Animal welfare in a bilateral trade policy framework: case study on the European Union-Canada Equivalency Agreement on Slaughter

摘要

For more than ten years, animal welfare has been in the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) mandate, with specific references included in the third and successive OIE Strategic Plans. What had once been considered a technical field of interestonly to academics has since become a major topic in international negotiations on animal health, food safety and trade policy.In 1999 Canada and the European Union (EU) entered into a Veterinary Agreement. Under this agreement, decision-makers from the EU (Directorate General for Health and Consumers) and Canada (the Canadian Food Inspection Agency [CFIA]) meet in the Joint Management Committee to discuss questions of mutual importance, such as disease control measures, import/export certification and technical matters. Although not explicitly mentioned in the agreement, animal welfare has been a high-profile technical matterfor discussion.In terms of the World Trade Organization (WTO) SPS Agreement and the EU-Canada Agreement, measures do not need to be 'the same'in order to achieve equivalency. Decisions that different measures are equivalent must be based on understanding and acceptanceof the context and rationale of both parties. Such decisions cannot be established on a simple 'line by line' comparison of regulatory requirements. Rather, Canada and the EU have made a commitment to share information on respective contexts and regulatory frameworks to maintain this trust.EU Regulation 1099/2009 on the protection of animals at the time of killing will come into force on 1 January 2013. In preparation, the CFIA has taken steps to identify where measures are identical, similar or slightly different, with respect to key issues, such as the use of written procedures to assure animal welfare, formal training of slaughtermen and other operators and consistent use of appropriate stunning practices.CFIA experts in humane handling and slaughter of livestock have developed guidance for federal inspectors and regulated operators on how to conduct operations that comply with current regulations and with OIE animal welfare standards.This paper concludes that the EU-Canada Veterinary Agreement has been a driver for closer scrutiny and, in some cases, improved animal welfare in Canada.