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Regulating organic products in Canada

Any food, seed, or animal feed that is labelled organic is regulated by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA). Producers of these products must be prepared to demonstrate that organic claims are truthful and not misleading, and that all commodity-specific requirements have been met. All food sold in Canada must comply with Food and Drugs Act and Regulations and the Safe Food for Canadians Act and Regulations.

Part 13 of the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations has additional requirements if the product:

In this case, the CFIA relies on a third party service delivery model to oversee compliance of these products.

Aquaculture products are incorporated into the certification system of the Canada Organic Regime (COR) starting January 15th, 2021. Up until this date, aquaculture products may be voluntarily certified. Please refer to the aquaculture products page for more information.

What are the Canadian Organic Standards?

Under the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations, products must be certified organic according to the Canadian Organic Standards.

Agriculture products must be certified in accordance with:

Aquaculture products must be certified in accordance with:

Until January 15, 2021, aquaculture products may be voluntarily certified.

What is the Canada Organic Regime?

The Canada Organic Regime refers to the organic certification system outlined in Part 13 of the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations. The purpose of the Canada Organic Regime is to regulate all parties involved in the certification of organic products and to verify all applicable regulatory requirements, standards and guidance documents are being met.

Who is responsible for the Canada Organic Regime?

The CFIA oversees, monitors and enforces the requirements of the Canada Organic Regime using a third-party service delivery model that includes conformity verification bodies, certification bodies and organic operators.

  1. CFIA
    • Sets the federal rules for the Canada Organic Regime
    • Designates and audits conformity verification bodies
    • Accredits certification bodies
    • Establishes organic equivalency arrangements with other countries
  2. Conformity verification bodies
    • Assess applications from certification bodies and submit recommendations for accreditation of certification bodies to the CFIA
    • Monitor the accredited certification bodies
  3. Certification bodies
    • Verify that operators produce organic products in compliance with the Canadian Organic Standards
    • Issue certificates for organic products as well as for the activities of packaging and labelling when meeting the Canadian Organic Standards
  4. Operators producing organic products
    • Comply with the Canadian Organic Standards
    • Comply with any relevant Canadian legislation

What is a certified organic product?

A product can be certified organic if it has been certified by a CFIA accredited certification body to meet the Canadian Organic Standards. Any product label that displays the Canada organic logo or claims the product has 70 per cent or more organic ingredients must include the name of the certification body that certified it.

What products can display the Canada organic logo on the label?

Canada organic logo

Use of the Canada organic logo is voluntary and only permitted on products with 95 per cent or more organic content that have been certified according to the requirements of the Canada Organic Regime.

What are the requirements for imported organic products?

Imported organic products may be certified to the Canadian Organic Standards by a CFIA accredited certification body or be certified in accordance with an equivalency arrangement established between Canada and the exporting country. Where an equivalency arrangement is in place, organic products have to be certified by a certification body accredited by that country and recognized by Canada. Imported certified organic products with 95 per cent or more organic ingredients may display the Canada organic logo on the labels. All relevant Canadian legislation would also continue to apply for the imported product.

What is required when exporting organic products to countries under equivalency arrangements with Canada?

Any exported product with an organic claim must meet the requirements of the Canada Organic Regime and the terms of the equivalency arrangement. Exported organic products that do not meet these requirements cannot display the Canada organic logo on the label and cannot be marketed as organic. Products with organic claims must meet the labelling requirements of the importing country.

What is required when exporting organic products to countries not covered under equivalency arrangements with Canada?

Products with organic claims being exported to a country not covered under an equivalency arrangement with Canada must meet the certification and labelling requirements of the importing country. In order to display the Canada organic logo or be marketed as organic in Canada, these products would also need to meet the requirements of the Canada Organic Regime.

What is required for products labelled organic that are only sold within a province or territory and do not display the Canada organic logo on the label?

The Canada Organic Regime does not apply to organic products that are only sold within a province or territory and do not display the Canada organic logo. For these products, the CFIA would verify on complaint that organic claims are truthful and not misleading, as required under the Food and Drugs Act as well as the Safe Food for Canadians Act. For example, the CFIA inspector may verify the validity of the organic claim by:

Provincial organic requirements apply within British Columbia, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Manitoba and Quebec.

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