A bill that’s going through the Senate in Ottawa has drawn the attention of local politicians in Foothills County.
The Pandemic Prevention and Preparedness Act, or Bill C-293, says its purpose is to prepare for future pandemics and prevent risk. It also aims to promote transparency and accountability in relation to the Government of Canada’s efforts to do so.
During a Foothills County council meeting in December, Coun. Rob Seiwert said some provisions in the bill unfairly target Canada’s agriculture industry, and the legislation has been widely criticized by agricultural trade groups and the Government of Alberta.
Seiwert referred to portions of the bill that refer to regulating commercial activities that can contribute to pandemic risk, including industrial animal agriculture.
“We certainly need to be planning for and preparing for pandemics, should they come in the future,” he said. “But this bill does disproportionately single out and attempt to attack animal agriculture in these pieces.”
To reduce pandemic risk, the bill speaks to promoting commercial activities like the production of alternative proteins or phasing out commercial activities that involve high-risk species.
Lori Williams, an associate professor of policy studies at MRU, said people fear that the legislation means the end of the livestock industry, but that isn’t the case, and the bill wouldn't grant the federal government new powers.
“The federal government has no interest in doing this, and if they tried, Canadians would push back,” Williams said.
The bill specifies that provincial governments would be consulted on any of those measures, and jurisdiction for agriculture is shared between provincial and federal governments, she said.
"Whatever's going to happen would be in coordination or consultation with those governments," she said.
Another provision in the bill speaks to reducing the risk of the commercial wildlife trade leading to a pandemic in Canada and abroad, including measures to regulate or phase out live animal markets.
Williams thinks talk about live animal markets isn’t targeted to livestock markets in Canada, but to markets that sell or trade exotic animals.
As for alternative proteins, Williams said producers will respond to what consumers want, and the legislation won't change that.
"I think what it's saying is look, there's there's an opening for markets here where other proteins could perhaps be supported or promoted," she said.
Williams said changes could be made to language in the bill to make it clearer.
“There are some sections that probably could have been, could yet perhaps be, more clearly specified,” she said.
The bill was introduced by Liberal MP Nathaniel Erskine-Smith in 2022, passed by Parliament this summer, and is in second reading at the Senate.
Erskine-Smith has said he is open to making amendments to the bill, and that more alternative protein would help meet global demand for food.
During their meeting on Dec. 11, council voted to send a letter to the Senate asking that the legislation not be passed.
