Question Period Note: Foods Derived from Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (SCNT) Cloned Cattle and Swine

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KEY MESSAGES
• Our Government is committed to ensuring the safety and quality of Canada’s food supply using science based decision-making.
• As part of the consultation, Health Canada published an interdepartmental scientific opinion that concludes that healthy cattle and swine clones, their offspring and derived products are no different from their conventional counterparts.
• This conclusion is consistent with the findings of other international regulatory bodies and the proposed policy increases alignment with our major trading partners.
IF PRESSED

Q1 : If pressed on mandatory labelling of foods derived from SCNT clones
A1 :
• Based on the scientific evidence that foods derived from SCNT cloned cattle and swine are no different from those of conventionally bred animals, these products will be labelled in accordance with existing food labelling rules and will not require special labelling related to cloning.
Q2 : If pressed on who was included in the consultation
A2 :
• Over 1,200 individuals and organizations were notified when the public consultation was launched.
• Stakeholders who had expressed an interest in this topic were identified through Health Canada’s stakeholder registry, including stakeholders from the associated industries, Provincial governments, and non-governmental organizations.

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KEY STATS
• HC conducted a 60-day public consultation between March 26 and May 25, 2024 on a proposed policy update on food derived from SCNT cloned cattle and swine.

• Over 1,200 individuals and organizations were notified when the public consultation launched.

• A total of eight sets of comments were received, comprising input from: one private citizen, nine industry members and three non-governmental organizations (NGOs).