The Canadian Pork Council has completed pilot testing of Canada's new on farm food safety and animal care assurance programme, Acadian Pork Excellence, and is now in the process of evaluating feedback from participating pork producers and validators.

Manitoba Pork Chair George Matheson, who travelled to Quebec City the week before last for Quebec Pork's Annual General Meeting, says, the two regions are on the same page when it comes to providing assurance of the safety and quality of Canadian pork.

George Matheson-Manitoba Pork

I was very pleased to see that Quebec's take on the programme and Manitoba's is very similar.

It's very important that this programme be agreed to by all participating provinces so that it has national strength.

In the past there has been some disbarment with regard to the animal code of practice, the revised code of practice that was implemented a few years ago, and how it would be reflected in the animal care programme in Canada.

But I would say that Quebec's way and Manitoba's way of dealing with what's important in the Pork Excellence programme are very similar.

We may have our individual provinces and individual companies exporting product and have their own sales and their own customers in other parts of the world but it's very important that, if we're exporting Canadian product, that we're all on the same page and when a product is stamped Canada Pork Excellence that it represents the same thing for all provinces.

The Canadian Pork Council is expected to complete its evaluation of the feedback gathered through the pilot testing and make any needed adjustments to the programme in time to begin widespread adoption by this fall.