Thank you very much.

Good afternoon, Mr. Chair and members of the committee.

My name is Jules Gorham. I'm the director of regulatory affairs and policy at the Canadian Health Food Association, a trade association that represents natural, organic and wellness products. Aaron Skelton, president and CEO of the association, and I appreciate the opportunity to speak with you today.

The central problem we're bringing to you today is the continued abuse of Health Canada's authority. In 2023 and 2024, Health Canada made significant changes to the laws governing natural health products, or NHPs, through omnibus budget bills, rather than through the parliamentary process. It has undone the hard work done by this committee and by parliamentarians on legislative studies in previous parliaments.

In budget 2023, through division 27 of part 4 of Bill C-47, Health Canada redefined NHPs within the Food and Drugs Act. This redefinition is not just semantics. The passing of that bill fundamentally changed how NHPs are regulated, placing them closer to the likes of pharmaceuticals than the lower-risk products they inherently are.

Adding a change of this magnitude to an omnibus bill was a reaction to the Auditor General's report that would bypass stakeholder consultation and questioning by this very committee, which had already stated Vanessa's Law was too complex for NHPs back in 2014. Catching an entire industry off guard and evading proper parliamentary process has left us with a mess that has severe ramifications for business, trade and public health.

It is upon this committee to remind the department that Canada has laws that compel our public service to respect international trade law and fair, transparent public engagement. In less than three years, the NHP industry has been subject to six major legislative and regulatory changes in the form of two omnibus bills, new labelling laws built on those used to manage prescription medication, a cost recovery program proposed without proper cost-benefit or gender-based analysis, and new inspection and good manufacturing practices guidance similar to that for pharmaceuticals.

The impact of such layered, unchecked powers is not hypothetical. It has already created a staggering and untenable situation for companies across the sector. It fosters an imbalance that makes being compliant an unattractive and risky business.

The Food and Drugs Act and the NHP regulations exist to give industry trust in the regulators and stability in our system. If they can be changed without scrutiny or transparency, what protection exists for the industry or Canadians?

We would like to be clear that CHFA does not represent any smoking cessation or tobacco products. The argument that NHPs must remain defined as therapeutic drugs to keep nicotine pouches behind the pharmacist counter is worthy of a debate of its own.

We would also like to clarify a commonly cited falsehood that CHFA and our members are against regulations. Since 2004, NHPs in Canada have been the most strictly regulated in the world, under a very rigorous framework. However, Health Canada's approach is increasingly focused on creating an overly complex and costly pre-market system requiring extensive resources but without offering corresponding post-market monitoring, which Vanessa's Law will not solve. This burdensome, imbalanced framework still fails to deliver the consumer protection it promises.

Misinformation about the safety of NHPs has been a common thread through multiple testimonies by Health Canada. The serious adverse reactions that Health Canada repeatedly uses to justify the need for more regulations are taken out of context and promote fearmongering to the Canadian public. NHPs have a long history of safe use. Our access to information request and two independent studies have concluded that the 700-plus cases cited by Health Canada and the minister occurred in patients who were also on other treatments. It is impossible to establish a causal relationship.

I also want to take a moment to let this committee know that the lipstick I am wearing today cannot be recalled. It is a cosmetic product, which is not subject to Vanessa's Law, despite being part of the original self-care framework.

As an industry, we continue to support regulation and legislation that protects Canadians and is developed in a transparent, responsible and appropriate manner.

Today, we're asking this committee to support Bill C-368 and demand that Health Canada respect the open government that all industries and all Canadians expect. We cannot underestimate the need to properly address legislative and regulatory changes of this magnitude.

We look forward to your questions.