The Canadian Agriculture Union said cutting 1,371 jobs at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency imperils food safety.
The union represents 4,500 of the approximately 6,400 CFIA employees.
“More people will get sick from preventable food-borne illnesses, more poultry and livestock will die from avian flu and other diseases, and our food production industry will suffer,” said union president Milton Dyck.
The union said staffing at CFIA has declined by three per cent in the last decade compared to the a 30 per cent increase in the federal public service.
United States president Donald Trump’s administration also made big cuts to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and Dyck said that puts the quality of imported food in doubt.
Dyck said food recalls rose by 150 per cent in the last decade. Many of the recalls are the result of CFIA testing for food-poisoning bacteria and undeclared allergens.
