Supplemented foods: Regulations and compliance
Consult the guidance document developed to help industry interpret the supplemented foods regulations.
On this page
- Supplemented foods regulations
- Supplemented food categories
- Supplemental ingredients
- Compliance
- Templates for designers to meet labelling requirements
- Technical documents
Supplemented foods regulations
The supplemented foods regulations:
- protect the health and safety of consumers
- provide a clear and predictable regulatory environment for supplemented foods
Health Canada has published amendments to the:
- Food and Drug Regulations (FDR)
- Cannabis Regulations
As part of these amendments, 4 documents are incorporated by reference into the FDR. These documents outline requirements related to foods that can be supplemented, supplemental ingredients and their conditions of use, and labelling. They include:
- directory of supplemented food caution identifier specifications
- formatting specifications for the supplemented food caution identifier, including acceptable versions for use on prepackaged supplemented foods
- directory of supplemented food facts table formats (SFFt)
- listing of SFFt formats, including acceptable versions for use on prepackaged supplemented foods
- list of permitted supplemented food categories
- list of all the food categories that are permitted to be supplemented
- list of permitted supplemental ingredients
- list of all the supplemental ingredients that are permitted in supplemented foods, along with their conditions of use
Supplemented food categories
Specific food categories are permitted to be supplemented. Some examples of permitted categories include:
- bars
- fruit drinks
- carbonated water-based beverages
Foods that aren’t eligible as supplemented foods include:
- infant foods
- foods targeted to:
- children under 4 years of age
- those who are pregnant or breastfeeding
- alcoholic beverages
- foods for special dietary use
- prepackaged unprocessed foods or minimally processed foods
- most foods required or permitted to have nutrients added for fortification purposes (for example, milk and breakfast cereals)
They aren’t eligible as supplemented foods because:
- they are either subject to other provisions in the Food and Drug Regulations (FDR) or
- there is a higher level of risk for consumers if they were supplemented
- for example, they are foods intended for certain vulnerable populations like young children
The List of permitted supplemented food categories is incorporated by reference into the FDR. The guidance document provides additional information on the types of permitted food categories and the process to add a new food category to the list or modify an existing one.
Supplemental ingredients
Some ingredients are permitted to be added as supplemental ingredients to supplemented foods. Some examples of permitted supplemental ingredients include:
- calcium
- caffeine
- L-leucine
- vitamin C
Some nutrients aren’t currently allowed to be supplemented into foods. For example, iron and folic acid aren’t allowed as supplemental ingredients because cautionary labelling isn’t likely to be enough to reduce the risk associated with overconsumption of these nutrients.
The List of permitted supplemental ingredients is incorporated by reference into the FDR. The guidance document provides additional information on the types of permitted supplemental ingredients and the process to add a new ingredient to the list or modify an existing one.
Compliance
The transition period to come into compliance with the supplemented foods regulatory framework ended on December 31, 2025. Products that were eligible for the transition period must now fully comply with the regulations, except the rounding rules for the declaration of supplemental ingredients, which will continue to follow the Interim policy statement on rounding rules. In addition, the two documents incorporated by reference that were applicable during the transition period have now been archived. For more information, refer to the Guidance Document: Supplemented Foods Regulations.
Health Canada developed the supplemented foods regulations. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) enforces them.
Health Canada and the CFIA share responsibility for answering questions about the regulations. You can:
- submit questions about the new requirements and their intent to Health Canada at supplementedfoods-alimentssupplementes@hc-sc.gc.ca
- refer to the implementation plan for questions on compliance and enforcement activities
Templates for designers to meet labelling requirements
Canada has federal regulations and requirements for food labels. Companies producing, importing and selling food products must make sure their labels meet these requirements. The Food and Drug Regulations (FDR) require a supplemented food facts table on all supplemented foods. A supplemented food caution identifier and list of cautionary statements may also need to appear on some supplemented foods. To know whether your supplemented food requires a supplemented food caution identifier and list of cautionary statements, please refer to the Guidance document: Supplemented Foods Regulations.
The compendium of templates will help label designers and the food and packaging industries meet the format specifications.
The compendium includes:
- actual-size graphic illustrations for the various SFFt formats and supplemented food caution identifier formats permitted by the FDR
- 2 examples of lists of cautionary statements to show variations that meet the graphic specifications detailed in the FDR
File formats available
The compendium of templates was created using Adobe InDesign CC 2020. It’s available in 2 formats:
- INDD for files opened and edited in InDesign CC 2020 (or newer)
- IDML for files opened and edited in older versions of InDesign (CS4 and later)
To obtain these files, please email the Submission Management and Information Unit (SMIU) at smiu-ugdi@hc-sc.gc.ca with the subject line: Requesting labelling compendium for supplemented foods.