Veterinary Health Products
We oversee the importation and sale of Veterinary health products (VHPs) in Canada through our VHP Notification Program. This program replaces the previous voluntary Interim Notification Pilot Program (INPP).
On this page
- Veterinary health products
- Regulating VHPs via Notification
- Rules for VHPs
- Who these rules apply to
- How to notify Health Canada about a VHP
Veterinary health products
VHPs are low risk drugs in dosage form. They are used to maintain or promote the health and welfare of companion and food-producing animals. They are not for use to treat, prevent or cure disease.
VHPs contain ingredients such as:
- vitamins
- minerals
- traditional medicines
Regulating VHPs via Notification
Our Notification Program provides a flexible and risk appropriate regulatory framework for veterinary health products (VHPs) that have a history of safe use.
As with all health products, our compliance and enforcement approach is proportional to the risk of the product. The sale of a VHP that is found to be unsafe or misleading can be stopped by Health Canada.
Rules for VHPs
The Notification Program for VHPs will start when the regulations come into effect on November 13, 2017.
The rules for VHPs require:
- companies who manufacture, package, label, import, distribute and/or store VHPs to follow the Part 3 - Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs) in the Natural Health Products Regulations
- that all active, homeopathic and traditional medicine substances used to make a VHP are on List C: Veterinary Health Products
- VHP labels to:
- include the statement "Veterinary health product / Produit de santé animale"
- follow the labelling rules of the Food and Drug Regulations
- include mandatory label statements as described on List C (as applicable)
- companies to notify Health Canada about their VHPs:
- at least 30 days before selling a VHP in Canada
- at least 30 days before making a change to a VHP we have already been notified about in Canada
- before importing a VHP into Canada
- companies to report any serious adverse drug reactions to Health Canada
Who these rules apply to
Anyone planning to manufacture, import, distribute or sell a VHP in Canada must follow the rules.
How to Notify Health Canada about a VHP
To notify Health Canada about a VHP, follow the "How to get started" section of the "Veterinary Health Products - Notification Program".
If you have any questions, contact us by email: vhp-psa@hc-sc.gc.ca
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