Anyone manufacturing food products in Canada or importing to and/or exporting food products from Canada will have to deal with sweeping new regulations with the final publication of the new Safe Food for Canadians Regulations instituted by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA).

Considered the most significant change in food safety law in Canadian history, the new regulations place increased emphasis on preventive controls and traceability and will CFIA Food Safetyrequire food firms to be licensed with the CFIA. The regulations, which replace 14 sets of existing regulations with one comprehensive law, will go into effect on January 15, 2019 for many companies, but there is a staggered implementation timeline depending on industry sector and business size.

In a message posted online, CFIA President Paul Glover stated, “We are fortunate in our country to have one of the strongest food safety systems in the world. But recent decades have brought added risks and changes, including new threats to food safety, evolving consumer preferences and prevention-focused international standards. In the face of change, Canada is taking action to continue building on our global leadership in food production. And it all begins with having a single set of modern regulations to govern food safety.”

The CFIA provides a website with information on all aspects of the new regulations including licensing, importing and exporting, preventive controls, timelines on implementation, and a Toolkit for Businesses, to assist companies in determining what steps they need to take to comply with the new regulations. Access the information here.