Question Period Note: INTERNAL TRADE

Q1 – How does the Free Trade and Labour Mobility in Canada Act (FTLMCA) impact the agriculture and agri-food sector?
Q2 – How is Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) helping reduce interprovincial trade barriers in Canada?
Q3 – What international trade obligations impact interprovincial trade in Canada’s agricultural sector?

R1 - The Free Trade and Labour Mobility in Canada Act (FTLMCA) and Regulations came into force on January 1, 2026. The Act removes federal barriers to interprovincial and territorial trade. Under the Act, if a good or service already complies with a provincial or territorial rule that is comparable to a federal rule, then it can be traded across the country without additional federal requirements.
The Government of Canada incorporated feedback from industry, businesses and labour unions in the regulations to ensure that the FTLMCA does not apply to areas where there is an unacceptable risk to the health, safety and security of Canadians, their social and economic well-being, and the environment.
The FTLMCA does not apply to the Safe Food for Canadians Act which enables interprovincial and international food trade by establishing a nationally consistent approach to food safety and ensuring food meets Canadian and international standards, supporting Canada’s international trade agreements.
Further, the FTLMCA does not not apply to federal requirements that support the supply management system and collective marketing, including requirements under the Agricultural Products Marketing Act, Canadian Dairy Commission Act, and Farm Products Agencies Act. Supply management ensures Canadian consumers have access to a continuous and adequate supply of high-quality dairy products, poultry, and eggs, while supporting fair returns for Canadian farmers.
R2 - Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) has been collaborating with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and provinces, as part of broader direction from Federal, Provincial, and Territorial (FPT) agriculture ministers, to develop pilots to address barriers to interprovincial meat trade in border regions (i.e., slaughter availability) and provincially regulated meat plants that are considering federal licensing to expand nationally (i.e. Ready to Grow).
AAFC routinely works with provinces and territories, including the Domestic Food Trade Working Group, to better understand barriers to internal trade and support efforts to reduce them. AAFC is committed to advancing internal trade while maintaining high food safety standards which serve as the foundation for international trade as well as protecting Canada’s supply management system.
R3 - Canada takes its commitments at the World Trade Organization seriously, ensuring that our approach to trade reflects both global dynamics and domestic priorities. International markets are vital to sustaining and growing Canada’s agriculture sector, whereby we remain a strong proponent of a fair, rules-based trading system.

Internal trade in Canadian agriculture and agri-food is a shared authority between federal, provincial and territorial governments with each instituting its own separate and unique regulatory system. This division of powers allows Canada to maintain national standards while providing flexibility for provinces and territories to tailor policies, programs, and regulations to suit local needs. Most agricultural and food products can move freely within Canada with some exceptions related to alcohol, food safety and provincial/territorial marketing provisions.
To protect the health, safety, and security of Canadians, the FTLMC Regulations list exceptions to the Act, including the Safe Food for Canadians Act and part of the Food and Drug Regulations. Canada has one of the safest food safety regimes in the world, and maintaining it is vital to the health and safety of our citizens and to our trade diversification goals.
The FTLMC Regulations also contain exceptions for federal legislation that supports supply management and collective marketing. The exception is necessary to avoid any unintended consequences for the supply management system, which relies on complementary provincial and federal measures to balance supply and demand across the country.
Outside the scope of the FTLMCA, sector stakeholders point to several opportunities to improve internal food trade, prioritizing challenges associated with differing provincial/territorial regulations (for example, transportation and alcohol), and labour regulations (for example, veterinarian certification).
While not agriculture specific, the Committee on Internal Trade is working to expand a Mutual Recognition Pilot Project in the trucking sector and endorsed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Interprovincial Trucking to reduce internal trade barriers on November 19, 2025, and are also working to improve labour mobility which could benefit the sector.
As of July 25, 2025, ten jurisdictions had agreed to a memorandum of understanding to advance direct-to-consumer (DTC) alcohol sales. Parties will now work towards finalizing more detailed operating agreements, or implementing their own frameworks, required to implement DTC alcohol sales by May 2026.

• The free movement of agriculture and agri-food products within Canada is important for our economy and food security. Most products can already move freely within Canada.

• We are working with provinces and territories on efforts to eliminate internal trade barriers, while maintaining health and safety standards that are important for Canadians and our strong international reputation.

• Removing barriers in other areas, like transportation, would also benefit the agriculture sector. We are committed to working across government in all areas where the removal of internal trade barriers further encourages the free flow of agriculture and agri-food products across Canada.