| | It is clear that Alberta's beef and hog industries are struggling financially. Other red meat sectors are also frequently facing difficult economic issues. A combination of higher input costs, reduced market returns, and segregation and discounting of Alberta livestock and meat products due to Mandatory Country of Origin Labeling (MCOOL), have pushed several sectors in our livestock industry into a very difficult position.
After noticing that many of our global competitors were doing much better than we were in terms of growing their market share and increasing their returns, and after significant industry input, our Minister, the Honourable George Groeneveld announced the Alberta Livestock and Meat Strategy on June 5, 2008. The idea behind the strategy is that only through a systematic approach which includes every part of the value chain working together, can we pull ourselves successfully back into a competitive position.
The Strategy will have some specific and positive implications for the animal health and food safety sector. One of the key components of the Strategy is to increase the value of Alberta products through differentiation or branding. Part of that branding would include a suite of on-farm food safety programs and product traceability, which combined with other environmental and quality parameters, will likely create a higher-end brand for our products. This will entail strengthening our surveillance and diagnostic capacity; implementing on-farm food safety programs which require periodic on-farm audits; and, an understanding of where world trade is moving on sanitary and phyto-sanitary issues so that we can be a step ahead and derive more value for our products. We are currently discussing details of these system improvements with stakeholders. I know that our Director of Food Safety Division, Greg Orriss and our Chief Provincial Veterinarian, Dr. Gerald Hauer would welcome further discussion with you on these issues. Another useful contact would be Dr. Sandy Honour, who has been temporarily seconded to the Alberta Livestock and Meat Agency. We invite you to share your thoughts and suggestions with them.
By working together and building together, we can regain our competitive position. More importantly, we can develop the intellect, infrastructure and products that will create the platforms that enable us to become the best livestock and meat industry in the world.
John Knapp, Deputy Minister
Agriculture and Rural Development |
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