Canadian Pork Council Election Priorities

The Canadian Pork Council (CPC) has outlined its federal election priorities.

“Canadian pork producers work hard every day to provide high quality, nutritious, affordable and sustainable protein to families in Canada and around the world,” said Rick Bergman, CPC Chair. “They need parties to partner with them to deliver economic growth and prosperity for all Canadians.”

CPC says parties are needed to partner with producers to maximize the potential of the sector by committing to:

• Fix Business Risk Management programs so they work for producers in need
• Facilitate access to skilled workers
• Defend, improve and expand market access
• Resolve trade barriers in China, the world’s largest pork importer

CPC notes that the health of Canadian pigs is one of the value chain's greatest assets but it is at risk. The group says parties should commit to protect the herd by:

• Committing $50 million to implement the Pan-Canadian African Swine Fever action plan
• Establishing a Canadian Foot-and-Mouth disease vaccine bank

Canadian Pork Council is asking parties to work with producers to promote the environment by:

• Making concrete emissions reductions by partnering with producers to further improve the environmental sustainability of Canadian pork
• Exempting farm fuels such as propane and natural gas from the carbon pricing system, which impacts competitiveness without reducing emissions.

“Pork producers are calling on candidates to commit to polices so producers can employ more Canadians, increase the value of exports and build better, more resilient communities from coast to coast,” added René Roy, CPC Vice-Chair.