The pressure on continued acceptance of agriculture technology tools such as herbicides and breeding techniques has ripple effects here in Canada, from at home and abroad.
The September ruling by the EU to maintain registration of glyphosate for 10 more years seems a positive move, but fact that glyphosate was on the chopping block at all is a reason to better understand and support the role of science-based regulation and policy for agriculture, says Erin Gowriluk, president of the Canada Grains Council.
The Canada Grains Council brings together all facets of the grain value chain for consensus building and collaboration, creating a forum for internal discussions and finding alignment on common issues, Gowriluk says. Pushing for sound science as a foundation of policy and regulatory decisions is one issue the group champions.
As Gowriluk sees it, it’s important because governments can choose to go one of two ways — stick to the science to achieve agriculture and environmental targets based in fact, or buy in and fuel the misconceptions around agriculture and the environment to appeal to constituents. The latter leads to wasted time, misinformation, and policies with unintended negative consequences.
Highlights:
- Sound science is a keystone of grain regulations and trade, and has a role in regulatory decision-making impacting trade
- Science-based decision making leads to more favourable outcomes, achieving agri-environmental objectives and targets
- Governments can respond to science-based policy decisions by leading with science or leveraging misinformation to appear aligned with constituents
- Right now, Mexican farmers are frustrated with government policies that don’t consider their perspective, and there are EU policy decisions impacting food security and glyphosate use
- Non-science-based policy can have unintended consequences, such as negative impacts on food security, decreased production, and increased costs.
- Concerns about climate change lead to increased focus on sustainability in agriculture
- Canadian farmers rely on glyphosate for sustainability practices, a ban could impact trade and commitments.
Source : Real Agriculture