Overview
of Safe Food for Canadians
Today
is the day that the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations is coming to effect the
food industry in Canada and their trading partners around the world. Canada has
one of the best food safety regulations and food systems where they have act as
frontiers in food safety from the very beginning. Hence, Safe Food for
Canadians Regulations are the result of an unprecedented level of consultation
with the agriculture sector and other stakeholders, which will enhance Canada’s
reputation as a global leader in food safety, while expanding market access for
Canadian food products. Canada is the fifth largest exporter of agriculture and
agro based food products in the world, where maintaining and enhancing the
strength of the export markets is vital to achieving the Government of Canada's
trade target of growing agriculture and agro based food exports to $75 billion
by 2025. Thus, Safe Food for Canadians Regulations (SFCR) will further enhance
Canada's international reputation as a global leader and help maintain access
to the United States and other key markets, as well as potentially open up new
trade opportunities. Because many countries, such as Canada, USA, UK,
Australia, New Zealand, EU, etc., are requesting companies moving food into and
out of those countries to comply with increased food safety restrictions and
traceability measures. This means that programs such as Transparency-One and
expertise in auditing or evaluating food safety programs have become a
necessity, not a luxury. Additionally, the training of personnel to develop and
oversee employees that work in these programs becomes necessary, since the
license in Canada will be connected to compliance and failure to comply may
result in the license being revoked.
Background
Recent
decades have seen significant changes in the global food environment due to the
advances in science and technology, the emergence of highly integrated food
supply chains and changing consumer preferences which require Canada’s federal
food regulatory system to keep pace in order to protect the health of
Canadians. Thus, expanding global marketplace for food commodities has created
more opportunities for the introduction and spread of contaminants that may put
Canadian food safety at risk. Hence, food-borne illnesses continue to impose
significant health and economic costs on Canadians and recent food safety
incidents in Canada have demonstrated where the current federal food regulatory
framework must be strengthened. This framework must also keep pace with
prevention-focused based on international food safety standards so that
Canadian food exporters have access to foreign markets and remain competitive
internationally. Currently, foods prepared in Canada or imported into Canada
are not all subject to the same regulatory requirements, and some food safety
requirements do not reflect advances in technology, science and food safety
best practices.
The
New Regulation Requirements
The
new consolidated regulations are based on international food safety standards,
which are also the basis for modernized food safety regulations that have been,
or are being, adopted by Canada's key trading partners, including the United
States, the European Union, Australia and New Zealand. Hence, under the new
consolidated regulations, Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) will also have
broader authority to certify that Canadian food products were manufactured
safely, which were previously, not been accessible for certain types of
processed and manufactured foods including some export markets, because the
CFIA did not have the authority to issue export certificates for certain
products, including manufactured products such as cookies and potato chips for
example.
In
June 2018, the Government of Canada announced the Safe Food for Canadians
Regulations, which will protect Canadian families by making the food system
even safer by focusing on prevention and allowing for faster removal of unsafe
food from the marketplace. Thus, Safe Food for Canadians Regulations will
reduce unnecessary administrative burden on businesses by replacing 14 sets of
regulations with one, and will help maintain and grow market access for
Canada's agri-food and agricultural sector. Depending on the food commodity,
type of activity and business size, compliance with some requirements will be
necessary immediately on today (January 15, 2019) while others will be phased
in over the following 12-30 months. As to the new regulations, that will
require food businesses who import or prepare food for export or to be sent
across provincial or territorial borders to have licenses, as well as
preventive controls that outline steps to address potential risks to food
safety. They will also help reduce the time it takes to remove unsafe food from
the marketplace by requiring businesses to trace their food back to their
supplier and forward to whom they sold their products. These new regulations,
once in force, would provide more modern and consistent requirements for all
foods imported, exported and traded between provinces by consolidating and streamlining
requirements from several pieces of existing legislation and across sectors and
introducing an outcome-based approach to food safety rules, where possible.
Benefits
The
newly introduced Safe Food for Canadians Regulations would strengthen Canada’s
reputation as a leader in food safety by establishing consistent,
prevention-focused requirements for food that is imported or prepared for
export or interprovincial trade, and would also include some requirements
applicable to food that is traded intra-provincially. The proposed Regulations
would consolidate 13 food commodity-based regulations plus the food-related
provisions of the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Regulations (CPLR) into a
single and more outcome-based food regulation under the Safe Food for Canadians
Act (SFCA). Some requirements for certain food sectors would be phased in to
reflect business size and different levels of industry readiness.
Plain-language tools and guidance would be provided to support small businesses
that are involved in importing food, or preparing food for export for
interprovincial trade, in meeting the requirements.
The
estimated benefits of the proposed requirements would have an annualized value
of approximately $137.3 million. These benefits would be associated with the
traceability of food and the licensing of businesses as well as the
consolidation of food regulations. In comparison, the estimated costs of the
proposed requirements would have an annualized value of approximately $138.2
million. These costs would be associated with the use of preventive controls
(i.e. food safety requirements) and preventive control plans, the traceability
of food, the licensing of businesses and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency
(CFIA) regulatory implementation. The estimated net annualized benefit (i.e.
benefits less costs) of these impacts would be approximately –$0.9 million.
In
addition to these estimates, other qualitative benefits would include a
reduction in food safety risk for consumers, a more level playing field for
Canadian businesses, increased international and domestic regulatory alignment,
and sustained market access for Canadian exports. It will also expand the
CFIA’s food safety regulatory coverage, bring a consistent and more effective
approach to inspection and oversight for food safety by the CFIA, and enhance
Canada’s reputation as a global food safety leader.
The
“One-for-One” Rule would apply. The estimated total administrative cost
increase would have an annualized value of approximately $11.4 million. The
small business lens would apply and the CFIA would provide a flexible option
for small businesses that are involved in importing food, or preparing food for
export or for interprovincial trade. As a result, the estimated total cost
savings for these small businesses from the flexible option would have an
annualized value of approximately $53.2 million.
The
proposed Regulations would be well aligned with similar modernization efforts
among Canada’s key trading partners. In addition, the proposed Regulations
would provide a foundation for consistent federal oversight of food that better
reflects internationally recognized food safety practices.
How
the New System Works?
The
new consolidated regulations are enforced from now on, where the CFIA will
publish a list of SFCR-licensed food manufacturers to confirm that they are
operating in compliance. To be considered in good standing under the SFCR, food
businesses will need to have an acceptable preventive control plan and
traceability records. Being included on the list will help food businesses
maintain access to key markets, including the United States. Once the Safe Food
for Canadian Regulations are fully in force, Canadian food businesses exporting
foods that are regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration can leverage
their SFCR license to demonstrate that their food safety controls meet the U.S.
importers' requirements under the U.S. Foreign Supplier Verification Program
(FSVP). Under the U.S. Foreign Supplier Verification Program, the U.S. importer
can refer to the list of SFCR-licensed Canadian food businesses to meet the
U.S. FSVP rules.
Canada
and the U.S. have a Food Safety Systems Recognition Arrangement (FSSRA), which
recognizes that the two countries have comparable food safety control measures.
Canadian food that can be qualified under the FSVP through the FSSRA includes:
Fruit and vegetables
Shelled eggs
Dairy (except Grade
"A" milk and Grade "A" milk products)
Fish (except farmed
catfish, catfish products and molluscan shellfish)
Maple
Honey
Other foods (such as
snacks, cereals, and bakery products)
The
United States has recently made it a requirement for all Canadian businesses
that ship food to the US to meet their new food safety standards. The Safe Food
for Canadians Regulations will permit Canadian food businesses to acquire a
license that demonstrates that they meet the requirements under the U.S.
Foreign Supplier Verification Program and continue trading with the U.S.
Businesses that require a license will have to attest that they have preventive
controls in place (such as sanitation and pest control measures) and businesses
with $100K or more in annual sales will have to prepare a written prevention
control plan. Businesses are encouraged to enroll now in My CFIA and be
prepared to apply for their license when it becomes available. My CFIA is a
convenient and secure way to do business with the Canadian Food Inspection
Agency (CFIA), which is enforcing businesses to use it online platform and
discouraging the traditional uses such as emails or fax applications.
Businesses can manage and track service requests online, including permissions
such as licenses, permits, registrations and export certificates. The CFIA is
sharing information with industry in face-to-face sessions across the country
as well as through webinars, which will help businesses to easily adapt the new
regulations.
References
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