FOOD SAFETY AND PUBLIC HEALTH
-‘all people at all times have access to sufficient, safe, nutritious food to maintain a
healthy and active life’
Food Availability
-physical access to food
-generally, people who live in communities where food is grown have more
secure access to food
-modern agriculture reduces the availability of locally grown food for
consumption by the community
-should increase domestic food self-reliance from a specified percentage of total calories
to a goal percentage by 2015
-should increase rural communities’ and food industries’ promotion of their benefits to
urban Canada
-should introduce new and improved farm preparedness measures for climatic extremes
and market fluctuations
-should increase support for the production and preparation of healthier food
-e.g. should consider changing/phasing out agricultural support for high-fat dairy
products
-e.g. should increase support for fruits and vegetables
-should increase collaboration among farmers, industry and government to provide
education regarding best practices
-should develop a process for agriculture and food researchers to identify emerging
research priorities
-e.g. should generate increases in farm productivity to offset, for example,
impacts of urbanization
-should develop a farmers market promotion program to support the creation of farmers’
markets in new areas
Food Access
-economic access to food that meets people’s dietary needs as well as food preferences
and religious requirements
-most people acquire food by buying it; if they do not have adequate income they
cannot obtain adequate food
-socially isolated people are more likely to be hungry
-should increase access to purchase the range of foods needed for a healthy diet
-e.g. should reform Employment Insurance to address decrease in coverage and
decrease in access to employment supports and training
-e.g. should create a basic tax credit for all low-income working-age adults and a
working income supplement for low-income wage earners
Food Safety
-antimicrobial resistance
-should increase antimicrobial resistance monitoring of food-borne pathogens and
animal/food commodities to allow the detection of hazards
-should emphasize improvements in animal husbandry that lead to better animal health
status and, therefore, reduced need for antimicrobial use
-should promote prudent use of antimicrobial drugs
-should undertake risk analysis of the release of animal effluents into aquatic
environments (the environs of aquaculture products), and should undertake clean-up
interventions when required
-country foods
-food additives
-e.g. antioxidants, flavoring agents, food coloring, food preservatives
-food irradiation
-food-borne diseases
-e.g. avian influenza, botulism, bovine spongiform encephalopathy,
Campylobacter , drug-resistant Salmonella, Escherichia coli , variant CreutzfeldtJakob disease
-foodborne illnesses (non-infectious)
-e.g. polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in fish, persistent organic pollutants
(POPs)
-genetically modified foods (GMOs)
-e.g. allergenicity, gene transfer, outcrossing
-should clarify legal liability surrounding the use of GMOs in agriculture and food
products
-should give priority to communicating the benefits/risks of GMOs
-should communicate the strengths of the regulatory regime for GMOs
-should develop a process for agriculture and food businesses to facilitate the uptake of
GMOs that will contribute to better health and more globally competitive industries
-nutrition labeling
-should work with food industry to provide labels that tell consumers how their food
product complies with the government's healthy eating guidelines
-should work with brewers to provide alcohol labeling (e.g. celiac disease)
-whole foods
Food Consumption and Nutrient Intake
-appropriate consumption based on knowledge of basic nutrition and care
-many people lack the skills to choose or prepare the foods which will fill their
nutritional needs
-should provide support, guidelines and funds for nutrition
-should incorporate nutrition objectives into agriculture, education, health, social welfare,
etc. plans
-should develop a monitoring and evaluation system for nutritional improvement plans
-should increase information regarding healthy eating and nutrition to consumers
-should increase the acquisition of skills and behaviors necessary for good nutrition
-should focus on health prevention policy since research shows that proper nutrition can
help ward off various diseases and illnesses
-diet-related diseases place a significant burden on individuals, society and the country; a
growing number of adults and children are affected by cancer, cardiovascular diseases,
diabetes, and obesity linked to poor diet
-should commit to improving Canadians’ overall diet with respect to fat, salt, and
sugar
-should establish regulation regarding health claims of ‘good-for-you’ products
-should increase Canadians’ consumption of fruit and vegetables
-should increase subsidies for healthy food choices
-should consider introducing a ‘fat’ tax on products with a high percentage fat content
-should work with the food industry to monitor and regulate food marketing
-should work with the food industry to ensure that portion sizes and pricing are aligned
-should work with the food industry to make healthy choices available in restaurants
-should work with food industry to improve nutritional labeling and information in
restaurants
-should eliminate advertisements that target people's body image and social acceptance
-maternal and infant nutrition
-if mothers are inadequately nourished during pregnancy, and if babies are not breast-fed,
brain development as well as general health, suffer
-should increase support to women, infants and children
-e.g. a woman who is pregnant, postpartum (up to six months after the birth of the
infant) or breastfeeding (up to the infant's first birthday)
-e.g. a child who is up to five years old
-childhood nutrition
-children may be hungry if their parent(s) need to work long hours and thus are unable to
take time to prepare healthy meals and snacks
-should develop a national healthy breakfasts/lunches/snacks program
-should develop funding for a farm to cafeteria program
-e.g. incorporates locally-grown foods into school lunches
-e.g. provides grant money to cover the initial costs of installing school gardens
-should include nutrition as a core component of school curricula to help encourage
healthy eating habits among youth
-should make healthy, appealing foods available in school cafeterias
-should discourage the sale of foods high in fat, sodium, and sugar
-should encourage healthier vending machines and healthier lunchboxes for children
-should introduce a school program for fruits and vegetables
-should limit school milk assistance to low-fat milks
-childhood obesity (please see above)
-dietary excess
-hospital food
-adequate water and sanitation
Vulnerable Populations
-should increase affordable housing, which will help reduce hunger by allowing lowincome residents to dedicate more of their incomes towards food and less towards rent
and mortgage payments
-should increase minimum wage to allow those living in poverty to purchase nutritious
food
-should increase funding for tertiary education and training so that young people acquire
better jobs, which will allow them to better provide for their families
-should increase funding for community food projects to increase the availability of
nutritious and fresh foods in low-income communities
-women who are subjected to violence have a reduced capacity for self-care, including
adequate food
-should enhance women’s access to credit resources
-should expand nutrition services to older adults to help them stay healthy at home rather
than having them institutionalized
-should develop a senior farmers market nutrition program to give low income seniors
healthy foods from farmers markets
Partners in Food Safety
Allergy/Asthma Information Association
Association of Canadian Distillers
Asthma Society of Canada
Bulimia Anorexia Nervosa Association
Canadian Agricultural Safety Association
Canadian Animal Health Institute
Canadian Association of Cardiac Rehabilitation
Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians
Canadian Association of Provincial Cancer Agencies
Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation
Canadian Breast Cancer Network
Canadian Breast Cancer Research Alliance
Canadian Cancer Society
Canadian Cardiovascular Society
Canadian Celiac Association
Canadian Committee on Antibiotic Resistance
Canadian Council of Cardiovascular Nurses
Canadian Dental Assistants' Association
Canadian Dental Association
Canadian Dental Hygienists Association
Canadian Diabetes Association
Canadian Food Inspection Agency
Canadian Ground Water Association
Canadian Health Network Substance Use - Addictions
Canadian Hypertension Society
Canadian Institute of Child Health
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Canadian Paediatric Society
Canadian Public Health Association
Canadian Society for Clinical Nutrition
Canadian Society of Allergy and Clinical Immunology
Canadian Society of Nutrition Management
Canadian Water and Wastewater Association
Canadian Water Quality Association
Canadian Women's Health Network
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health
Dietitians of Canada
Health Canada - Office of Rural Health
Heart & Stroke Foundation of Canada
Institute of Agricultural Rural and Environmental Health
National Cancer Institute of Canada
Osteoporosis Society of Canada
Royal College of Dentists of Canada
Society of Rural Physicians of Canada
Agriculture and Agrifood Canada
Beef Information Centre
Canada Grains Council
Canadian Agricultural Economics Society
Canadian Agriculture and Food International
Canadian Association of Food Banks
Canadian Alliance of Agri-Food Exporters
Canadian Cattlemen's Association
Canadian Council of Grocery Distributors
Canadian Faculties of Ag and Vet Medicine
Canadian Federation of Agriculture
Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers
Canadian Institute of Food Science and Technology
Canadian Meat Council
Canadian Organic Growers Association
Canadian Pork Council
Canadian Produce Marketing Association
Canadian Seed Growers Association
Canadian Society for Clinical Nutrition
Canadian Society for Nutritional Sciences
Canadian Society of Agronomy
Canadian Society of Animal Science
Canadian Society of Bioengineering
Canadian Society of Microbiologists
Canadian Society of Soil Science
Canadian Soft Drink Association
Canadian Sugar Institute
Canadian Veterinary Medical Association
Canadian Wheat Board
Chicken Farmers of Canada
City Farmer
Crop Protection Institute
Cuisine Canada
Dairy Farmers of Canada
Development Gateway Foundation
Farm Folk - City Folk
Food and Consumer Products Manufacturers of Canada
Food Secure Canada
Organic Crop Producers and Processors Association