Regulatory Updates

To comply with the requirements, all enterprises that are seeking to become or remain registered for the aforementioned products will need to provide the following information to MAS at [email protected] by no later than Monday, October 21, 2024:

Under these requirements, establishments will need to have their enterprise information published on the GACC Department of Animal and Plant Quarantine (DAPQ) online database.

 

Please note that although Canada did not previously have access to China for some of these commodities, DAPQ has confirmed they are soliciting lists for the above.

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The General Administration of Customs China (GACC) will be implementing new registration requirements for foreign establishments involved in the processing, storage, and export of the following plant and animal products to be exported to China:

 

  • Rapeseed (canola) meal
  • frozen shrimp products (for feed)
  • heat-treated deer antlers/bones,
  • deer hides
  • equine hides
  • rabbit pelts
  • unprocessed shrimp and crab shells
  • mint
  • raspberries
  • pepper
  • mustard seeds
  • ginkgo leaves

 

 

Import Alert; Notification of Requirement for VS Import Permit for Commercial Shipments of Non-Shelf Stable Food Products for Human Consumption Imported from Canada Which Contain Egg/Egg Products as Ingredients

 

Effective September 27, 2024, The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services (APHIS) will require a VS import permit for commercial shipments of non-shelf stable food products for human consumption imported from Canada,

which contain egg or egg products as ingredients, and which do not meet the conditions of

Guideline #1122

Members: CFIA is accepting comments until end of day May 31, 2024

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Stakeholders: CFIA is accepting comments until end of day June 12, 2024

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CFIA is seeking input from stakeholders on a proposal that would establish a single inspection fee of $0.00230/kg (i) for all fish and seafood importers; and, (ii) for all imported fish and seafood products.

Since the implementation of the SFCR in 2019; importers holding a ‘basic’ seafood license (prior to SFCR) paid a different inspection fee than those importers who held a ‘QMP import license’ (prior to SFCR).

CFIA is accepting comments until end of day June 12, 2024 (30 days from today).

Members:

Members are asked to submit comments to [email protected] by end of day May 31st, if you wish to have them included in the I.E. Canada submission.

Stakeholders:

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has launched a consultation with interested stakeholders to obtain feedback on proposed amendments to Part 16 – Fish Inspection Fees of the CFIA Fees Notice related to import inspection fees.

The consultation will be open for 30 days, and you are encouraged to share comments from May 13, 2024 to June 12, 2024. Feedback received will help inform final amendments.

Comments can be sent to [email protected]. Please use “Fish import inspection fees” in the subject line of the email.

Public comment on The Safe Food for Canadians Act (SFCA) will close on May 27th, 2024

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The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is consulting on the review of the Safe Food for Canadians Act (SFCA) to assess if improvements or changes are required to the provisions and operations of the Act.

The consultation is part of a broader legislative review of the Act and is not an evaluation of the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations (SFCR).

Industry, consumers, and interested stakeholders are encouraged to share your thoughts by May 27, 2024.

On July 20, 2022, Health Canada published amendments to the Food and Drug Regulations related to front-of package (FOP) labelling in Canada Gazette Part II:

At the time, Health Canada also published the front-of-package nutrition symbol labelling guide for industry, so that stakeholders would have over three years in order to make any required changes.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has updated the front-of-package nutrition symbol labelling guide for industry, to reflect changes to other components of the FOP regulatory package, such as the provisions for high intensity sweetener and the addition of vitamin D to foods. This fulfills a CFIA commitment under Phase I of the multi-year implementation plan for these amendments.

These labelling changes will contribute to Health Canada and CFIA’s continued efforts to help Canadians make more informed choices about the foods they purchase.

Review of the Safe Food for Canadians Act

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is consulting on the review of the Safe Food for Canadians Act (SFCA) to assess if improvements or changes are required to the provisions and operations of the Act.

The consultation is part of a broader legislative review of the Act and is not an evaluation of the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations (SFCR).

Industry, consumers, and interested stakeholders are encouraged to share their thoughts by May 27, 2024.

Updated export certificates for the Canadian pet food industry.

The Guideline for preparing export certificates for the Canadian pet food industry have been updated to include, among other things, terms and conditions for the use of composite samples in microbiological testing required for the export of pet food. These procedures have been added to the glossary, under the definition “Microbiological testing”. Composite sampling of lots/batches intended for export may be used if all the conditions listed in the table are met.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) adjusts its service fees annually based on the Consumer Price Index in accordance with the Service Fees Act. This requirement ensures that the CFIA’s service fees keep pace with the costs of providing services.

The next annual adjustment will result in an increase of the service fees by 6.8% as of March 31, 2024.

This fee increase reflects the percentage change over 12 months in the April All-items CPI for Canada, published by Statistics Canada, for the previous fiscal year.

More information on Adjusting service fees for inflation is available on the CFIA’s website.

As CFIA evolves its risk management to further support industry’s ability to compete globally and embrace technology, CFIA has developed an Establishment-based Risk Assessment model for food establishments (ERA-Food) tool. The tool was developed to evaluate domestic food establishments based on the risk they represent to Canadian consumers, using establishment-specific data and a mathematical algorithm. It considers risks associated with a specific food commodity; operation or manufacturing process and mitigation strategies implemented by the industry to control their food safety risks; and establishment compliance information.

Developed in collaboration with experts from academia, industry and other government departments,  the ERA-Food tool will be used by CFIA to help determine where inspectors should spend time and to inform program planning to place focus efforts on areas of highest risk.

Watch for more TAG Canada Insights on CFIA and the ERA-Food Tool

The organic equivalency arrangement has been extended for another 3 years.

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Canada and Mexico signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) recognizing the 2 national organic systems are equivalent. The agreement began on February 15, 2023.

The recognitions apply to agricultural products of plant origin, and processed foods of plant origin, livestock and livestock products grown or produced in Canada or whose final processing and packaging occurs in Canada and agricultural products of plant origin, and processed foods of plant origin grown or produced in Mexico whose final processing and packaging occurs in Mexico.

Notice to industry – Compliance timelines for the use of food additives in certain ready-to-eat meat products - Canadian Food Inspection Agency

Compliance for food additives in ready-to-eat meat products

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) would like to remind stakeholders of the Notice to Industry: Update on compliance timelines for the use of food additives in certain ready-to-eat meat products.

In addition to declaring any food additives, industry is responsible to ensure that the information presented through labels and advertising of certain-ready-to-eat (RTE) meat products is brought into compliance by November 8, 2023.

Temporary SFC licence conditions in fall 2023 for romaine lettuce imported from the U.S.

Romaine Lettuce Imported from the United States

From September 28 to December 20, 2023, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency will be adding temporary conditions to Safe Food for Canadians licences for the importation of romaine lettuce from the United States, including salad mixes containing this lettuce. During this period, importers will be required to provide negative E. coli O157 test results for each shipment of romaine lettuce grown in the Salinas Valley, California.

For more information, please visit Temporary import requirements for romaine lettuce from the United States (2023).

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