With a shortage of infant formula in the United States, where parents are worried and scrambling, Canadians may wonder what infant formula makers are doing to boost their supply in Canada.
However, one of the country’s largest formula production facilities is still useless, as we are currently shipping formulas only to China.
Canada Royal Milk (CRM), located in Kingston, Ontario, is a subsidiary of Chinese dairy giant Feihe International.
CRM’s Carey Bidtnes told The Epoch Times that the company will complete its full submission to Health Canada by the end of the month for approval for domestic sales.
“Production for the domestic market is part of the company’s business plan, but the Covid-19 pandemic has delayed the timeline for entry into the domestic and North American markets,” Bidtnes said in an email on May 19. Stated in a statement.
“Once approved, CRM can start production for the domestic market immediately.”
Built in 2017, the plant is worth a $ 332 million investment, Bidtnes said. The company received approximately $ 24 million in support from the Ontario Employment and Prosperity Fund.
Sylvain Charlevoix, a professor of food distribution policy at Dalhousie University, has spoken out about the company’s production in Canada and the shipment of powdered milk overseas.
“”[CRM] It is by far the largest milk powder factory in Canada. but, all The product will be returned to China. The plant itself uses Canadian cow and goat milk. This is a nuisance for professionals who understand how Canada’s dairy sector works, “he said. I have written In a blog post on May 18th.
Charboa says that milk is partially subsidized by Canadians, but dairy farmers must meet quotas aimed at “serving only Canadians” and the supply management system “self”. And everyone else, “points out that it aims to feed.
“In order to get Canadians to participate in our supply control system and produce what we need in Canada, Canadian dairy farmers are not able to ship milk abroad to grow the Asian market. I’ve long argued that I can’t, “he wrote.
“Since dairy farmers have no incentive to grow the market, we allowed Chinese-owned companies to invest in Canada, but only returned our own food to China.
He argues that milk sold to Chinese companies must be unallocated and the company should be owned by Canada and operated primarily to serve the Canadian market.
China made large-scale formulas in 2008 when the toxic industrial chemical melamine was found to have been used by several Chinese formulas to artificially increase the protein content tested. I had a scandal. Hundreds of thousands of children were affected by melamine poisoning, killing at least six babies.
Feihe was not reportedly involved, and the brand was not as affected as other Chinese producers who faced a backlash from parents who were primarily looking at foreign brands. ..
US shortage
The current shortage in the United States was exacerbated by the recall of powdered milk produced by Abbott Nutrition at a factory in Sturgis, Michigan, in February, causing four children to become ill and two to die of Cronobacter. Consume The formula produced at the facility.
Abbott Nutrition and the Food and Drug Administration Consent decree Abbott agrees to take the corrective action required by the FDA and is subject to court approval to resume production at the plant on May 16.
It takes 6-8 weeks for the products to line up on the shelves after the facility is remanufactured. To tell Abbott in a statement on May 16th.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found Multiple strains of Cronobacter at the Sturges plant show that their analysis is “not closely genetically related” to samples taken from two available patients.
Due to the shortage of infant formula in the United States, President Joe Biden enacted the Defense Production Act on May 18, helping to speed up the delivery of ingredients to manufacturers.
Canada is also reported to have already affected some parents by allowing the import of prescriptions that “may not fully meet Canada’s regulatory requirements for labeling and / or composition.” We are taking steps to alleviate the shortage. To tell Health Canada’s provisional policy.
The policy indicates that the product still complies with “equivalent standards” and provides the instruction to “guarantee the safe preparation and use of food”.
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Noé Charter is a Montreal-based Epoch Times reporter. Twitter: @NChartierET Gettr: @nchartieret