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For
immediate release
December
12, 2002
ONTARIO LEGISLATURE GIVES ONE-YEAR EXTENSION
ON REPEAL OF EDIBLE OIL PRODUCTS ACT
TORONTO
–
This week the Ontario Legislature gave unanimous approval to a
bill that delays the repeal of the Edible
Oil Products Act (EOPA) to June 1, 2004.
“I
am proud to say that this bill is a consensus achieved by Ontario’s
dairy and edible oil producers and processors,” Agriculture and Food
Minister Helen Johns told the legislature.
The
EOPA is a 70-year-old piece of legislation regulating foods made with
edible oils that resemble dairy products such as margarine. The Food Safety and Quality Act, 2001 authorized the EOPA to be
repealed in 2003. The new act extends that provision by one year.
The
federal government has indicated to Ontario that it will be consulting on
proposed regulatory revisions regarding the advertising and labeling of
dairy and food products within the coming year. The one-year extension of
the repeal of the EOPA will give Ontario’s dairy and oilseed producers
time to examine the federal changes and to participate in the
consultations.
This
winter the Ontario government will meet with affected stakeholders and the
federal government to seek consensus on the need for outstanding issues
involving edible oils.
The
objective is to strengthen both Ontario’s dairy industry and its oilseed
industry and increase capacities in both areas so that the result is a
win-win situation for all sectors.
The
passage is a result of a consensus reached among stakeholders, the Ontario
government, and the Liberal and NDP opposition parties at Queen’s Park.
The
agri-food industry is the second largest industry in the province of
Ontario.
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