Notice to Industry – Update on the Blended in Canada wine labelling consultation

March 12, 2018: From June 1 to 30, 2017, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) consulted broadly with consumers, industry, and other stakeholders on a proposed change to the way that wine blended in Canada is labelled.

Participants were asked whether they support the replacement of the "Cellared in Canada" label statement with "International blend from imported and domestic wines" for wines blended in Canada. In the case of wines primarily of domestic origin, the statement "International blend from domestic and imported wines" would be used. When the wine is all domestic, statements such as "Product of Canada" or "Canadian wine" can be used.

Based on the consultation, which showed strong support for the proposed statements, the CFIA has included the new statements in the wine country of origin labelling policy, effective March 12, 2018.

For wines blended in Canada, the voluntary country of origin statement "Cellared in Canada" will no longer be used. The new statements referenced above are now considered acceptable for country of origin declarations for wines blended in Canada from domestic and imported sources if producers do not wish to list the countries of origin specifically. However, wine producers may still list the countries of origin (by proportion) on the label. Furthermore, the labelling of wholly imported wines and the labelling of Canadian wine, made exclusively from Canadian grapes, would remain the same.

A summary report outlines what we heard from consumers and industry stakeholders. The questions and answers page addresses some of the queries and concerns expressed in the survey.

Additional information

• Notice to Industry – Blended wine labelling consultation
• Blended wine labelling consultation
• Labelling Requirements for Alcoholic Beverages
• Product Specific Information for Wine