Here’s a guide on how to read product labels to ensure you are supporting Canadian business. Read more.
Following the U.S. threat of tariffs, Canadians have taken to showing their support for the true north, strong and free.
For some, that meant booing the American anthem at hockey games and for others, it means cancelling those cross-border Trader Joe’s trips.
Others are using their grocery budgets to make a statement by opting for Canadian products at the grocery store.
If you’re looking to make a stand with your dollar at the grocery store, here’s a quick guide on how to read product labels at the store to ensure what you’re buying is truly supporting Canada.
What are the rules about product labelling in Canada?
In Canada, there are rules about how food products are labelled to communicate where it comes from.
The labels may reference where the product was grown or where it was processed; it can also tell us what ingredients are used and where those ingredients are from.
All packaged food sold in Canada must be labelled with the name and address of the company responsible for the product, whether that’s the company importing the food or the manufacturer responsible for making it.
What does the label usually look like?
Food that is manufactured outside of Canada is required to show the name and address of the foreign manufacturer or the Canadian company that imported the product along with the product’s country of origin. It must clearly state that the product is “imported for” or “imported by” to indicate its origins.
What labels should I look for at the grocery store?
When you’re at the store, you’ll want to look for the following labels:
• “Local”: Produced and sold in the same province or within 50 kilometres of the originating province or territory.
• “Product of Canada”: Produced and processed in Canada.
• “Made in Canada”: Last processed in Canada but could include domestic or imported ingredients.
Read on for explanations about what each label means.
What does “local” mean?
According to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, a product may be recognized and advertised as “local” if it is produced in the same province or territory where it is sold.
A product may still be considered local, even if it is sold across provincial borders, as long as it is within 50 kilometres of the originating province or territory where it is produced.
What does “product of Canada” mean?
Anything at the grocery store that is labelled as a “product of Canada” means all of its major ingredients, where it was processed, and the labour used to produce it are Canadian or are located in Canada.
This guideline applies to the produce itself and not the packaging materials. Products containing ingredients that are non-Canadian but total less than 2 per cent of the product’s content can still be considered a product of Canada. This is often the case if a product uses an imported ingredient that isn’t generally found or produced in Canada.
As an example, a cookie manufactured in Canada using Canadian ingredients but which contains imported vanilla can still use the “product of Canada” label since the vanilla is likely less than 2 per cent of the cookie’s total content.
“Product of Canada,” however, is different from the label “100 per cent Canadian.”
What does “100 per cent Canadian” mean?
While a product of Canada” label allows for small amounts of imported ingredients to be included, products that are “100 per cent Canadian” means that all of the ingredients, processing and labour used to make it is all Canadian or located in Canada.
What does “made in Canada” mean?
A product labelled “made in Canada” means just that: The item was last processed or had its “last substantial transformation” in Canada but its ingredients may be a mix of both domestic and imported ingredients.
All items labelled “made in Canada” or “proudly made in Canada” also require a qualifying statement which explains whether the ingredients are sourced from Canada or if it includes imported ingredients. The qualifying statement usually follows the “made in Canada” tag and includes “from domestic and imported ingredients” or “from imported ingredients”.
What other labels should I look for?
The federal guidelines for food labelling also allow the following to indicate that an item is a product of Canada or is made in Canada:
• “Roasted and blended in Canada” to describe coffee since the coffee beans are always imported
• “Distilled in Canada” to describe bottled water that was distilled in Canada
• “Canned in Canada” to describe green beans that were canned in Canada
• “Refined in Canada” to describe imported cane sugar which has been refined in Canada
• “Processed in Canada” to describe a food which has been entirely processed in Canada
• “Prepared in Canada” to describe a food which has been entirely prepared in Canada
• “Packaged in Canada” to describe a food which is imported in bulk and packaged in Canada
If a product is labelled as being “Canadian,” that is considered the same as the “product of Canada” label.