Canada’s winemakers will get over a quarter of a million dollars in federal funding to upgrade their association’s HACCP-based safety standards materials.
The pledge of $266,150 from the Canadian Integrated Food Safety Initiative (CIFSI) was one of two federal funding announcements pledged Saturday in Penticton, B.C. to the Canadian Vintners Association (CVA).
CIFSI’s food safety systems development component offers agrifood organizations a two-phase process to develop or, as in this case, upgrade their on-farm and/or post-farm HACCP or HACCP-based food safety systems.
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The HACCP or Hazard Analysis of Critical Control Points system is a food safety system designed for producers, processors and other food establishments to prevent, reduce or eliminate possible biological, chemical and physical food safety hazards.’
Once developed under CIFSI, an organization’s HACCP system can be eligible for Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA)-led recognition, with the participation of provinces and territories.
The CVA will put the funding toward upgrading HACCP materials which outline step-by-step food safety standards for wine producers.
The government on Saturday also pledged $213,206 through the AgriMarketing program to work with the Ottawa-based CVA’s members on their long-term international marketing strategy.
Ottawa in recent weeks has made such pledges to various crop and livestock sector groups for their international marketing efforts, including blueberry, mustard seed, malting barley and bison organizations.
“The investment in Canada’s wine industry by the federal government is vital. Accessing international markets is critical for our industry to grow and ensuring the quality of our products is essential too,” CVA CEO Dan Paszkowski said in the government’s release Saturday. “Competition for consumers is fierce but Canadian wines offer great value and quality.”
