Federal regulators said they heard producer concerns and confusion and would ‘pause’ publication of the proposed changes
Glacier FarmMedia — The Canadian Food Inspection Agency says it will hold off on posting new traceability regulations for now.
The agency issued a statement Jan. 10 after public confusion about whether the amendments to the Health of Animals Regulations, announced in 2023, were actually in force. Some thought they took effect Jan. 1, but they had not yet been introduced in Canada Gazette, Part II, which is a key legislative requirement.
Read Also
Larger U.S. corn carryout forecast; soybeans/wheat also up
Corn ending stocks in the United States for 2025/26 will be much larger than earlier expectations, according to updated supply/demand tables from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
CFIA had expected to publish the regulations, developed along with industry organizations, in the spring. They would have included required premises identification numbers to purchase ID tags, movement reporting when cattle leave their home operations and reporting the arrival of cattle within seven days.
Producers said these regulations would be costly and onerous.
Last week, provincial and national beef organizations issued statements about the issue, noting the regulations weren’t in place but also that producers had concerns. Some asked for CFIA to postpone the introduction until these could be addressed.
On the weekend, CFIA said it was aware of the concerns.
“These amendments are not currently in place and have not been finalized,” it said.
“The CFIA has consulted with industry, associations and governments regarding the proposed amendments and will continue to do so. The CFIA will pause any publication of the regulations until the proposed changes are more widely understood and concerns are heard and taken into consideration.”
Some producers on social media suggested CFIA had “snuck” in the regulations late last year as a way to exert control over them. But the draft regulations were published in Part 1 of the Canada Gazette in 2023 and a 90-day comment period followed. The agency published a What We Heard report in 2024 to summarize what it had heard.
The proposed changes will be phased in once they are published.
