Farmscape for March 7, 2007  (Episode 2419)

Two of Canada's national producer organizations have now completed the two part first phase of the federal government's process for endorsing their on-farm food safety programs and a third is close.

To enhance the international acceptance of Canada's on farm food safety programs the Canadian Food Inspection Agency has created a review process to verify the soundness of the programs and their management systems.

On-Farm Food Safety Recognition Section national coordinator C. Warren Smandych says, 15 of the 19 interested commodity groups have officially entered the recognition process.

Clip-C. Warren Smandych-Canadian Food Inspection Agency

Of that 15 we have 12 national producer organizations that have received a letter of completion for technical review part one, that's for their generic HACCP models and producer manuals.

We have another national producer organization that is in the technical review process of which the review team is waiting for responses for requested corrections.

We have another producer organization in the screening process and we're in the process of just about putting them into a start block to start the technical review.

As well we have completed a screening for another national producer organization.

Right now we have completed technical review part two for a management system of an on-farm program of which two of those have received a letter of non-objection indicating completion of that process and we are in the midst of the technical review for a management system for one other national producer organization for which I'm hoping we will be able to give a letter of non-objection by the end of May 2007.

Smandych says, once those three organizations have implemented their management systems, they will be in a position to move to the implementation assessment, the final phase of the recognition process.

For Farmscape.Ca, I'm Bruce Cochrane.

       *Farmscape is a presentation of Sask Pork and Manitoba Pork Council