June 25, 2013, Ottawa: The Government of Canada is proposing to create a national standard for icewine that will require icewine to be made only from grapes naturally frozen on the vine.
"Canada is one of the world’s largest producers of icewine. These changes will harmonize Canada’s definition of icewine with the World Wine Trade Group’s Agreement on Requirements for Wine Labelling," said Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz. "The proposed regulatory amendments will also benefit exporters by allowing greater market access."
Also included in the proposed regulatory amendments are changes to the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Regulations to allow the mandatory labelling information on wine bottles and boxes to be displayed in a single field of vision, which means that it can be seen without having to turn the container. Also included are minor text amendments to the Food and Drug Regulations and to the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Regulations.
It is expected that the proposed regulatory amendments will allow wine exporters to have greater market access without having to redesign their labels for each individual country’s requirements. The proposed national standard is also expected to help prevent the sale of fraudulent icewine.
The proposed regulatory amendments will not change the mandatory labelling information on the container, which includes common name, net quantity, country of origin and alcohol content by volume, to ensure that Canadians can make informed decisions.
The provinces and provincial liquor authorities are the lead in ensuring that alcoholic beverages, including wines, conform to provincial laws and Canadian standards. Individual provincial liquor authorities may also develop additional standards for wine sold within their province. The CFIA has consulted with provincial authorities on the proposed regulatory amendments and proposed national standard.
The proposed amendments to the Canada Agricultural Products Act, the Food and Drugs Regulations and the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Regulations were published in Canada Gazette, Part 1 on June 15, 2013.
The comment period will run until August 29, 2013.
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