Why is the CFIA prosecuting (more like persecuting) Alvin Boyce and Steven Witmer over Johne's vaccine?
As Dr. Anne Godkin of the University of Guelph told reporter Ian Cumming of Ontario Farmer, any farmer can ask his veterinarian to obtain the vaccine which is on the market in the United States, but not yet approved for sale in Canada.
Boyce and Witmer have been charged because border officials found 24 bottles of the undeclared vaccine when Boyce was bringing some expensive Holsteins from New York State to Witmer's farm near Woodstock on June 14.
Cumming writes that "Witmer has been charged with smuggling in the vaccine, but is totally innocent, having neither paid for, nor ordered the product, says his lawyer Ed Morwick. The seized product is being held under detention by CFIA. The head investigating officer is Roger Weber.
Boyce had been handed the box of vaccine down at the New York farm, says Morwick. As of early July, CFIA investigators still had not talked to the New York farmer, he said.
"You'd think that is where they would start, you might solve it in 15 minutes," said Morwick.
Cumming says the vaccine is popular among dairy farmers because treated cattle will not give a false positive reading for Johne's disease.
It 's worth a lot of money to owners of the best Holsteins to be sure their heifers won't test positive for Johne's because they need disease-free cattle to market embryos to the highest-paying customers in other countries.
