Overview of ILO issues in Newfoundland and Labrador
Certified Organic Livestock
Organic agriculture is a holistic production system designed to optimize productivity and fitness of diverse communities within the agroecosystem, including soil organisms, plants, livestock and people. The principle goal of organic production is to develop enterprises that are sustainable and harmonious with the environment. Organic livestock production does not allow the use of: materials and products produced from genetic engineering, synthetic growth regulators (hormones), synthetic veterinary drugs, including antibiotics and parasiticides.
The organic industry in Newfoundland and Labrador is slow to develop, however, there is growing interest on behalf of consumers and producers for organic products. There are currently 4 producers that are certified organic, none of which produce livestock with a total of ~45 acres of certified land in production1 (It is expected that these numbers will be higher when the 2006 statistics are released by Statistics Canada).
In 2006 the Canadian Organic Regulation was published, providing a legislated minimum standard for organic certification in Canada.