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Impact of Organic Products Regulations on Canadian Fertilizer and Supplement Stakeholders
Issue
As you may be aware, the Organic Products Regulations (OPR) were published in Canada Gazette, Part II on December 14, 2006 and will come into effect on December 14, 2008. The Fertilizer Section has developed this document in an effort to help identify some of the impacts of the OPR on fertilizer and supplement stakeholders, and to clarify the connection between the OPR and the two standards referenced therein, Organic Production Systems: General Principles and Management Standards and the Permitted Substances Lists.
Background
The OPR, under the authority of the Canada Agricultural Products Act, will require mandatory certification of all agricultural products marketed as organic for import, export and interprovincial trade. Similarly, products that bear the federal organic agricultural product legend (or logo) must be certified. The National Organic Standard consists of two documents: General Principles and Management Standards,whichareprocess guidelines for organic production systems and the Permitted Substances Lists,whichlist substances that can be used in organic production systems. These standards are published by the Canadian General Standards Board (CGSB); they are also referenced in the OPR and thus are directly linked to certification of organic products.
Impacts of the OPR on fertilizer and supplement products
As of December 14, 2008, the term organic and the specified “Canada Organic” logo for international or interprovincial trade will not be permitted on fertilizer and supplement product labels unless the products have been certified.
At present, however, there is no National Organic Standard in place to allow for the organic certification of fertilizer and supplement products. As such, the fertilizer and supplement industries must first develop a national standard, which can then be incorporated into the organic standards through the CGSB consensus-building process.
It is important to note that intraprovincial sales are exempt from the OPR, as long as all the ingredients are sourced from within the province, and the product is manufactured and sold within the province. Importantly, such sales are not exempt from the Fertilizers Act and Regulations and Trade Memorandum T-4-106: Organic Fertilizers under the Fertilizers Act.
Products that have been certified by a recognized certifying body for use in organic agriculture may continue to be labelled as such, providing that proof of certification is provided to the CFIA upon request, or at the time of registration or re-registration, and the name of the certifying body is included in the label claim. In general, certification for use in organic production systems requires that the product be listed on the Permitted Substances List and used in accordance with the organic production guidelines outlined in the standards.
Summary
All persons who wish to market fertilizers and supplement products bearing organic claims for interprovincial and international trade, or who wish use the federal “Canada Organic” logo will be required to comply with the OPR as of December 14, 2008. As there are currently no standards in place to allow for organic certification of fertilizer and supplement products, industry stakeholders will first need to develop a national standard, which can then be incorporated into the organic standards through the CGSB consensus-building process.
Contact
Michel Saumur
Canada Organic Office, CFIA
Tel: (613) 221-7165
Fax: (613) 221-7296
Email:
Organic Products, CFIA website
Organic Products Regulations
Canadian General Standards Board standards - Organic Production Systems: General Principles and Management Standards and Permitted Substances Lists:
T-4-106 – Organic fertilizers under the Fertilizers Act