At Gay Lea Foods, we are committed to promoting high standards of care and welfare on Canadian dairy farms. We are fully supportive of a strong animal welfare system that includes scientifically informed codes of practice for animal care and handling.
We expect all farms shipping milk to Gay Lea Foods to demonstrate a commitment to the continuous improvement of on-farm practices relating to animal care and welfare, food safety, traceability, biosecurity, and sustainability, and as a minimum, comply with recognized Canadian standards, where applicable, including:
Dairy Cattle – Codes of Practice for the care and handling of Dairy Cattle (nfacc.ca), and;
Goats – Codes of Practice for the care and handling of Goats (nfacc.ca)
We have a continued relationship with our dairy farm members and industry organizations, such as Dairy Farmers of Ontario and Dairy Farmers of Manitoba for the dairy cow industry to understand that these programs continue to safeguard the health and welfare of dairy cows on-farm, while meeting customer and consumer expectations. In addition, we continue to work collaboratively with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Agribusiness (OMAFA), and the Small Ruminant Veterinarians of Ontario (SRVO) to ensure that our dairy goat animal care program meets customer and consumer expectations, while ensuring farmers have the tools to safeguard the health and welfare of animals on-farm.
Unlike dairy cow milk, which is administered under the Canadian supply management system, Gay Lea Foods has a direct relationship with its dairy goat producers. It is expected that dairy goat producers shipping milk with Gay Lea Foods will meet the requirements of our dairy goat animal care program, including third-party audits.
Gay Lea Foods reserves the right to permanently discontinue any purchasing agreement with any individual dairy goat farm/farmer during and/or after a confirmed credible case of animal neglect or abuse. Provincial dairy cow farm organizations likewise reserve the right to suspend the license of any individual dairy cow farm or farmer when a credible case of neglect or abuse has been confirmed.
