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WTO notification · SPS

CanadaProposed measure, not in force yet

Meat and edible meat offal – Canada

Official title

Proposed Amendments to the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations to address unmet slaughter capacity

Canada notified this proposed SPS measure to the WTO on 30 June 2026. The comment period closed on 29 August 2026.

Expodite puts notifications like this one in your Updates centre, matched to the HS codes of your products and the markets you export to. Opens the requirements check for Canada in your Expodite account.

Source: WTO ePing (opens in a new tab). Summaries by Expodite, which is independent of the WTO.

Published here:

At a glance

Products

Red meat

HS codes
  • 02 · Meat and edible meat offal
    • 02
Notifying member
Canada
Status
Proposed measure, not in force yet
Objectives
  • Food safety
Area
SPS: Food safety, animal and plant healthSanitary and phytosanitary measures
Notification type
Regular notification
Document symbol
G/SPS/N/CAN/1644
Keywords
Food safety, Human health

Key dates

Distributed by the WTO
Comment deadline
Closed on 29 August 2026
Proposed adoption
Within 12 months of publication in the Canada Gazette, Part I.
Proposed entry into force
These Regulations would come into force on the date they are registered and published in the Canada Gazette, Part II.

How to comment

The comment period closed on 29 August 2026. You can still raise concerns about the measure with your country's WTO SPS enquiry point, quoting the document symbol G/SPS/N/CAN/1644; it can take them up with Canada.

Find your country's enquiry point on WTO ePing (opens in a new tab)

What the notification says

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is proposing amendments to the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations (SFCR) to reduce barriers to the interprovincial trade of red meat and support food security when there is unmet slaughter capacity. The proposed amendments would create a targeted one-time, time-limited exemption under the SFCR to allow the interprovincial movement and sale of low volumes of red meat when there is unmet slaughter capacity. To ensure food safety and no impact on international trade, the proposed exemption would be limited, apply to low volumes of meat that will be identifiable and traceable, and the provinces involved would need to agree to provide food safety oversight. Any food businesses preparing products for export would continue to meet all applicable requirements under the Safe Food for Canadians Act (SFCA) and SFCR, including licensing, preventive controls, traceability, and export certification. As a result, Canada’s internationally recognized food safety assurances, and its ability to meet foreign market conditions, would remain fully intact. Additional proposed amendments to the SFCR would reduce red tape and improve regulatory clarity, including clarifying that importers and exporters must meet all applicable SFCR requirements prior to the import or export of food.

Sources

Expodite writes its summary from the official record. The notification and the documents it notifies are on the WTO's own websites.

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