New regulations for organics take effect in Alberta
Organic food shoppers in Alberta can be assured they’re getting the real deal.
On April 1, new provincial regulations under the Supporting Alberta’s Local Food Sector Act took effect. Food products sold and marketed as organic in the province must be certified through a third-party certification body and in accordance with federal organic products regulations.
“Consumers
The organization has been advocating for provincial regulations since new federal regulations were passed in 2009. Under federal law, organic products for import, export or inter-provincial trade must be certified according to the Canadian Organic Standards. The regulations do not require organic products sold within individual provinces and territories to be certified.
Since 2009, provinces have worked to close the regulation gap. Today, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Manitoba and B.C. have provincial regulations requiring certification for products marketed as organic. Ontario has yet to follow suit, although a private member’s bill, Organic Products Act, was tabled last November.
Lipton says mislabelling hasn’t been a major issue at the retail level—it’s more likely to occur at farmers’ markets or farm gates. “You might have somebody who thinks it’s organic and they’re calling it organic, but they don’t understand what organic means, they’ve never read the Canadian Organic Standards, and they don’t know what practices they need to follow in order to properly call something organic,” she says. “However, the fact that the regulatory gap exists and there could be some mislabelling or misunderstanding of what organic is, hurts the entire sector because it undermines consumer confidence.”
To clear up confusion around what organic is, Organic Alberta is launching an education campaign called Get the Facts. The campaign, which will live on Organic Alberta’s website and social media channels, will including information, articles and videos about all things organic.
“Seventy-four per cent of Albertans buy organic on a weekly basis, which is more than any other province,” says Lipton, citing research from the Canada Organic Trade Association. “We know they’re interested in organic and want to know more about it.”
The first video educates people about the new legislation and has the message, “trust the label—it’s the law.”
Over the next two years, Organic Alberta will roll out content with a number of facts on organics. “I think people have a sense that organic has not synthetic pesticides and herbicides, but organic also has non-GMO and animal welfare standards. So we’re really going to dig into all of those pieces... and educate them on what they can be assured they’re getting when they buy organic.”