21 May 2008

Prime Minister Harper Unveils Labelling Plan to Clearly Identify Canadian Foods

The following news release was sent today by the Prime Minster’s Office.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper today announced a plan to modernize the federal guidelines governing use of “Product of Canada” and “Made in Canada” labels to ensure they clearly identify the Canadian content in food products.

The current food labelling guidelines, unchanged since the 1980s, do not clearly reflect the actual Canadian content in foods sold in Canada. Under the proposed new guidelines, when a label says “Product of Canada,” both the contents and processing of that food must be Canadian. A qualified “Made in Canada” label can be applied to products containing imported ingredients as long as the products are manufactured or processed in Canada….

The initiative is part of the Food and Consumer Safety Action Plan, a comprehensive series of initiatives aimed at establishing tougher regulation of food, health and consumer products.

The Government of Canada will hold consultations to get views from Canadians and stakeholders before finalizing the new food labelling guidelines and their implementation. Canadians are invited to participate in this consultation by visiting www.healthycanadians.ca  or calling 1-800-442-2342.