New CFIA centres concentrate expertise

Monday, January 7, 2013

by SUSAN MANN

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is creating 16 centres of expertise across Canada, three of which will be located in Guelph, the federal government announced Monday.

Federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz says in the Monday press release that the centres “will pool expertise and make it available through a single window making the CFIA more efficient and giving industry, CFIA inspectors and Canadians better, more consistent service.”

The centres slated for Guelph are: agri foods and non-federally registered products, import/export of animals and horticulture.

Meagan Murdoch, Ritz’s communications director, says the idea is to locate the majority of the CFIA’s field experts in the various centres but some will stay at the national headquarters in Ottawa and other parts of Canada.

“They were trying to concentrate them (the experts) where the biggest concentration of the industry is,” she explains.

The centres will be located near both academic and provincial experts to tap into that expertise and to foster collaboration among organizations. Murdoch says the exact locations of the centres in the selected cities haven’t been determined yet.

Other centres are:

• Forestry – Burnaby, B.C.
• Finfish – Burnaby, B.C.
• Red meat slaughter – Calgary, Alberta
• Foreign animal disease and emergency management – Calgary, Alberta
• Grains and oilseeds, seed, plants with novel traits and fertilizer – Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
• Labelling and claims – national capital region
• Animal feed – national capital region
• Poultry slaughter – St-Hyacinthe, Quebec
• Processed meat and poultry – St-Hyacinthe, Quebec
• Domestic animal disease and welfare – St-Hyacinthe, Quebec
• Shellfish – Moncton, New Brunswick
• Aquatic animal health – Moncton, New Brunswick
• Potatoes and soil – Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island.

Murdoch says CFIA meat and other inspectors remain in their current locations. But inspectors often call CFIA offices looking for information and help. Now they’ll have “more targeted spots to call, which will help them in getting the information they need quickly. That in turn will help the industry because inspectors will be able to do their job more quickly and efficiently.”

The centres will be implemented over the next few years. But Murdoch says a digital and web based version will start up this year. BF