Legal Research

Organic law

By Mark Lewis

You might have read the title of this post and supposed that it was going to be about fundamental legal principles, but as so often is the case, the title is misleading. (I confess to having fun with the creation of titles to posts.) But actually this is about food, the organic kind. You might have noticed the organic section of your local grocery store seems to claim more and more space every time you visit and you may also have noticed all the different claims being made and attached to food: organically grown, made with organic ingredients, organic yada, organics wocka. What does it all mean? Adding to the confusion is the fact that, in Canada, organic foods and organic labeling have been somewhat nebulous.

In December 08 the Organic Products Regulations will come into effect which will, hopefully, provide some clarity to the situation. In truth, when gathering the info for this post, I initially thought I stepped in (organic) it, because the info is not clear cut. In short, these Regulations will mandate that minimum percentages of certified organic ingredients and techniques be utilized before a product can display the organic claims. In detail, the following links should help to clarify what organic will mean in Canada.

Canadian Food Inspection Agency- Organic Products

Organic Products Regulations Q & A

Canadian General Standards Board - Organic Production and Systems.

Happy shopping and eating!

Full post as published by Slaw.ca on August 08, 2008 (boomark / email).