Food > Retail Food  

Retail Food

Reference Material

• Nutrition Labelling Toolkit - relative to exemptions for Nutrition Facts tables
• Information Bulletins
• Meat Cuts Manual
• Retail Pork Cuts
• Information for Restaurateurs and Food Service Operators

Food products which are imported or manufactured in Canada must comply with the food safety, fraud and labelling requirements of Canadian regulations. This includes foods that are manufactured, or packaged and labelled, by food retailers and food sold in restaurants. Compliance with the regulations results in protection for Canadian consumers, and fair competition for industry.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is responsible for the inspection of food products at all trade levels. At the retail level of trade, the CFIA's Fair Labelling Practices Program contributes to the achievement of the Agency's objective to protect consumers from unfair practices by administering the requirements of the Food and Drugs Act, Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act, Canada Agricultural Products Act, and the Fish Inspection Act, as well as a number of provincial statutes. These regulations are designed to protect consumers from economic fraud and product misrepresentation, and assist them in making informed product choices, by establishing standards for the net quantity, quality, composition, substitution, labelling and advertising of all food offered for sale in Canada. Responsibility for food safety at retail is shared with provincial health units.

When violations are encountered in grocery stores, restaurants and other retail establishments, CFIA inspectors advise the retailer regarding the regulatory requirements and, when necessary, take appropriate enforcement action to ensure compliance. For example, compliance action may be taken in relation to:

• adulteration with a less expensive product or a non-permitted chemical e.g. adulteration of olive oil with a cheaper vegetable oil; or ground beef adulterated with pork, sulphites or filler;  

• the substitution of a commodity with a less expensive commodity, such as meat cut substitution and fish species substitution e.g. cod substituted as "haddock", eye of round represented as "tenderloin";

• Violations of standards of composition such as excess fat in ground beef, or presence of non-permitted food additives;

• inaccurate ingredient information, including undeclared common food allergens;

• misleading claims e.g. ingredient content claims, disease prevention claims, origin claims, method of production claims, highlighted ingredients;

• inaccurate nutrition information, and nutrient content claims;

• perishable foods which have deteriorated and no longer meet the requirements of the grade declared e.g. fresh fruit and vegetables;

• short net quantity;

• the absence of mandatory labelling information e.g. "Packaged on" dates;

• improperly declared label information e.g. bilingual, type height;

• violations in mass media and in-store advertising e.g. prohibited health claims;

• deceptive packaging or display practices.

Fair Labelling Practices Program officers also investigate consumer and trade complaints as part of inspections at the retail level.

For more information on the Fair Labelling Practices Program, please contact one of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency offices listed on the CFIA Food Labelling Information page.