Canada Organic Regulations

On June 30, 2009, the Canada Organic Regulations went into force. The regulations are the Government of Canada's response to requests by the organic stakeholder groups to develop a regulatory system for organic products to address consumer protection and domestic and international market access issues. The regulations were published on June 24, 2009, after submission to the World Trade Organization (WTO) and after a 75-day comment period by industry stakeholders. The regulations form the basis for oversight of the industry via the Canada Organic Regime. You may access the text of the Canada Organic Products Regulations online.

The scope of the regulations is food and drink intended for human consumption, food intended to feed livestock, (including agricultural crops used for this purpose), and also to the cultivation of plants.

Stream of Commerce Policy

In recognition for the need to have a smooth transition from the existing voluntary regime system in Canada, to the mandatory regulatory framework, the CFIA is implementing a stream of commerce policy, which will implement temporary compliance and enforcement measures which will be in place for a period of 24 months. The CFIA will implement more stringent enforcement activities after this initial period. For more information about how the stream of commerce policy may affect your business, please consult the Canada Organic Products Regulations and the CFIA Draft Stream of Commerce Policy.

Canada and US Equivalency Agreement

On June 17, 2009, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) exchanged letters establishing equivalency between the United States and Canada for their respective organic programs. These letters also contain the conditions of this equivalency agreement.

More information on the Canada-US equivalency agreement and access to the letters between Canada and the US, which were published on June 22, 2009, are available on the USDA and the CFIA websites.

QAI is accredited by

• IOAS for product conforming to the Canadian Standards
• Le Conseil des Appellations Réservées et des Termes Valorisants (CARTV) for certification of organically produced agricultural and food products originating in Quebec and in accordance with the Quebec Organic Reference Standards

For further information regarding the Canadian market and Canadian regulatory questions please contact Kasey Moctezuma, Canadian Programs Specialist at 858.792.3531 or by email.