Goals, Objectives, Strategies and Results — Continued

Goal 3: Safe, high-quality B.C. products from sustainable agri-food systems.

Outcome/Key Indicator:

Domestic and international confidence in B.C. foods and economically, environmentally and socially sustainable agriculture, food and fisheries systems.

Core Business Area:

Food Safety and Quality.

Profitability and growth within the agriculture, food and fisheries sectors depends on continued consumer confidence, access to markets and assurance that production systems and products do not pose human health risks. The ministry continued to make a significant commitment to improving B.C.'s level of protection for citizens, consumers and producers.

The ministry is currently developing a scorecard, which will provide an overall assessment of the food system and products. Based on an annual evaluation by an external panel of experts, it will identify both the strengths of B.C.'s agriculture, food and fisheries and areas where improvements can still be made.

Objective 1:

Agriculture, food and fisheries production systems are protected against key animal, fish and plant diseases and pests, and food and human health risks are minimized.

Customers in B.C. and in export markets are increasingly sensitive to food safety and quality issues. Effective diagnosis, tracking and tracing systems and on-farm food safety not only manage and protect against plant and animal diseases and risks to human health, but they also provide the basis for assuring food and product quality. The ministry will work with the federal government to develop appropriate systems and ensure that roles and responsibilities are clearly defined and key needs are met.

Strategies:

1. Provide early diagnosis of animal, fish and plant diseases and pests, develop intervention plans to minimize economic losses, and offer monitoring to reduce or eliminate risks to human health.

2. Identify food safety risks and develop plans to eliminate or reduce risks while minimizing economic losses.

3. Promote systems that track B.C. products from production to retail, complementing national systems.

4. Revise existing regulations so they define standards expected for the safety of the products rather than focusing on how to produce them, shifting government's role to oversight, audit and risk assessment.

Objective 2:

B.C.'s agri-food industries are supported through the development, implementation and maintenance of plant, fish and animal health, food safety and quality management systems that are economically, environmentally and socially sustainable.

Safe high-quality food production systems depend on appropriate on-farm practices and quality management. The ministry works with the agriculture and fisheries sectors to promote the use of best management practices and processes including disease and pest management; waste management; weed control; and on-farm food safety and quality systems.

Strategies:

1. Encourage the agriculture, fisheries (including aquaculture) and food industries to adopt quality programs.

2. Influence federal policies and programs through the Agricultural Policy Framework for food safety programs, and direct federal resources to meet B.C.'s objectives.

3. Strengthen prevention programs for diseases and pests of animals, fish, plants and food-borne health risks.

Performance is measured primarily by tracking the development and implementation of on-farm food safety and/or quality systems. As a secondary measure, the ministry will monitor the development and implementation of a its new lab information management system to support animal and plant disease tracking in B.C.