PHOTO PHILIPPE BOIVIN, SPECIAL COLLABORATION, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
“The timing of implementing the vaccination mandate is also not ideal. Much of the volume of goods transits during the winter months, since the southern states supply us with various fruits and vegetables,” writes the author.
Posted at 12:00 p.m.
Ottawa apparently still wants to move forward with its vaccination mandate for all international truckers to show proof of vaccination when entering Canada from January 15. Vaccines are the most effective way to reduce risk, stop the spread of the virus and save lives. No doubt, but the situation affecting the trucking industry will create difficulties and will affect people’s access to food. This is the first public health measure since the start of the pandemic with the potential to disrupt and limit cross-border trucking traffic and trade between Canada and the United States.
According to the Canadian Trucking Alliance, approximately 16,000 drivers would be forced off the road. Ottawa instead believes that only 8,000 drivers will be affected. Yet we need these drivers now more than ever, and many of them haul food across the border every day. If a driver who is not adequately vaccinated crosses the Canadian border, he will have to submit to a 14-day quarantine.
Canada imports close to $21 billion worth of agri-food products from the United States each year, and approximately 60-70% of imported food arrives by truck. This represents nearly 20% of the food Canadians buy in stores or restaurants. The timing of implementing the vaccination mandate is also not ideal. Much of the volume of goods transits during the winter months, since the southern states supply us with a variety of fruits and vegetables.
The shutdown of some of this activity will exacerbate the shortage of drivers that the trucking industry is already experiencing and will further drive up retail prices in the weeks to come.
Since the start of the pandemic, the granting of exemptions to certain groups considered to be part of an essential service has been controversial. Most Canadians do not approve of these rule anomalies, and the Trudeau government knows it. He has instituted a strict vaccination policy for federally regulated public servants and workers since the start of the pandemic, and the arrival of Omicron has only motivated the government to stick to its resolution on the mandates vaccination. But access to the border will potentially create a food security problem for Canadians.
Quebec recently backed down with its vaccination mandate for health care workers, fearing that such a move would put even more pressure on its health care system. The province has therefore asked health care workers to comply with strict new protocols to reduce risks in hospitals and health centers. There is always a way to average.
Vaccines are by far the best weapon to fight the pandemic, but we must also understand that we are not all believers. Between 10 and 15% of people, in all fields, will continue to resist and will probably never change their minds. We have learned that the effectiveness of vaccination mandates remains limited in convincing recalcitrants. We’ve been battling this for over a year, and most of us will probably get vaccinated more than once a year for a very long time. What “adequate vaccination” means this year won’t be defined the same way next year, and truckers know it.
Worrying absenteeism rates
The implementation of the vaccination mandate for truckers was decided when Omicron had not yet come forward. This new, incredibly contagious variant is spreading like wildfire. It is already disrupting the entire food chain in Canada. Absenteeism rates reach 15-20% in the food retail trade as well as in the processing sector. Meanwhile, an Exceldor plant in Quebec has been forced to euthanize poultry in recent weeks due to a shortage of workers assigned to catching chickens. Several employees declared positive to Omicron or having been in contact with a positive case have the obligation to be absent and to isolate themselves. Omicron is hitting the whole economy hard and fast, so we all need to be concerned about access to food in Canada.
Omicron is also a game changer for the food supply chain. This has been weakened more than ever since the start of the pandemic. Asking food and logistics companies to follow strict protocols has slowed things down considerably. Much of the food that arrives in stores in Canada is no longer as fresh as it once was, and consumers are taking notice.
Public health measures must adapt so the food industry can continue to provide consumers with safe and affordable food over the coming months as we try to weather the wrath of Omicron.
Food inflation is already a challenge in the country, and the vaccination mandate for truckers could make the situation worse, especially for low-income families.
We must proceed carefully with the enforcement of vaccination mandates. The lack of flexibility of certain measures can jeopardize our food supply chain. Canceling hockey tournaments and other events is an acceptable preventive measure, but compromising the fluidity of our food supply chain and the permeability of our borders can have serious consequences. The stakes are so much higher. We really have to find a functional balance between saving lives and ensuring our food security.