Lyle Vanclief, minister of agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, has announced that Chicken Farmers of Canada (CFC) has successfully completed the technical review of its On-Farm Food Safety programme, Safe, Safer, Safest.
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CFC is the first national farmer organisation to complete the technical review process by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA).
“Food safety is one of the five pillars of the Agricultural Policy Framework,” said Vanclief. “Industry-developed on-farm food safety programmes and government recognition of these will enhance Canada’s domestic and international reputation as a leader in food safety and quality.”
Safe, Safer, Safest guides chicken farmers on safe food production throughout the whole farming process from the preparation of the chicken barn to the shipping of market-weight birds. It was developed in 1998 with support from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Canadian Adaptation and Rural Development Fund and served as the pilot project for the CFIA’s On-Farm Food Safety Recognition Programme.
“Our programme was developed by farmers, for farmers,” said CFC Chairman, David Fuller. “Canada has high food safety standards and our programme ensures they are being met and exceeded.”
Now having successfully completed the CFIA’s technical review, CFC will begin national implementation of Safe, Safer, Safest at the producer level. This involves developing the management and audit structure for the programme – the next step in the recognition process.
Safe, Safer, Safest is based on Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) principles. Seventeen more industry groups, including livestock, horticulture and field crops, are currently developing HACCP-based food safety programmes to be reviewed by the CFIA.
