Businesses that break food safety rules could be fined up to $15,000

by

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has announced it will be fining food businesses for violating federal food safety rules. Administrative Monetary Penalties (AMP) can range from a notice of violation with no monetary fine to as serious as up to $15,000 for serious offences or repeat violators.

The penalties have been used in the meat sector for the past four years. By adding them to cover all food sectors, it will give the CFIA a consistent and comprehensive set of tools to enforce compliance, the agency says.

The addition of all food sectors covered by AMP’s fall under the federal governments plan to release the Safe Food for Canadians Act along with the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations that came into affect January of this year. Both acts were part of consolidating 14 regulations into a single set of consistent requirements for all food businesses.

When in the consolidation process, both industry and consumers asked for the CFIA to address violations of the federal rules that “threaten food safety and market access for Canadian goods.”

AMPs can not only be issued to businesses, but individuals as well, to the tune of $500 to $1,300

Wake up with RealAgriculture

Subscribe to our daily newsletters to keep you up-to-date with our latest coverage every morning.

Wake up with RealAgriculture

Please register to read and comment.

 

Register for a RealAgriculture account to manage your Shortcut menu instead of the default.

Register