Proposal to modify the Table of Permitted Nutrient Content Statements and Claims (free of sugars)

• Notice of proposal - Nutrition Labelling — Table of Permitted Nutrient Content Statements and Claims
• Reference Number: P-ANC-25-01
• January 17, 2025

Background

The document Nutrition Labelling — Table of Permitted Nutrient Content Statements and Claims (henceforth referred to as the "Table") sets out the conditions for making nutrient content statements and claims that are permitted on foods for sale in Canada. Nutrient content statements and claims describe the level of a nutrient or energy in foods.

When the original table following section B.01.513 was incorporated by reference in the Food and Drugs Regulations, modifications were made to the conditions for making certain nutrient content claims, and a "low in sugars" claim was added. The Notice of Proposal: Incorporating by Reference the "Nutrition Labelling — Table of Permitted Nutrient Content Statements and Claims" published by Health Canada in February 2018, provided a detailed overview of these changes, which were finalized in the corresponding Notice of Modification: Incorporating by reference the "Nutrition labelling — Table of Permitted Nutrient Content Statements and Claims", published in July 2022. These should be read in conjunction with the Regulations Amending the Food and Drug Regulations (Nutrition Symbols, Other Labelling Provisions, Partially Hydrogenated Oils and Vitamin D) published in Part II of the Canada Gazette (July 2022).

Issue

The updated regulations included modifications to the energy requirements of the "free of sugars" claim (item 37 of the table following section B.01.513). These changes, which were intended to make the energy requirements less restrictive, unintentionally affected chewing gums. As a result, chewing gums that were previously exempt from these requirements may no longer be in compliance with the regulations after the transition period ends on December 31, 2025.

The updates to item 37 included:

1. In column 2, paragraph (b), a food may now meet the energy conditions set for a "low in energy" claim (column 2 of item 2) instead of the conditions for a "free of energy" claim (column 2 of item 1);
2. "with the exception of chewing gum," was removed from column 2, paragraph (b); and
3. the claims "0 g sugar", "zero g sugar","0 gram sugar" or "zero gram sugar" were added to column 4.

Health Canada's Food and Nutrition Directorate revised the conditions for the "free of sugars" claim so foods can now meet the criteria for the "low in energy" claim (that is, 40 calories or less), rather than the criteria for the "free of energy" claim (less than 5 calories). This change was intended to allow products with low-calorie sweeteners to use the "free of sugars" claim. However, the conditions for use of the "low in energy" claim also include a density criterion, where energy is calculated based on 50 g for foods with a reference amount of 30 g or 30 mL or less.

Chewing gum has a reference amount of 3 g. Although, for example, two pieces of a chewing gum (2.8 g) may provide 5 calories, due to the density criterion, chewing gum is subject to the above calculation. Therefore, 50 g of the same chewing gum would provide 90 calories, exceeding the 40-calorie threshold set for the "low in energy" claim. As a result, the removal of the chewing gum exemption from paragraph (b) inadvertently made it ineligible for the "free of sugars" claim.

Rationale for action

It was not Health Canada's intent to restrict chewing gums from making a "free of sugars" claims. This is evident in both the Notice of Proposal and the Notice of Modification, neither of which mention the removal of the chewing gum exemption from item 37 of the Table.

To rectify this oversight, Health Canada proposes reintroducing the chewing gum exemption in item 37, column 2, paragraph (b), for the "free of sugars" claim in the Table.

Proposed modification to the Table of Permitted Nutrient Content Statements and Claims

Implementation and enforcement

The proposed modification will come into effect the day on which it is published in the document, Nutrition Labelling — Table of Permitted Nutrient Content Statements and Claims. Since the proposed modification does not introduce new regulatory requirements, no transition period is necessary.

Stakeholders will be informed of the publication of the updated Table via a Notice of Modification that will be available on the Food and Nutrition Directorate's Notices of Proposal and Notices of Modification webpage. Stakeholders interested in staying informed of Notices of proposals (consultations) and modifications, can also register for CSIMS, a stakeholder registry used to communicate Health Canada stakeholder and public engagement activities.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is responsible for the enforcement of the Food and Drugs Act and its associated regulations with respect to foods.

Contact information

Health Canada's Food and Nutrition Directorate is committed to reviewing any new information relating to this proposal. Interested persons wishing to submit comments on this proposal may do so by email by April 2, 2025, 75 days from the date of this posting. All submissions must use the words "Free of sugars (P-ANC-25-01)" in the subject line of the email, and be submitted to the Food Incorporation by Reference Unit (FIRU) at food.ibr-ipr.aliments@hc-sc.gc.ca.