Amending Canada’s Food Regulations: Widespread Changes Implemented in both the FDRs and the SFCRs
As legal professionals who routinely have two (plus) tabs open for a client’s label review to compare the regulatory requirements of both the Food and Drug Regulations (“FDRs”) and the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations (“SFCRs”), it brings us great pleasure to know that the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (“CFIA”) shares our pain and wants to create greater alignment between the two regulations. On July 6, 2022 – with the publication of Canada Gazette, Part II – changes were made to both regulations to simplify and reduce duplication of labelling requirements, as well as introduce innovation supporting measures to assist with post-pandemic economic recovery, and update food production and trade patterns to match current, market realities.
The good news is that, despite these widespread changes, industry is not required to update their current labels; however, if you manufacture pre-packaged or consumer pre-packaged foods and you must print new labels, or you are launching a new product on the market, you are encouraged to review the regulatory amendments and update your labels as required.
Most of these changes we have already put into practice at our Firm. In particular, we have already utilized the new documents incorporated by reference (“IBR”) – which will see a document IBR for mandatory common names and optional class names for ingredients and components, and a document IBR for descriptive words, expressions, and identification names for specific foods. Documents IBR contain the same incorporated wording as if they were found in the regulations, but their document status permits the regulatory body to revise them with greater ease in order to keep pace with a changing, regulatory landscape.
Additionally, the regulations contain changes to the definition of spices, herbs and seasonings; the FDRs now include an introduction of the term “true nature”, which requires that any prepackaged food that may be mistaken for something similar must contain words on its Principal Display Panel to distinguish its true nature (i.e., canned tuna must identify with a textural description, and the inclusion of any brine, water or oil); there is repeal of the requirement to list Water as an ingredient in situations where Water is lost during manufacture; the regulations remove a slew of terms that the CFIA deems outdated (including the ever popular “Asparagus Style”, formerly found on frozen or hermetically sealed packages of green or wax beans. Frankly, what even is “Asparagus Style”? It sounds like an indie band); and the removal of mandatory, standard container sizes for a number of foods. We recommend reviewing the Summary of Changes, published by the CFIA, for specific details.
We note that the CFIA has also introduced amendments to the regulations that directly speak to a problem we highlighted in our blog post on e-commerce, published in May (found here). Prior to the publication of Canada Gazette, Part II on July 6, 2022, the SFCRs inadvertently applied to any hospitality business that may transport food across borders. In our May blog post, we highlighted how many restaurants set up e-commerce shops during the pandemic to earn income, and that these businesses would be affected by any regulatory requirements imposed under the SFCRs in relation to e-commerce, as foods may be ordered online from anywhere inside or outside Canada. The CFIA added to this discourse with the example of border towns; the SFCRs, as they previously existed, inadvertently applied to any restaurant or similar enterprise that happened to sit on the border between two provinces.
Under the amended regulations, though, restaurants and similar enterprises engaged in sending or conveying food to consumers in another province are exempt from the regulatory requirements of the SFCRs, and in particular the licensing requirement. This is good news for Bambino’s Pizzeria and Fine Food in Amherst, Nova Scotia, or the local mom n’ pop in Flin Flon, Manitoba.
We encourage food manufacturers, or anybody involved in the supply chain, to consult the amendments in the Canada Gazette for further understanding of the changes. On September 27th from 1:30pm to 2:30pm, the CFIA will also hold a webinar, in English, via MS Teams. They will do the same on September 21st in French.
Should you wish to update your labels, or are looking to launch a product that requires a food label, and you want regulatory guidance or a label review, contact us at info@gsjameson.com.