The National Plant and Animal Health Planning Forum, held in Ottawa on December 6-7, 2017, was a critical event required for the creation of a national Plant and Animal Health Strategy. Through active plenary sessions, informative presentations and focused breakout sessions, participants considered the future of plant and animal health in Canada and planned and prioritized key actions to strengthen how Canada’s plant and animal resources are safeguarded.
We are pleased to provide the attached summary document with further information about the Planning Forum.
Next Steps for Developing a Plant and Animal Health Strategy for Canada
It is now time to take the feedback we received from you over the last few months, through the online discussion document, face-to-face meetings and from the Planning Forum, and develop the Strategy. A Steering Committee composed of FPT governments and industry has been established to guide this work and multi-stakeholder working groups will soon start working to continue building recommendations for activities to include in the Strategy.
In response to the feedback that has been received, it has been decided that, while a single overall strategy for plant and animal health will still be developed, the strategy will identify separate activities to be carried out by each sector. This reflects the intention to separate plant and animal health as we move towards implementation of the strategy. At the strategic level the objectives for preventing risks to plant and animal resources are aligned, but it is clear that differences in the current state of plant versus animal health will require unique approaches to implementation.
Stay Engaged!
If you are interested in contributing to the development of the Strategy, please contact us at PAHS-SSVA@inspection.gc.ca. There will also be an opportunity to provide your views on a first draft of the Strategy in April, and we will send you more information about this in the coming months. Ultimately, in July, the strategy will be presented to FPT Ministers of Agriculture for endorsement.
For regular updates on the development of the National Plant and Animal Health Strategy, visit our website.