(Ottawa) The federal government is assessing ways to avoid future shortages of infant formula, like formula, by allowing more products on store shelves and overhauling how these products are regulated, an internal memo reveals. .
Many parents are still struggling to find the right formula for their baby at a reasonable price after the temporary closure of a US-based manufacturing plant last year, which caused a significant drop in shipments to Canada.
The empty shelves illustrate just how fragile Canada’s supply chain is when it comes to life-saving infant formula, when none is produced domestically.
The government is expected to reveal its long-term plans this fall to address the problem as part of an overhaul of the outdated rules that govern how Canada approves infant formula. Those plans are outlined in a heavily redacted memo sent to the Deputy Minister of Health in April, which La Presse Canadienne obtained through the Access to Information Act.
However, these changes could take years to become operational; this is why the government is considering an interim solution that would exempt certain products from certain regulations.
“This would allow for harmonization with other jurisdictions before full regulatory changes are complete, so that manufacturers can manufacture the same product in bulk for Canada as for other jurisdictions,” the internal memo reads. .
In other words, companies would not have to work as hard to adapt their products to Canadian rules, which could encourage them to sell here.
The ministry plans to spend 2024 determining which rules have become unnecessary barriers to importing preparations. Staff hopes that removing these barriers will increase the number of products on the Canadian market.
Health Canada also aims to continue to prioritize applications for new infant formula products and new production sites.
Food, Health and Consumer Products of Canada has called for major reforms to the rules, which industry group officials say are too strict and result in long waits for new products to be approved.
According to the note, Health Canada expects strong support for its new plan in the fall, which should “incentivize foreign manufacturers to sell their products in the Canadian market without having to wait.”
The ministry also hopes parents will be relieved to see the government working towards a more stable supply for these basic necessities.
“Health Canada continues to explore longer-term solutions, including regulatory modernization options that could reduce barriers to market access and increase imports and domestic production,” it said. the ministry in a statement. Health Canada did not respond directly to questions put to it about the measures in the memo.
Even though the amount of infant formula on store shelves appears to have stabilized since the spring, costs are rising rapidly.
The average price of a 900 gram jar of infant formula rose 12.7% between February and June this year, from $34.34 to $38.70, according to Statistics Canada data.
For now, Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency have relaxed the application of certain rules to allow, until December 2024, the importation of 70 new infant formulas from countries with standards similar to those in effect in Canada.