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e-1339 (Food policy)

E-petition
Initiated by Jennifer Henry from Toronto, Ontario

Original language of petition: English

Petition to the Government of Canada

Whereas:
  • Health Canada has issued draft food guidelines recommending Canadians eat a high proportion of plant-based foods, emphasizing plant-based sources of protein and eliminating dairy as its own food group;
  • Health Canada did not meet with food business lobbyists so as to preserve the integrity of the guidelines;
  • It has been revealed that Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada has been secretly lobbying Health Canada not to encourage a shift towards plant-based eating because it would "have negative implications for the meat and dairy industries"; and
  • The health of Canadians, not the profits of food companies, must determine the substance of our national eating recommendations.
We, the undersigned, Citizens of Canada, call upon the Government of Canada to ensure the food guide is based on evidence, and that this evidence is not censored to protect the economic interests of the meat and dairy industries, to prevent Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada from circumventing the rules by lobbying Health Canada on the industry's behalf, thus compromising the integrity of the food guide and to support plant-based agriculture in order to protect the health of Canadians, the environment, and animals.
Government response tabled on June 5, 2018 (Sessional Paper No. 8545-421-113-05)
Open for signature
November 16, 2017, at 11:47 a.m. (EDT)
Closed for signature
March 16, 2018, at 11:47 a.m. (EDT)
Presented to the House of Commons
Nathaniel Erskine-Smith (Beaches—East York)
April 25, 2018 (Petition No. 421-02264)
Government response tabled
June 5, 2018
Photo - Nathaniel Erskine-Smith
Beaches—East York
Liberal Caucus
Ontario