The Liberals committed to develop an action plan for this issue
Mislabeled poultry entering Canada from the United States is having negative effects in Canada.
Shipments of spent fowl, which are laying hens that have reached the end of their production cycle and are processed for meat to be used in soups or deli products, are coming over the border mislabeled as broiler meat, says Tim Klompmaker, chair of Chicken Farmers of Canada (CFC) and a chicken farmer from Norwood, Ont.
“This has been an issue for us for about 15 years,” he told Farms.com. “When trade agreements were negotiated, spent fowl was never included in import lists. So, all spent fowl comes into Canada tariff free.”
This has led to companies taking advantage of this loophole to avoid tariffs.
The issue first came to light in 2012.
That year, Canada imported 101 per cent of the United States’ entire spent fowl production, AAFC data showed.
“It’s fraud,” Klompmaker said.
This mislabeling results in about 1,400 annual job losses, $105 million in missing contributions to the Canadian economy and about $35 million in tax revenue losses, CFC says.
The Liberals committed to implementing an action plan to address this issue.
Before the federal election call, Agriculture Minister Kody Blois and Public Safety Minister David McGuinty announced a collaboration between the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and the Canadian Border Services Agency to confront this situation.
“The issue of spent fowl misrepresentation is one that demands decisive action. This is fraud and it undermines consumers, our farmers, distorts our markets, and puts Canadian jobs at risk,” the ministers said in a joint statement.
This action plan includes a CFC-backed innovation.
In 2014 and with funding from CFC, Trent University developed a DNA test to identify if a product contains chicken, spent fowl or a combination of both.
If the meat is found to be mislabeled, the company is sent a bill for the proper tariff.
Since 2010, CBSA and CFIA have handed out more than $361 million in fines.
“Implementing the DNA test at the border was part of our discussions with Minister Blois before he made the announcement,” Klompmaker said. “It’s another tool in the toolbox and would act as a deterrent. The two agencies are working on a memorandum of understanding about this.”