The following provides guidance to veterinary biologics manufacturers and importers regarding the Canadian requirements for labelling veterinary biologics manufactured and/or distributed in Canada. Labelling includes any legend, word or mark attached to or accompanying any veterinary biologic.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is responsible for licensing veterinary biologics, including veterinary vaccines, colostrum, antibody products and diagnostic kits, manufactured and/or used in Canada. The licensing program operates under the authority of the Health of Animals Act and Regulations, and is administered by the Canadian Centre for Veterinary Biologics (CCVB).
Health of Animals Regulations, Part XI
130. No person shall sell a veterinary biologic or any diluent to be used therewith if the veterinary biologic or diluent has been prepared, manufactured, preserved, packed, labelled or tested otherwise than in the manner described in the product outline.
130.1 Every veterinary biologic imported, sold, advertised or offered for sale in Canada shall be stored at a temperature between 2°C and 7°C unless otherwise stated in the product outline or the labelling.
132.(1) No person shall import, sell, advertise or offer for sale a veterinary biologic unless it is packed and labelled in accordance with these Regulations.
132.(2) All information required by section 134 to be shown on the label of a veterinary biologic
133.(1) Subject to subsection (2), every veterinary biologic sold, advertised or offered for sale in Canada shall carry a label on or attached to every container in which the veterinary biologic is packed.
133.(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to a single dose of a killed veterinary biologic packed in a ready to use syringe if the syringe is in a sealed pouch that carries a label.
133.(3) Every veterinary biologic imported into Canada shall carry a label on or attached to every outer container and shipping container.
134.(1) Subject to this section, every label of a veterinary biologic imported, sold, advertised or offered for sale in Canada shall show
in the case of modified live virus rabies vaccines, the cautionary statement
"In the event of accidental human exposure to the vaccine virus, the possible hazard to health should be considered and public health officials or a physician should be consulted" or "En cas d'exposition accidentelle d'une personne au vaccin viral, il faut prendre en considération le risque sanitaire et consulter les responsables de la santé publique ou un médecin,"
and shall be marked with the words "For veterinary use only" or "Pour usage vétérinaire seulement" or alternative wording approved by the Minister.
134.(2) Where the label of a veterinary biologic is too small to show all the information required by subsection (1), any such information as the Minister may permit may be shown on the directions for use inside the package.
134.(3) The information contained on the label of a veterinary biologic imported into or sold, advertised or offered for sale in Canada shall be shown in its entirety in either or both official languages and, if both official languages are shown, may additionally be shown in whole or in part in any other language.
Official Languages Act
26. Every federal institution that regulates persons or organizations with respect to any of their activities that relate to the health, safety or security of members of the public has the duty to ensure, through its regulation of those persons or organizations, wherever it is reasonable to do so in the circumstances, that members of the public can communicate with and obtain available services from those persons or organizations in relation to those activities in both official languages.
41.(1) The Government of Canada is committed to
41.(2) Every federal institution has the duty to ensure that positive measures are taken for the implementation of the commitments under subsection (1). For greater certainty, this implementation shall be carried out while respecting the jurisdiction and powers of the provinces.
All applicable federal legal labelling requirements prescribed in the Health of Animals Regulations, as well as any conditions or restrictions set out in a product licence or import permit, must be complied with before a label is accepted for use in Canada.
Please note that some provincial or local regulations may apply to the labelling of veterinary biologics. It is the responsibility of the manufacturers and the importers to ensure that all applicable legal requirements are met before a veterinary biologic is distributed in Canada.
The following information must appear on a product's labelling:
This is considered to be the true or proper name of the micro-organism(s) contained in the product and is not the trade or brand name. The assigned name should be identical to that shown on the Veterinary Biologics Product Licence or Permit to Import Veterinary Biologics. No other statement, design, device, or trade name should overshadow the assigned name, which must be given prominence by the location and by the style and/or size of lettering. The letters of the assigned name should not be smaller than the letters of the trade name. The assigned name should appear on every part of a product's labelling.
The assigned name is determined by the relevant regulatory authority in the country of manufacture.
The CCVB will approve the French assigned name for each product licensed in Canada. Consistency of terminology must be maintained for all products if there is a choice of appropriate terminology. Check the CCVB website for similar licensed products prior to suggesting a new French assigned name.
The Establishment Licence Number of the manufacturer, as issued by the regulatory authority of the country where the manufacturer is located, must be on the labels, unless such a system is not used by that country. The same number must be on all labels.
It is the veterinary biologics importer's responsibility to determine whether the manufacturer's Establishment Licence Number may appear on labelling applied outside the country of manufacture.
A product code, issued by the regulatory authority of the country of manufacture, may appear on the labels. This is not mandatory for labels on products distributed in Canada.
Pertinent information for all veterinary biologics, except diagnostic test kits, includes the following:
Pertinent information for diagnostic test kits includes the following:
Such a date must be supported by satisfactory stability data, and the product must not be sold after this expiry date. The expiry date is calculated from the date of initiation of the first potency test. For multi-component products, the expiry date should be the earliest expiry date among the individual product components.
If the expiry date is indicated using only year/month, it is understood that the expiry date corresponds to the last day of this month. The expiry date is calculated from the date of the start of the first potency test, and therefore the month that is indicated must fall within the total expiry time, stipulated in the outline of production (OP). For example, if potency testing started June 14, 2004, for a product with an expiry dating of 12 months, the expiry date would be written 2005/05.
The preferred format for expiry date is as follows: yyyy/mm/dd (year/month/day).
All claims written on the labels must be supported by data that have been approved by the CCVB. The recommendations for product use must be consistent with the recommendations stipulated in Section VI of the OP, unless otherwise approved by the CCVB.
Company logos and other artwork may appear on labels, provided they are discreet and do not overshadow required information. Slogans and taglines should not ordinarily appear on container and carton labels, except for large containers and cartons where there is sufficient space to include this information without displacing the other text.
Slogans and company taglines may appear on the package insert, provided claims by the slogan or tagline are consistent with data filed with the CCVB. All claims are subject to approval by the CCVB.
In accordance with applicable Canadian federal legislation and policies, veterinary biologics intended for sale in Canada must bear English-French bilingual labels as reviewed and approved by the CCVB. Wherever feasible, all label information (including all containers, cartons and package inserts) should appear in both Canadian official languages. The label's text must be clearly legible in conditions of normal use. Where there is insufficient space on the container or carton label to provide fully bilingual text, the required product information listed at III.A may be provided in a separate bilingual package insert or carton that accompanies the product.
Veterinary biologics that have English-only labels must be accompanied by an English-French bilingual package insert developed by the manufacturer or designated Canadian importer. This insert should accompany all products distributed in Canada. A case-by-case evaluation will be completed by the CCVB to determine whether this labelling is acceptable for use on an interim basis for new products until fully bilingual labels are available for the product, or for use on an ongoing basis for "minor use" products. Please see Veterinary Biologics Memorandum 2011-03: Information Requirements for Addition of Package Inserts at Canadian Veterinary Biologics Importer Facilities for more information regarding the preparation of this type of package insert.
Use of text in languages other than English or French on carton labels, container labels or package inserts is prohibited, unless the relevant container label, carton label, or package insert is already fully English-French bilingual, as described above. Importers submitting multi-lingual labelling items for review and approval will be required to include a note from the translator to attest that the foreign language text is an equivalent translation of the English or French text.
These include all substances added to prevent spoilage of the final product. Preservatives added at the cell culture stage should also be listed on the label. For diagnostic test kits, all preservatives included in the components that are necessary to perform the test should be listed in the labelling.
The name of the company responsible for the manufacture of the product should be clearly indicated on the labels. If more than one company is responsible for this process, the company responsible for the first or last stage should be identified.
Approval of outer shipping container labels by the CCVB is not mandatory. However, shipping containers should include the following information:
It is the manufacturer's responsibility to provide the CCVB with the data supporting all claims made on the labels, and certification that text in a language other than English and/or French is equivalent to the text approved by the CCVB. If the government of the importing country regulates veterinary biologics, a document in English or French attesting its approval of the label claims must be submitted to the CCVB.
It is the manufacturer's responsibility to proofread labels before their submission to the CCVB.
All label submissions must be accompanied by a cover letter outlining the requested changes, a Form CFIA/ACIA 4720 – Application for Services, and the corresponding fee.
Fees for label reviews conducted as part of a new product submission are included with the fees for the new product submission.
Fees are only waived for approval of corrections to label errors identified by CCVB. A new fee is required if any changes are made to the labels other than those corrections requested by CCVB.
A single fee is required when all the modified labels of all the affected products are submitted together and the same change (e.g. modification of a toll-free telephone number) is made to all of the labels. An individual cover letter, clearly stating that no other changes have been made to the labels, is required for each product file. Any change to the content of the text present on the labels, other than the requested change, requires a full review of the labels, and a revision fee for each product will then apply to the label review.
Up-to-date labels for diluents distributed with vaccines should be submitted at the same time as the vaccine labels.
If a particular diluent is distributed with more than one product, the diluent labels may be submitted together in one package, with one fee, as long as the covering letter identifies all of the vaccines with which the diluent is normally distributed. The minimum number of copies of diluent labels that should be submitted is 2X + 1 where X is the number of products distributed with that diluent.
Draft label text may be submitted to the CCVB for review prior to the presentation of final labels. The label review fee should accompany the draft text, and this fee will also cover the review of the corresponding final labels.
If the draft label text is part of a new product submission, no fee is required to accompany the text as it is already included with the fees for the review of the new product submission.
Since space on the labels of containers of 50 mL or less is restricted, only the following information is required:
Other information may be added to the vial label, but not at the expense of clarity and legibility. The labelling must be easily read under the customary conditions of purchase and use.
Directions for use and precautions must appear on multi-vial cartons or package inserts when the individual vials are too small to legibly carry all necessary information.
A diagnostic kit's trade name can be used without the complete assigned name on the vial labels of reagents with very small volumes (10 mL or less).
Approval from the CCVB to add or substitute a package insert to an imported product in Canada may be granted, provided that the following is true:
More details on obtaining approval from the CCVB to add or substitute package inserts for imported licensed veterinary biologics can be found in Veterinary Biologics Memorandum 2011-03: Information Requirements for Addition of Package Inserts at Canadian Veterinary Biologics Importer Facilities.
In cases where there is a shortage of CCVB-approved labels for a licensed product distributed in Canada, labels that have been approved for use by a foreign regulatory authority may be submitted to the CCVB for temporary use in Canada.
One photocopy of each label, clearly showing the foreign regulatory authority's disposition, along with the required number of mounted labels prepared as described in Section IV.B. above should be submitted to the CCVB along with the appropriate label review fee. The labels can be approved for use in Canada for up to one year.
Product labels on which a language other than English or French appears cannot be approved for temporary use in Canada unless both English and French already appear on all of the product labels.
The following are considered major errors and will result in rejection of the submitted label(s):
The following are considered minor errors, and may result in temporary approval of the labels until corrected labels can be submitted:
Corrected labels must be submitted for final approval within a limited time frame, to a maximum of one year. The length of the approval period will be determined by the CCVB reviewer.
Photocopies of the labels with the required corrections are returned to the manufacturer. The final corrected labels should be submitted for review and approval before the end of the interim label approval period or the next printing of the labels, whichever comes first.
The fee submitted with the original labels remains valid for the review and approval of corrected labels. This fee does not cover subsequent changes initiated by the manufacturer.
Labels of all products that are manufactured in Canada and destined for exportation only must be presented to the CCVB for approval.
The following information must be submitted to the CCVB by the Canadian manufacturer:
Follow the procedure as described in section IV above.
The following information must be submitted in addition to the information requirements already described above in Section IV:
Please note that the CCVB may also contact a third party to verify the equivalency of the provided translation.
Manufacturers can make minor changes to labels and implement them without pre-approval from the CCVB, provided that the copies of the modified labels are submitted to the CCVB for approval within two months of the change.
To streamline the review and approval procedure, manufacturers are encouraged to submit revised labels for all of their products together.
The following are considered minor label changes:
English
for the prevention of
as an aid in the prevention of
for the control of
as an aid in the control of
to reduce
as an aid in the reduction of
French
pour prévenir
pour aider à prévenir
pour contrôler
pour aider à contrôler
pour réduire
pour aider à réduire
The following includes some of the most common terminology errors:
| English | French |
|---|---|
| Act | Loi |
| adjuvant; oil-based adjuvant | adjuvant; adjuvant huileux / à base d'huile |
| adjuvanted | adjuvanté; adjuvé |
| administer | administrer |
| adverse event / reaction | évènement / réaction indésirable |
| advertisement | publicité / annonce publicitaire |
| albumin (egg white) | albumen (blanc d'oeuf) |
| ampule / ampoule (liquid nitrogen) | ampoule (azote liquide) |
| anaphylaxis - anaphylactic reaction - anaphylactic shock |
anaphylaxie - réaction anaphylactique - choc anaphylactique |
| animals under X weeks of age - X-week / month-old animals |
animaux âgés de moins de X semaines - animaux âgés de X semaines / mois |
| antibody | anticorps |
| antibody test kit | trousse de détection / dépistage d'anticorps |
| anticoagulated blood | sang traité à l'anticoagulant / anticoagulé |
| antigen | antigène |
| antigen test kit | trousse de détection / dépistage d'antigènes / des antigènes |
| antitoxin | antitoxine |
| assigned name | nom attribué |
| autogenous - a. bacterin - a. vaccine |
autogène - bactérine a. - vaccin a. |
| bacteria; bacterium | bactéries; bactérie |
| bacterial | bactérien |
| bacterin | bactérine |
| biohazardous waste | matières biologiques dangereuses |
| biotechnology | biotechnologie |
| bluetongue | fièvre catarrhale du mouton |
| breeder flock (poultry) | troupeau reproducteur (volaille) |
| breeding | accouplement, saillie |
| bring to room temperature | amener à la température ambiante |
| brucellosis | brucellose |
| buffer (diagnostic kit) | tampon (trousse diagnostique) |
| Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) | Agence canadienne d'inspection des aliments (ACIA) |
| Canadian Veterinary Biologics Establishment License Number (Can. Vet. Biol. Estab. Lic. No.) |
Numéro de permis canadien d'établissement de produits biologiques vétérinaires (No / no de perm. can. établ. prod. biol. vét.) |
| cattle | bovins |
| cautionary statement | mise en garde |
| cell line | lignée cellulaire |
| challenge | provocation |
| chicken; chicks; pullets; laying hens | poulet; poussins; poulettes; poules pondeuses |
| chimera | chimère |
| coated microtiter plates | microplaques sensibilisées |
| coccidia; coccidium | coccidies; coccidie |
| confidence limit (CL) | limite de confiance (LC) |
| contraindication | contre-indication |
| competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (cELISA) | épreuve immuno-enzymatique de compétition (cELISA) |
| components | composants; composantes |
| cut-off (diagnostic kit) | seuil de détection (trousse de diagnostic) |
| degree-days (fish) | degrés-jours (poissons) |
| device (diagnostic kit) | dispositif (trousse de diagnostic) |
| diagnostic kit | trousse diagnostique / trousse de diagnostic |
| disclaimer | déni de responsabilité |
| disease | maladie |
| dispense (reagents) | distribuer (réactifs) |
| disposal; to dispose / discard | élimination; éliminer |
| dissolved | dissous |
| Dispose according to local regulations. | Éliminer conformément aux règlements locaux en vigueur. |
| Do not vaccinate pregnant animals. | Ne pas vacciner les femelles gestantes / gravides. |
| Do not vaccinate pregnant cows or calves nursing from pregnant cows. | Ne pas vacciner les vaches gestantes / gravides ou les veaux allaités par des vaches gestantes / gravides. |
| Do not vaccinate pregnant sows or piglets nursing from pregnant sows. | Ne pas vacciner les truies gestantes / gravides ou les porcelets allaités par des truies gestantes / gravides. |
| Do not vaccinate within 21/40/60 days prior to / before slaughter. | Ne pas vacciner dans les 21/40/60 jours précédant l'abattage. |
| dosage of oral administration (rate) | dosage d'administration orale (taux) |
| dot; spot (diagnostic kit) | pastille (trousse de diagnostic) |
| drinking water | eau potable |
| droplet spray | nuage de gouttelettes |
| egg antibody | anticorps dans les oeufs |
| egg inoculation machine | vaccinateur d'oeufs |
| egg powder | poudre d'oeufs |
| egg white (albumin) | blanc d'oeufs (albumen) |
| embryonated eggs | oeufs embryonnés |
| emulsion | émulsion |
| enterotoxigenic | entérotoxigène |
| enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) | épreuve immuno-enzymatique (ELISA) |
| excretion | excrétion |
| expiry date; Exp.; EXP. | date de péremption; Pér.; EXP. |
| fetus | foetus |
| fetal | foetal |
| field trial; field test | essai sur le terrain |
| fingerling (fish) | alevin (poisson) |
| flock | troupeau |
| flock / herd of origin | troupeau de provenance |
| food animal | animal destiné à l'alimentation |
| food-producing animal | animal producteur de denrées alimentaires |
| For investigational use. | Pour usage en recherche. |
| For emergency use. | Pour usage en cas d'urgence. |
| formalin-inactivated cultures | cultures inactivées au formol |
| For use in animal only. | Destiné aux animaux seulement. |
| For veterinary use only. | Pour usage vétérinaire seulement. |
| fry (fish) | alevin (poisson) |
| fungi; fungus | champignons; champignon |
| gilt | cochette |
| heifer | génisse |
| herd | troupeau |
| high incidence state | état à forte incidence |
| hindquarter | arrière-train |
| homogenizer | homogénéisateur |
| hyperimmunized | hyperimmunisé |
| In case of accidental human injection, seek immediate medical attention. | En cas d'injection accidentelle chez l'humain, consulter immédiatement un médecin. |
| Incubate at room temperature | Incuber à la température ambiante. |
| incubator | étuve |
| injection site | point / site d'injection |
| insert; leaflet | notice; dépliant |
| inspector | inspecteur |
| isolates | isolats |
| keep / store out of direct sunlight | entreposer / garder à l'abri de la lumière directe du soleil / protéger du soleil |
| killed virus | virus tué |
| kit (diagnostic) | trousse (de diagnostic) |
| label | étiquette |
| laboratory test | épreuve en laboratoire |
| leaflet; insert | dépliant; notice |
| licence / license (U.S.) | permis |
| licensing | homologation |
| licensed | homologué |
| licensed establishment | établissement agréé |
| liquid nitrogen tank | réservoir d'azote liquide |
| livestock | animaux de ferme / bétail |
| local swelling | enflure / inflammation localisée |
| lot | lot |
| manufacture | manufacture |
| manufactured for; manufactured by | fabriqué pour; fabriqué par |
| manufacturer; man. | fabricant; fabr. |
| master seed; master seed virus (MSV) | souche mère; virus de la souche mère (VSM) |
| master cell | cellules de souche mère |
| medicators | distributeurs de médicaments |
| micro-organism | micro-organisme |
| microtiter plates; microplates | microplaques |
| midline (fish) | ligne médiane / du centre (poissons) |
| minister | ministre |
| mix well | bien mélanger |
| modified live virus | virus vivant atténué |
| mouth | gueule (carnivore); bouche (herbivore) |
| multichannel pipet / pipette | pipette à canaux multiples |
| nares; nostrils | narines (chien, chat, oiseau); naseaux (grands animaux) |
| needle | aiguille |
| Not for human consumption. | Non destiné à l'alimentation humaine. |
| oocyst (coccidia) | oocyste; ookyste (coccidies) |
| outline of production / production outline | protocole de production / données générales sur le produit |
| package | emballage |
| parr (fish) | tacon (poisson) |
| patent pending | brevet en instance |
| permit | permis |
| Permit to import veterinary biologics | Permis d'importation de produits biologiques vétérinaires |
| Permit to release veterinary biologics | Permis de dissémination de produits biologiques vétérinaires |
| peroxidase | peroxydase |
| phosphate buffer saline | solution saline dans un tampon phosphate |
| pipet; pipette | pipette |
| pipet / pipette tip | embout de pipette |
| pouch; sachet | pochette; sachet |
| poult (turkey) | dindonneau (dindon) |
| precaution | mise en garde |
| pregnancy | gestation |
| pregnant animals (cows; sows; mares; bitches; queens) | animaux (vaches; truies; juments; chiennes; chattes) gestantes / gravides |
| preservative | agent de conservation, conservateur |
| product code | code de produit |
| product licence | permis de fabrication |
| production outline / outline of production | données générales sur le produit / protocole de production |
| progeny | descendance |
| quarantine | quarantaine |
| rate (dosage of oral administration) | taux (dosage d'administration orale) |
| ratio (interpretation of ELISA) | ratio (interprétation de l'ELISA) |
| reagents | réactifs |
| records; keep a record | registre; Tenir un registre |
| registration | enregistrement |
| registered | enregistré |
| regulations | règlement |
| rehydrate | réhydrater |
| room temperature | température ambiante |
| salmonids | salmonidés |
| sample | échantillon |
| screening test | test de dépistage |
| serial | série |
| serial number; ser. no.; ser.; SER. | numéro de série; No de sér.; sér.; SER. |
| serial release | mise en circulation d'une série |
| shake well | bien agiter / secouer |
| smolts (fish) | saumoneaux (poisson) |
| specific pathogen-free | exempt d'organismes pathogènes spécifiques |
| spot; dot (diagnostic kit) | pastille (trousse de diagnostic) |
| spray administration; sprayer | administration par vaporisation / nébulisation; vaporisateur / nébuliseur |
| spray-dried whole egg powder | poudre d'oeuf entier séchée par pulvérisation |
| standard deviation | écart type |
| store at room temperature | entreposer à la température ambiante |
| store below | conserver / entreposer en-dessous de |
| stored | entreposé |
| strip (microplate) | barrette (microplaque) |
| strip (electrophoresis) | languette (électrophorèse) |
| subunit vaccine | vaccin sous-unitaire |
| susceptible animals | animaux susceptibles |
| suspected adverse event / reaction | événement indésirable soupçonné / réaction indésirable soupçonnée |
| swab | écouvillon |
| syringe | seringue |
| test (laboratory); field test | test, analyse (laboratoire); essai au champ / sur le terrain |
| titration | titrage |
| toxigenic | toxigène |
| toxoid | anatoxine |
| trade name | nom commercial |
| turkey; poults | dinde; dindonneaux |
| US Veterinary License No. | No / no de permis vétérinaire américain / des É.-U. |
| US Veterinary Biologics Establishment License No. | No / no de permis d'établissement de produits biologiques vétérinaires des É.-U. |
| US Vet. Biol. Est. Lic. No. | No / no de permis d'établ. de prod. biol. vét. amér. / des É.-U. |
| using aseptic technique | de façon aseptique |
| veterinarian - accredited v. - licensed v. |
vétérinaire - v. accrédité(e) - v. licencié(e) |
| Veterinary License (Vet. Lic.) | Permis vétérinaire (Perm. vét.) |
| Veterinary Biologics Product Licence | Permis de fabrication de produits biologiques vétérinaires |
| veterinary biologic | produit biologique vétérinaire |
| veterinary inspector | vétérinaire-inspecteur |
| vial | fiole / flacon |
| virus | virus |
| well (microplate) | puits; cupule (microplaque) |
| whole blood | sang total / complet / entier |
| wing web (chicken) | membrane alaire / voile de l'aile (poulet) |
| winter ulcers (fish) | ulcères hivernaux (poisson) |
| withholding / withdrawal period | période de retrait |