Question Period Note: TREATMENT OF IMPORTED VS. DOMESTICALLY PRODUCED FOODS

Q1 – Who is responsible for food safety in Canada? Q2 – What measures are currently in place to ensure that food is safe to eat? Q3 – What additional measures, including mutual recognition, ensure that imported foods meet the same standards as domestically manufactured foods?

R.1 - Anyone who sells food in Canada is responsible for making sure it is safe to eat and that it is accurately represented.

Under the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations, most food cannot be imported into Canada unless the Canadian importer has an appropriate import licence issued by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is responsible for enforcing the food safety policies and standards that Health Canada sets. R.2 - The Canadian Food Inspection Agency plays a key role in safeguarding the food supply through several robust measures, including:

National Monitoring Programs: The Canadian Food Inspection Agency manages national microbiological and chemical residue monitoring programs, which include random sampling and testing on a wide variety of food products.

Preventive Controls and Commodity Inspections: The Canadian Food Inspection Agency carries out targeted inspections and audits of domestic and imported foods to verify that businesses are implementing effective preventive controls and complying with regulatory requirements.

Enforcement Actions: When the Canadian Food Inspection Agency identifies non-compliant food products it takes appropriate actions, which may include ordering non-compliant imported foods to be removed from Canada or destroyed, seizure and detention of product or product recall. Businesses found not to comply with the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations may be subject to letters of non-compliance, licence suspension or cancellation, Administrative Monetary Penalties and/or prosecution. R.3 - The Canadian Food Inspection Agency conducts international oversight activities to help ensure food imported into Canada meets Canadian requirements.

Canada uses foreign recognition and mutual recognition to facilitate trade and reduce regulatory burdens, although they do not preclude other import requirements that may need to be met. For example, Canada and the United States has a Food Safety Systems Recognition Agreement (FSSRA), which acknowledges that both countries’ food safety systems achieve comparable outcomes. This mutual recognition reduces duplication of oversight, facilitates more efficient trade, and reinforces consumer confidence in imported foods.

All foods sold in Canada, whether domestically prepared or imported, must meet the food safety, nutritional quality standards and labelling requirements of the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations (SFCR) and the Food and Drug Regulations (FDR).

Food importers and domestic manufacturers preparing food for export or interprovincial trade are subject to requirements set out in the Safe Food for Canadians Act (SFCA) and Regulations.

Food import businesses must have a Safe Food for Canadians (SFC) licence and maintain food safety plans that demonstrate their products meet the same requirements as domestically produced food.

CFIA’s role

During inspection, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) verifies that foods comply with Canada’s food safety and consumer protection requirements. Regardless of the origin of the food product, the CFIA takes action when a product does not meet Canadian regulations and, in the case of an imported product, works with foreign governments to address any food safety risks, as required.

The CFIA conducts risk-based activities to ensure the safety and compliance of food, both domestic and imported, by verifying that Safe Food for Canadians (SFC) licence holders meet federal food requirements. This includes sampling and testing of products, commodity inspections and verification of preventive control plans.

The CFIA can issue border lookouts and undertake points-of-entry inspections to prevent non-compliant food from entering Canada including through orders to remove from Canada or destruction of the product (if removal is not possible), and/or suspension/cancellation of licences. Other non-compliance actions may include corrective action requests, seizure and detention, the issuance of monetary penalties and even prosecution.

The CFIA can enter into arrangements with international trading partners that outline specific conditions for import and can conduct offshore audits and verification of foreign establishments based on risk, particularly in respect of high-risk foods.

High-risk food products such as meat and shellfish require approval of the foreign inspection system under the SFCR to ensure that the products exported to Canada can comply with the Canadian laws and regulations.

Obligations of the importer and producers

Any business importing food into Canada for commercial sale must meet all the same food safety requirements as Canadian producers. Licensed importers are responsible for ensuring the food they import is safe and that it meets Canadian requirements under the SFCR.

Under the SFCR, most food importers must have a licence and a preventive control plan that demonstrates how potential food safety hazards are prevented. They must also keep detailed records so that unsafe food can be traced through the supply chain and be quickly removed from the market.

SFC licence holders are required to immediately initiate an investigation if they suspect that the food presents a risk of injury to human health or does not meet the requirements of the SFCA or SFCR. If the investigation determines that there is a risk of injury to human health, the SFC licence holder must immediately inform the CFIA and take action to mitigate the risk, including conducting a food recall, as appropriate.

• The Government of Canada is committed to food safety and to protecting Canadians from food-related illnesses.

• All food sold in Canada, whether domestically produced or imported, must be safe to eat and be accurately represented.

• Any business importing food into Canada for commercial sale must comply with the same food safety regulations as Canadian producers.