Senate of Canada Amends “Save Food for Canadians Act”

Oct 04, 2012

The Senate of Canada’s agriculture committee amended a new food safety bill Thursday that would require the federal agriculture minister to review the Safe Food for Canadians Act every five years to ensure that food inspectors have the resources they need in order to enforce food safety regulations. The Conservative majority Senate voted in favour of the amendment put forward by Conservative Senator Don Plett.

The Senate also voted down an amendment proposed by Liberal Senator Bob Peterson that would have had the auditor general conduct the assessment rather than the minister. Paterson criticized the amendment arguing that the minister would have a conflict of interest reviewing the bill and that it would be best served if that was something the auditor general would oversee instead. The bill still needs to pass the House of Commons before it becomes law.

Video: Finding a Balance of Innovation and Regulation - Dr. Peter Facchini

Regulations help markets and industry exist on level playing fields, keeping consumers safe and innovation from going too far. However, incredibly strict regulations can stunt innovation and cause entire industries to wither away. Dr. Peter James Facchini brings his perspective on how existing regulations have slowed the advancement of medical developments within Canada. Given the international concern of opium poppy’s illicit potential, Health Canada must abide by this global policy. But with modern technology pushing the development of many pharmaceuticals to being grown via fermentation, is it time to reconsider the rules?

Dr. Peter James Facchini leads research into the metabolic biochemistry in opium poppy at the University of Calgary. For more than 30 years, his work has contributed to the increased availability of benzylisoquinoline alkaloid biosynthetic genes to assist in the creation of morphine for pharmaceutical use. Dr. Facchini completed his B.Sc. and Ph.D. in Biological Sciences at the University of Toronto before completing Postdoctoral Fellowships in Biochemistry at the University of Kentucky in 1992 & Université de Montréal in 1995.