Liberalization of seed production under the Harper government has resulted in less regulation over multinational agribusiness. Under the new Agricultural Innovations Act, large seed corporations can claim plant breeders’ rights over seed varieties that remain unclaimed.

Canada has also recently permitted more genetically-engineered products to be produced in Canada, such as the Arctic Apple, which is engineered so that slices do not brown when exposed to air. This puts increased pressure on local non-GMO producers.

While scientific evidence weighs heavily on Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) being safe for human consumption, there are still those who demand GMO labelling. Furthermore, the most significant problems with the growth in GMO production are the intensively export-oriented production traps that push farmers into greater levels of debt.

We Need to Get Food on The Menu This Election

The above election issues are only a few of the many factors that affect our food and those who produce it in Canada. Poverty reduction, education, and public health programming, for instance, are three significant factors that can also make a difference in access to food.

The topic of food sovereignty is so complex that organizations such as Food Secure Canada have called for a National Food Strategy. Such a process would investigate and make recommendations on how to approach Canada’s complex food system in order to achieve food sovereignty.

Food has not yet appeared on the menu for this election but an informed public asking questions of their local candidates on the issue might lift it to prominence. So next time a candidate knocks at your door, make sure to bring-up the five topics discussed above and see what they have to say.

This article first appeared in the Leveller Vol.8, No. 1 (September 2015).