Preamble: Canada requires food products to contain a minimum specified percentage of Canadian content, for the label to say, “Product of Canada”. The requirements for use of the label were studied last year and a parliamentary report from national consultations with industry, led by MP James Bezan (Interlake), was prepared.[1] This report recommended revising the long standing previous level of a minimum of 51% to a new level of at least 85% Canadian content to be eligible for use of the Product of Canada label.

The Federal Government subsequently implemented a 98% level of Canadian content for use of the Product of Canada label. Revised labelling guidelines for Product of Canada claims came into effect on December 31, 2008. They were developed to promote compliance with subsection 5(1) of the Food and Drugs Act and subsection 7(1) of the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency enforces the requirements of the Food and Drugs Act and the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act to protect consumers against product misrepresentation. 

Resolution: That the Government of Canada revise, from 98% to 85%, the Canadian content percentage required for a food product to be eligible to use the Product of Canada claim on its label.

 

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[1] “PRODUCT OF CANADA” CLAIMS: TRUTH AND TRANSPARENCY ARE NECESSARY, Report of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food,  James Bezan, M.P. Chair. June 2008. 39th PARLIAMENT, 2nd SESSION

[2] “CFA Votes against product label rules,” Western Producer, March 12, 2009 Issue, Page 30

 

Resolution Report:  

The Manitoba Chambers of Commerce produces Resolution reports as part of its commitment to be accountable to its members. The reports are updated as matters unfold and have three components:

MCC Advocacy: Specific activities the MCC has done to help make this Resolution a reality. 

Developments:  Events (e.g. government action, media coverage) that relate to Resolution.  

Advice, comments, and information sharing are welcome; simply enter a reply at the bottom of this post.

 

MCC Advocacy: 

April 16, May 6 and May 7, 2009: The 2009-2010 Resolutions were posted on the MCC website, listed as part of a comprehensive Report on AGM 2009 and then notice of this story was circulated through the MCC e-Omnibus which is sent to all MCC members, Media and Government.

May 19, 2009: Resolution books were sent to every MLA and every Member of Parliament that hails from Manitoba. The following had this Resolution specifically drawn to their attention with a detailed letter setting out the background to this issue, Government initiatives (where applicable), and an argument for the Resolution:

• The Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives
• The Minister of Competitiveness, Training and Trade
• The Federal Minister of Agriculture  

May 28, 2009: The MCC will be proposing a Resolution on this issue at the Canadian Chamber AGM so as to get our national organization involved. You can access the draft by clicking here.

Please provide comments/input by going to the “Leave a Reply” button near the bottom of this page. The draft must be sent in to the Canadian Chamber by June 5.

If you want to keep track of developments on this issue you can get automatic emails when news occurs, simply click on the free subscribing options at the bottom of this page.    

June 10, 2009: Met with a representative of Maple Leaf Foods on this matter.

June 12, 2009: Discussed this Resolution with 2 of the Canadian Chambers committees, the Competition Law and Policy Task Force and the International Affairs Committee. This was a necessary step as part of the process involved in submitting a Resolution on this matter to the Canadian Chamber’s AGM. 

Both committees indicated they supported the Resolution, but are recommending some minor wordsmith changes.  The MCC will review a draft from the Canadian Chamber.  

June 17, 2009: The MCC E-Update provided notice of new developments on this issue. The E-Update was circulated sent to all MCC members, Media and Government.

June 19, 2009: The draft for the Canadian Chamber AGM has been finalized with the approval of the CCC’s committees. You can see the final draft here. The CCC AGM will be held in Victoria B.C. from October 3-5, 2009.      

July 29, 2009: This Resolution was highlighted in an MCC E-Update which was sent to 2,500 individuals including MCC members, Media and Government.

October 5, 2009: With the help of the Assiniboia Chamber of Commerce, the MCC was able to successfully sponsor this Resolution at the CCC AGM.

December 17, 2009: Discussed this issue during a meeting with the Honourable Vic Toews, Federal President of the Treasury Board. 

Toews heard out the MCC on this matter but indicated it falls clearly within the purview of the Federal Ag Minister.

 

Developments:

July 28, 2009: The Manitoba Chambers of Commerce received the following response from the Federal Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and Minister for the Canadian Wheat Board:

As you know, on December 17, 2007, Prime Minister Stephen Harper committed to reviewing the policy on the use of “Product of Canada” and “Made in Canada” claims on food labels and in advertising as part of the Food and Consumer Safety Action Plan.

On May 21, 2008, Prime Minister Harper and I delivered on this commitment by announcing new guidelines that would tighten the definitions so that Canadians can have confidence in what they are buying and have the choice to support Canadian farmers and food producers.

Before implementing this new Canadian labeling initiative, the Government of Canada asked Canadians and industry stakeholders to submit their views on the proposed policy changes. The results of these consultations confirmed overwhelming support for the proposed guidelines.

In addition, the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food (SCAAF) reviewed this policy and heard testimony from a wide variety of witnesses. The SCAAF recommended that the guidelines be amended immediately to ensure the integrity of the “Product of Canada” label and to provide Canadians with information to support consumer choice.

Should a manufacturer choose to use the voluntary “Product of Canada” label, “all or virtually all” of the contents of the product must be Canadian. To ensure enforceability and a level playing field for processors, all significant components, ingredients, processing and labour used to make the product must be Canadian. There would be very little or no foreign content, with the exception of minor additives or spices that may not be available in Canada. This is consistent with the approach of our key trading partners – notably the U.S., Australia and the European Union. This policy will encourage processors to source their ingredients in Canada.

The “Made in Canada” guidelines will help Canadians identify when foods have been processed in Canada and may contain some Canadian ingredients. Under the new policy, processed foods may be labeled with “Made in Canada from domestic and imported ingredients” or “Made in Canada from imported ingredients.” When Canadians buy food with one of these two labels, they can be confident that they are contributing to Canadian jobs and to the Canadian economy.

Over time, the Government expects that processors who do not choose to use “Product of Canada” or “Made in Canada” on their labels will take the opportunity to highlight Canadian ingredients and labour elsewhere on their labels in order to provide more information to consumers. Food producers continue to have the option to use other labels such as “Grown in Canada”, “Raised in Alberta” or “Made with Quebec Blueberries” provided they are truthful and not misleading.

Food products using “Product of Canada” or “Made in Canada” claims produced on or after December 31, 2008, are subject to the new guidelines. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) advises that it intends to use a common-sense approach when implementing these guidelines. The Government recognizes that this transition will take time and that many products produced or manufactured before this date will continue to be on store shelves and in warehouses; these will be assessed using the previous guidelines.

Further information to help industry with the updated Guide to Food Labeling and Advertising is available at http://www.healthycanadians.ca/. As well, the questions and answers regarding the new policy can be viewed on-line at [editor's note: the next link appears to be broken, the information appears to be available here] www.healthycanadians.ca/pr-rp/faqcan_e.html. Additional information may be obtained by contacting the CFIA at 1-800-442-2342 or at TTY 1-800-465-7735.

September 29, 2009: Manitoba’s Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives wrote to the Manitoba Chambers of Commerce on this issue, stating as follows:   

Regarding Product of Canada Labels, the Manitoba government supports the federal government’s attempt to redefine voluntary food labels to better reflect the true origins of food products.  At the same time, we are concerned that the regulatory process related to voluntary labeling is not made unnecessarily onerous for our food industry.  We are sensitive to the fact that, as the Canadian economy becomes more integrated with the global economy, it makes it very difficult to implement strict country- of-origin guidelines to some goods.  Therefore we continue to encourage the federal government to study the implications of the new ‘Product of Canada’ guidelines for the Canadian food industry and help the food industry remain competitive in a global economy while ensuring consumers receive the information they need to make informed purchasing decisions.

November 13, 2009: The Canadian Chamber of Commerce wrote to the Federal Minister of Industry on this matter.

Final Report:

For the longest time this issue could not get any traction from the Federal Government, they simply would not reconsider their own reforms. Then in late April it was reported there may be some changes (see Brian Kelly’s comments at the bottom of his page). As a result, this Resolution is now a qualified success!