Operational guideline: Preventive Controls Inspection to verify compliance to conditions of a ministerial exemption

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1.0 Purpose

The purpose of this document is to provide guidance to Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) inspection staff on verification activities related to movement of food under the authority of a Ministerial Exemption (ME).

This document is intended to be used in conjunction with other guidance documents as referenced in Section 3.0.

The guidance outlined below should be used when conducting preventive controls inspection of importers who received an ME and/or operators who received food for processing that was moved under a ministerial exemption.

2.0 Authorities

The inspection powers, control actions and enforcement actions authorized by the above legislation are identified and explained in the Operational guideline – Food regulatory response guidelines.

3.0 Reference documents

4.0 Definitions

Unless specified below, definitions are located in either the:

Load
The term "load" is not specifically defined in the Safe Food for Canadians Act nor in the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations. The term "load" when used in reference to ministerial exemptions refers to the quantity of the food that is moved (carried) at one time and by one specified mean (for example; a truck load, a boat load)
Consignee
The term "consignee" has been defined in "My CFIA Glossary of Terms". However, this term when used in relation to the ministerial exemptions refers to the operator who will receive the food moved under an ME, and will process, repack, or relabel the non-compliant food to meet the applicable regulatory requirements of the SFCA/SFCR.

5.0 Acronyms

Acronyms are spelled out the first time they are used and are consolidated in the Food business line acronyms list.

6.0 Overview

The provisions of the SFCR s.174(1) authorizes the Minister to issue an exemption from the application of a provision of the SFCA/SFCR.

Exemptions are issued for alleviating a shortage in Canada or for the purpose of test marketing a food. Exemptions to alleviate a shortage in Canada are known as ministerial exemption (ME) while exemptions for test marketing are known as Test Market Authorization (TMA).

MEs allow the number of loads identified on an exemption to be imported into Canada or to be moved from one province to another within the period of time identified on the exemption. Food moved under an ME must be delivered to a consignee and be brought into compliance before distribution in the Canadian market (cannot be sold as is). MEs are issued for repacking, re-labelling, or processing of non-compliant food to bring them to compliance. The applicant must identify the process type on the application for ME.

Food moved under an ME must meet all other applicable regulatory requirements of the SFCR. Food safety and plant health requirements cannot be exempt.

Currently MEs are issued for fresh and processed fruits and vegetables only, but under the SFCR they may be issued for any food as long as the conditions for issuing an ME are met.

Note

Import and interprovincial movement of non-compliant food under the provisions of the SFCR s. 18 is different than movement under a ministerial exemption. Non-compliant food can be imported without an ME only if they meet the requirements of SFCR s. 18(1)(a)(b) and(c). In this case, the intent of import or interprovincial movement is not to alleviate a shortage but to allow movement of non-compliant food to a location where it will be processed to meet the applicable requirements of the SFCA/SFCR prior to distribution in Canadian market.

7.0 Operational guideline

Roles and responsibilities

The Centre of Administration (CoA) is responsible to:

  • receive and process applications from clients and issue MEs
  • provide copies of the MEs issued to clients and to designated CFIA staff in the shipping and receiving regions
  • notify designated regional CFIA staff of communications with clients on an as-needed basis
  • notify designated regional CFIA staff of issues, non-compliances, and complaints related to shipments of foods traded under an ME that was brought to their attention
  • consult with the Operational Guidance & Expertise (OGE) when required to determine the appropriate response to non-compliances, issues, and complaints

A list of CFIA staff designated as point of contact to receive copies of MEs is maintained by the CoA. The contacts on the list are determined by the Areas and Areas can request the list to be amended.

CFIA regional staff (e.g. Inspector, Regional Program Officers, Supervisors) are responsible to:

  • review the copies of MEs received from CoA and identify inspection triggers
    • For example: importers with low compliance or high risk commodities may be targeted for verification of exemption requirements during the next preventive controls inspection of the importer and/or operator
  • communicate identified triggers to inspectors for follow up
  • notify the CoA (Permission@inspection.gc.ca) when enforcement actions are initiated in response to non-compliance related to the exemption requirements

Regions may keep copies of MEs on file until they have expired. Importers and operators MUST maintain copies of all ME's on file for two years and be able to present copies to inspection staff upon request.

7.1 Prepare for inspection

Refer to the Step 3 in the Standard inspection procedures to prepare for conducting inspection

7.2 Conduct inspection

Targets for compliance verifications activities are determined based on the Program highlights and priorities, program direction on establishment inspection frequency, or other triggers. Inspector must always confirm with the importer/operator if they import or process food that is traded under the authority of an ME.

7.2.1 Verification activities of Importers

When conducting preventive controls inspection of an importer (sub-elements 1.3, 7.1, 7.2), conduct the following verification activities to verify compliance to conditions of issued ME's

  • review copies of MEs for conditions of the contract (product, grade if applicable, start and end date, origin, shipper, consignee, and the end use)
  • obtain copies of shipping documents (bill of ladings, invoices, confirmation of sale), and compare them against ME conditions
    • verify that conditions of ME are met
  • food is sourced from the country/state indicated on the ME, the loads are received within the start and end date of the ME, loads are shipped to the consignee identified on the ME
  • verify the consignee receiving the products has a valid licence to conduct further processing activities that are identified on the ME (packing, labelling, further processing)
  • verify that the Preventive Control Plan (PCP) of the importer has identified products traded under the ME, has identified hazards associated with the import/interprovincial movement of non – compliant product, and has control measures to address the hazards
  • verify compliance to other applicable regulatory requirements such as traceability, and complaints

7.2.2 Verification activities of Operators

When conducting preventive controls inspection of an operator (sub-elements 1.1, 1.2, 7.1), conduct the following verification activities to verify compliance to conditions of issued ME's:

  • review receiving records including copies of MEs and verify the accuracy of information on the ME vs receiving records
  • review process records and verify that products received under an ME are processed as authorized under the ME (packing, labelling, or processing)
  • verify and confirm the quantities of products received vs processed
  • verify that the PCP of the operator has identified hazards associated with processing non-compliant product received under ME

7.3 Communicate results and follow up

When compliance verification activities reveals that the condition (s) of the ME for import or interprovincial movement of a food is not met, inspectors must follow the procedures in the Standard Inspection Procedures (SIP) to determine non-compliance and follow up activities.

Inspectors should follow the Standard regulatory response procedures to initiate appropriate control action, regulatory response and/or enforcement action.

Notify the CoA of control/enforcement actions taken in relation to the food moved or processed under a ME. Send an email to Permission@inspection.gc.ca with subject line "Notification of Control or Enforcement actions for food traded under ME Control Number XXXXXX".

8.0 Appendices

For general inquiries related to this Operational Guidance Document, please follow established communication channels, including submitting an electronic Request for Action Form (e-RAF) (internal access only).

Annex 1 – Example of ministerial exemption for processed fruits and vegetables

Form - Processed fruits and vegetables. Description follows.
Description for figure - Processed Fruits and Vegetables Ministerial Exemption

This bilingual document authorizes interprovincial trade or import of non-compliant processed fruits and vegetables for the purpose of alleviating a shortage. The document contains the following fields:

The type of exemption (Import, interprovincial) appears on the top left corner above the control number.

Date
the date and time when ministerial exemption was issued by the CoA
Control Number
Indicates the year of issuance, a unique exemption number, the province, country or state from which the product originates, a three digit commodity code for fresh fruits and vegetables and the letter "P" for processed fruits and vegetables, and the province of destination. For example: 2019-0031-NB-POT-ON means ME issued in 2019 for potatoes moving from New Brunswick to Ontario.
CFIA issuing Office
The "Centre of Administration" followed by CoA address in Ottawa
Contact
Name of the CoA agent issuing the ministerial exemption
Attention
this field appears on the ministerial exemptions for fresh fruits and vegetables from US. The field is populated by the USDA Fruits and Vegetables Program, Specialty Crops Inspection Division, followed by their address.
Applicant
Name, address, and postal code of the individual or entity requesting the ministerial exemption.
Certified for
The reason for which exemption is issued (processing, repacking, relabeling)
Origin
the country, province, state or region where product was processed
Start date
The date when the when first shipment can arrive in Canada or move between provinces in Canada (start of shortage)
Cut off date
the last date (year, month, date) when the loads authorized under the ministerial exemption can move (expiry date of the ministerial exemption).
Product
Description of the commodity for which ministerial exemption was issued. For example: fresh, small, russet potatoes in tote bags.
Quantity
The number of loads authorized under the ministerial exemption. May include packing type, container size and container number if applicable.
Grade
The grade (if applicable) of the product authorized under the ministerial exemption (if graded).
Consignee
The name and address of the person or business to whom the loads are destined to. The consignee will process, re-pack, or relabel the non-compliant food to make it compliant to the regulatory requirements.
Shipper
The name and address of the individual or business who is shipping the commodity from origin to destination.
Remarks
Reserved for any remarks from CoA
Authorized by
The name and signature of the CoA agent who issued the ministerial exemption
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