One reader recently asked the question: "Which consumer groups would best represent the feelings of the consumer?"
So I decided that, I would do a little bit of research into our consumer associations, to see what popped up. Imagine my surprise when on the main page of the Consumers Association of Canada, I found a ridiculous article slamming the "extra fat" one may find in cheese once the new regulations come into force. This title may give you a clue: Federal Government Moves to Fatten up Canadians
It seems to me they should be far more concerned about the 'source' of Canadian food, the complete irrelavence of the "Product of Canada" label, the need for Canadians to retain their food producers and their processors (Did we learn nothing from BSE?) , among a few of the pressing issues about food that consumers want answers for.
Instead the CAC spent their time slamming Canadian dairy farmers for demanding regulations that will ensure the quality and components in cheese manufactured or shipped into this country. This means the label on cheese will actually mean something to consumers and that cheese that says it's cheese will taste like cheese and cook like cheese. How can that be a bad thing?
I don't think they are in much of a position to give us any help. Consumer associations do not seem interested in rounding out the public education at all. They are more likely to be attacking agriculture.
The whole issue of new regulations for cheese also has sparked some more nasty articles in our favourite national news rag (the Globe and Mail). Conveniently included is Mr. Reynolds e-mail so you can fire off a missive.
Entitled:
February 1, 2008
OTTAWA -- Except for nuclear power, Canada's dairy industry is perhaps the most intensely regulated industry in the country - and perhaps the most discreetly regulated, too. When the federal government quietly promulgated radical new restrictions on Canada's cheese makers in the Canada Gazette last month, it did so on Boxing Day.
At the heart of the new edict is a requirement that cheese contain a higher proportion of whole milk - as opposed to milk byproducts - a change that cheese makers say would increase the cost of production. In its commentary on these protectionist regulations, the government noted in passing that the dairy industry has been getting smaller, "with typically static or declining growth," for 15 years. The only significant exception, it observed, was cheese. From 307,000 tonnes in 1994 to 379,000 tonnes in 2005, Canadian cheese production has increased by almost 25 per cent -- most of it in the form of innovative "specialty" cheeses that give consumers the illusion of access to the cheeses of the world. read more...
If you want real information about cheese and the new regulations, check my post 'Campaign to Keep Cheese Real' and the Real Cheese website.
Oh, and don't forget to speak to Mr. Reynolds.
2 comments:
You Exaggerate.
Explain what you mean because there no exaggerations in this post.
Post a Comment