ID & Traceability
What is Traceability?
- CFIA states that traceability is the ability to follow an item or group of items from one point in the supply chain to another.
- The purpose of implementing a traceability system is to ensure the protection of animal health, public health and food safety; improve response times in emergency situations (e.g., disease outbreak, tornadoes, floods, fires, contaminated feed supplement); as well as limit economic, environmental and social impacts.
Why is Traceability Important?
- Traceability also provides the means to increase market share for domestic and international markets by creating confidence in the attributes of Canadian products.
- A strong and credible traceability program will help to ensure Canada remains a leading producer and marketer of beef and dairy cattle, bison, sheep and goats, with a stable demand for products at all times.
CNGF’s Role in Traceability
CNGF is working with other national commodity groups and federal and provincial governments to prepare the Canadian goat industry for mandatory national identification and traceability. Traceability systems in Canada are based on three pillars: animal identification, premises identification, and movement reporting.
Timeline Towards Traceability
CFIA traceability regulation process:
1. Regulations published in Canada Gazette 1 (CG1)
- COVID-19 has significantly delayed everything at CFIA – they are currently aiming for publication of the Proposed Regulatory Amendments to the Livestock Identification and Traceability Program in Canada Gazette 1 in Summer or Fall of 2021
- Once the regulations are published in CG1 there will be more definitive time lines for implementation
2. Open for further comments from affected parties/stakeholders
3. After comments received/implemented, final regulations published in Canada Gazette 2 (CG2) and no further changes will be possible
4. One year after CG2 is published, regulations will come into force
CFIA recognizes the problems with fatigue in the goat industry because of delays in traceability regulations; they’re moving the file forward as best they can.
CFIA will be seeking your comments on the proposed regulations upon their publication in Part 1 of the Canada Gazette planned in the fall of 2021.
Animal ID, premises identification, and movement reporting for goats are expected to become mandatory once the regulations are published in Canada Gazette II. CNGF will communicate with producers and stakeholders to keep everyone abreast of developments in a timely fashion.
Addressing Producer Needs
Working with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), the CNGF has advocated on behalf of goat producers to provide input on the proposed requirements in the mandatory animal ID program that addresses their needs.
The Canadian National Goat Federation has taken a leadership role in developing a pan-Canadian approach to goat traceability by establishing the National Goat Traceability Committee (NGTC) and managing a funding agreement with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada which was used to help defray the Committee’s costs. The NGTC, made up of experienced individuals from the goat sector from across Canada, works with its industry counterparts and federal-provincial government representatives.
A FULLY-FUNCTIONAL TRACEABILITY SYSTEM IS BASED ON THREE PILLARS:
- Animal Identification – Associating a unique animal identification number to an animal (i.e. applying a CFIA approved goat indicator (indicator or leg band).
- Premises Identification – Assigning a unique identification number to a physical land location (i.e., legal land description or geo-referenced coordinates) by a provincial/territorial premises registry
- Animal Movement – Recording the change in location (i.e., unique premises) of a uniquely-identified animal at a specified time/date.
To track animal movement and facilitate a fully-functional, national traceability system, every livestock premises must have a valid, premises identification (PID) number. 1 + 2 = 3
What is the ID & Traceability Program?
The ID & Traceability Program will help producers meet regulatory requirements mandated by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency under the Health of Animals Act. The program will provide producers with information about how to apply indicators (tags or leg bands), what indicators are approved for goats in Canada, and movement reporting requirements that will be included in the mandatory program. Please like CNGF”s Facebook page, sign up for our email update list, or check our website often for information that will help you meet the upcoming traceability requirements.
This project was made possible by funding from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) through its Canadian Industry Traceability Infrastructure Program (CITIP). AAFC is pleased to participate in this project and is committed to working with its industry partners to increase public awareness of the importance of the agri-food industry to Canada.