The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has released a number of protocols it will be following during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Inspectors, other than at meat-packing plants, will be responding only to appointments.
Policing of things that do not impact food safety, such as labeling, will be relaxed.
The priorities will be:
- Food safety investigations and recalls
- Animal disease investigations
- Inspection services
- Export certification
- Import inspection services
- Emergency management
- Laboratory diagnostics in support of the above
CFIA is temporarily suspending:
- Food inspections and investigations not related to food safety
- Low risk surveillance or sampling activities (food, plant and animal)
- Inspections of preventive control plans and plant and animal inspections in areas of low risk
- Low risk labelling and domestic facility inspections
- Low risk permissions
- The Safe Foods for Canadians Act calls for implementation of new regulations in July, but the CFIA said it will not be moving to enforcement for a while. It says companies should still seek licensing under the act.
It also warns companies that they cannot require CFIA inspectors to sign documents to gain entry to premises. They are inspectors, not visitors.
