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Competition Bureau Confirms Enforcement Approach to new Guidelines on “Made in Canada” and “Product of Canada” Claims

Ottawa, May 14, 2010 — The Competition Bureau today further clarified its enforcement approach to "Made in Canada" and "Product of Canada" claims.

In December 2009, the Bureau released its revised Enforcement Guidelines for "Product of Canada" and "Made in Canada" Claims. The Guidelines describe the Bureau's approach to assessing "Product of Canada" and "Made in Canada" claims for non-food products under the false or misleading representations provisions of the Competition Act, the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act and the Textile Labelling Act. The Guidelines take effect on July 1, 2010.

As is always the case, businesses should note that a mere deviation from any enforcement Guidelines does not necessarily mean that the Bureau will launch an investigation or take enforcement action. All relevant factors will be examined, on a case-by-case basis, in order to determine whether potential issues are raised under the laws in question. Should a potential issue be identified, the Bureau has a variety of tools at its disposal to achieve compliance with those laws, ranging from education and awareness to enforcement action, where appropriate.

In all events, if the Bureau receives a complaint specifically regarding a potentially deceptive "Made in Canada" or "Product of Canada" claim following the July 1, 2010 implementation date, the Bureau will consider a number of factors before taking action. These may include:

the nature of the products and the representations involved;
whether the claims being made comply with the previous version of the Guidelines;
whether "good faith" plans and steps have been or are being taken to comply with the Guidelines; and
any genuine challenges experienced by the company in complying with the Guidelines by the implementation date, including the volume of non-compliant products in the supply chain to be relabeled, and product turnover rates.

In order to ensure an effective and fair industry transition, and consistent with past practice when introducing new enforcement guidelines, for the six-month period following the July 1, 2010 implementation date, the Bureau confirms that it will only consider enforcement action in circumstances of bad faith. Specifically, in that transitional period, the Bureau confirms that, in the absence of bad faith, the Bureau will limit its response in cases of apparent non-compliance to education and warning letters consistent with the options outlined in the Bureau's Conformity Continuum.

The Competition Bureau is an independent law enforcement agency that contributes to the prosperity of Canadians by protecting and promoting competitive markets and enabling informed consumer choice.