Guidelines for Highlighted Ingredients and Flavours
Annex 1 - Exceptions
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These guidelines are under review while marked as Archived Content. See Highlighted Ingredient Claims for the current policy.
These guidelines do not apply to herbs/spices and seasoning ingredients such as leeks, onion, garlic, hot peppers, etc. (when added for seasoning), nutrients, phytochemicals and products that are not considered foods under the Food and Drugs Act, such as natural health products.
Regulations:
This policy does not take precedence over existing federal or provincial legislation. The following are examples of regulations related to highlighted ingredients. It is important to consult federal and provincial legislation to ensure compliance.
1. Raisin Bread [B.13.025, FDR] shall be bread that contains for each 100 parts by weight of flour used not less than 50 parts by weight of seeded or seedless raisins, or raisins and currants of which not less than 35 parts shall be raisins and may contain spices or peel.
2. (naming the percentage) Whole Wheat Bread [B.13.026, FDR] shall be bread in the making of which the named percentage of the flour used shall be whole wheat flour, and (ii) contain not less than 60 per cent whole wheat flour in relation to the total flour used; and . . .
3. Speciality Breads [B.13.029, FDR] are not required to name the percentage but are expected to have a minimum level of the named ingredient as set out in the table of common specialty breads in Grain and Bakery Products. However, any percentage declaration on the product label, other than that required by B.13.026, must be based upon the total weight of all ingredients and not as a percentage of the flour used.
4. Bakery Products (such as cookies, dessert loaves, bars, muffins, cakes, etc.) have generally been made with white flour plus a premium ingredient. With the exception of when whole wheat flour or whole grains are highlighted, white flour is not considered when calculating the weight of similar ingredients (e.g., an oatmeal cookie would be evaluated against the presence of other flours but without considering the amount of white flour. A percent declaration on the label or advertising, however, would be based on the product as a whole). This non-inclusion of white flour as a similar ingredient only applies to snack or dessert-type bakery items and not to cereals and other grain based products.
5. Other Functions and Incidental Additions
Exceptions to situations in section 4 above involving similar ingredients include substances that are present in small amounts for a different function in a multi-ingredient food. For example, a "Rice loaf" which contains a small amount of potato starch in addition to the rice flour or soy oil used as a carrier in a "Canola Oil Margarine". These ingredients would not be considered a similar ingredient. However, the guidelines apply to those ingredients not added for a different function, such as 3 % concentrated lemon juice added to an "Orange Juice Beverage".
6. Food Generally Recognized as Flavoured
Exceptions to these requirements for clarifying information include those products which have traditionally highlighted their flavour and which consumers have no expectation of a real ingredient being present (or present in any significant amount). Simple references to the flavour of products in flashes or the common name (e.g., "blueberry" or "cherry candy") do not require clarifying information on products such as puddings, soft drinks, jelly powders, gum, hard candy, popsicles, flavoured teas or flavoured coffees (Also see section 8b below on "Naming the Fruit flavoured drink").
"Chocolate" has been frequently used as a flavour description on products which do not contain real chocolate. The simple expression "chocolate" may be used without indicating "flavour" whenever cocoa products are present and the foods do not appear to contain real chocolate, for example, where there are no coatings or solid pieces that resemble real chocolate or no additional chocolate highlighting such as "milk chocolate" or a vignette of chocolate.
e.g., "Hot chocolate mix", or "chocolate cake" on a cocoa flavoured cake are acceptable highlighting, while "milk" chocolate mix or cake would not be acceptable. "Chocolate flavoured" is required on a bar, chip or a cake which has a hard chocolate-like coating that is not chocolate.
It is important to note that these are exceptions and that there are few products that fall into this category. Consumer research demonstrates that, generally, there is a high expectation of the named ingredient to be present in foods and the exception does not apply if there is additional highlighting that suggests the juice or other named ingredient may be present.
Ingredients such as honey and maple syrup present in minor amounts in dry food such as cereals and crackers are generally recognized as flavours and do not require additional "flavour" statements (Note that this does not apply to products such as sauces or sweetening preparations). Only when other ingredients are present to provide a similar flavour, including flavour preparations, is a "flavour" statement needed.
e.g., a cereal which contains sugar, raisins and honey but no honey flavouring could be called "Raisin and Honey cereal" but if honey flavoured substitute were to be added, the cereal would then have to be called "Raisin and Honey flavoured cereal".
7. Concentrated foods and sauces
In the case of concentrated foods such as soups, the removal of the water may cause the end product to contain more than 50% of the highlighted ingredient and these products are evaluated as if the combined weight of highlighted and similar ingredients is less than 50% of the total weight of the product. Highlighting is acceptable without further clarification whenever the highlighted ingredient is present in a higher amount than the similar ingredient's weight.
By the nature of the product, sauces are known to contain ingredients added to decrease the viscosity (e.g., milks to cheese) and these ingredients will not be considered as similar ingredients. However, when other non-softening similar ingredients (other cheeses) are added, the product is evaluated as if the weight of the highlighted and similar ingredients combined represents the majority of the food. The presence of these similar ingredients must be acknowledged.
Examples
- "Blue cheese sauce" is acceptable even though there are more milk ingredients than blue cheese.
- "Cheese sauce", "Cheddar and Blue Cheese sauce" or other methods of providing further information would be required if some of the blue cheese had been replaced by cheddar cheese.
8. Fruit Juices and Fruit Drinks
Beverages that include the name of a fruit within the common name must be labelled and advertised to distinguish them clearly from standardized juices; see the following information or Guidelines on Beverages or Beverage Mixes Identified with Name of a Fruit which provides the specific juice and juice drink policy.
a. "(Naming the Fruit) Juice Drink" - Minimum of 25% juice
The word "juice" may only appear in the common name of the product when it contains a minimum of 25%, in total, of the named juice(s). For example, "Orange Juice Cooler", "Reconstituted Grape Juice Cocktail", "Cranberry-Apple Juice Beverage". When "juice" is in the common name, it must be accompanied by a bilingual declaration of the percentage of each named juice or the total amount for all named juices, on the principal display panel of the label, clearly and prominently displayed and in type size at least as large as the numerical portion of the net quantity. The juice description and percentage juice statement must follow the conventions in section 8d and section 8e below.
b. "(Naming the Fruit) Flavoured Drink" - With Juice/Fruit Claims and less than 25% juice
When the percentage of juice is less than 25%, the word "juice" may not appear in the common name; however the product may be described as "flavoured". Claims about the fruit juice content such as "made in part with fruit juice" are permitted outside of the common name if accompanied by the percentage fruit juice. The juice description and percentage juice statement must follow the conventions shown in section 8d and section 8e below.
c. "(Naming the Fruit) Drink, Cooler, Beverage, Cocktail"
Fruit-based or fruit-flavoured beverages [B.11.150, FDR] have been made primarily with water, sweetening ingredients, colour, flavours etc., plus occasional premium ingredients such as fruit juices, fruit derived products or vitamin C. Due to long standing practice such products are not required to indicate "flavour", as the basic common name has been accepted as an indication of the characterizing flavour. In other words, "(Naming the fruit) drink" such as "Fruit Drink", "Blueberry Cocktail", "Cherry Cooler" will be considered synonymous with (naming the fruit)-flavoured drink, cooler, etc., only when there is no other mention of juice and no further highlighting implying the product contains real juice, such as; "real fruit beverage", "orange cooler - contains real oranges", naming a specific variety of fruit such as "Granny Smith Apple Drink", the word "juice", or images of juice dripping from the fruit.
Note: For these drinks, while a vignette of the fruit that represents the flavour is not considered to be further highlighting, if artificial flavour of the fruit is added, this will trigger Section 34 of the CPLR which would provide appropriate clarifying information for the vignette.
When there is further highlighting that implies the product contains real juice, such as the vignette of the juice dripping from the fruit or other statement, the claim will be evaluated separately with other added juices, purees, water, etc. and considered as contributing to the total weight of similar ingredients.
d. "Made with X % fruit juice"
When a claim such as "made with 10% fruit juice" is made, while the exact form of the fruit juice ingredient used must be declared in the list of ingredients, the form is not required to be declared as part of the claim. For example; "contains 8% fruit juice" or "contains 15% real juice", where the fruit is not specifically named, is acceptable whether "orange juice", "orange juice from concentrate" or "concentrated orange juice" is used.
e. "Made with X% (naming the fruit) juice"
However, when a claim such as "made with X% (naming the fruit) juice" is made, the actual form of the juice ingredient must be declared as part of the claim. For example, "made with 7% orange juice" means single strength orange juice, and other forms of orange juice such as orange juice from concentrate were not used.
f. De-characterized Juices
A decharacterized juice is not considered to be juice and therefore must not be included in the calculation of % juice present, nor represented on the label as a juice. Such products are to be shown in the ingredient list by an appropriate descriptive name such as; de-acidified apple juice from concentrate, de-flavoured pear juice, reconstituted de-coloured orange juice. However, decharacterized juice is considered a similar ingredient to real juice.
g. 100% Claims on Juices
"100% fruit juices" means only juices (and fruit purees) are present, without added ingredients, including any permitted by a standard. The juices may or may not be reconstituted (As per existing policy, the form of the juice is only required when the actual juice(s) are named as in; "100% orange and grapefruit juice from concentrate").
When other ingredients are present, the 100% claim may still be made when the added ingredients do not result in a diminution of the juice soluble solids and the ingredients are identified either as part of the claim or in the product common name. Ingredients that do not impact upon the soluble solids content and would be acceptable as part of the claims are preservatives, flavours, additives, dry sweeteners and solid food products. Liquid sweeteners would impact upon juices but not on reconstituted juices, where the liquid portion of the sweetener makes up a portion of the reconstitution.
Acceptable:
- "100% fruit juices with natural flavours and citric acid"
- "100% Fruit juices with added tapioca balls"
- "Cranberry Mango Flavoured 100% Juice Blend" (Acceptable when juices are the only ingredients other than the named flavours)
- "100% Grapefruit Juice from concentrate with added glucose solids and flavour" (A dry sweetener is acceptable in this claim)
- "100% Grapefruit Juice from concentrate with added sweetener" (Either dry and liquid sweetening agents are permitted in claims for reconstituted juices)
Not Acceptable:
- "100% Fruit Juices with added glucose" (when liquid glucose is used)
- "Made with 100% Grapefruit Juice" on a beverage containing added water
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