As part of its efforts to strengthen organic integrity and modernize oversight, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is preparing to launch Phase II of its initiative to strengthen import requirements for organic products.
Starting May 26, 2025, importers and brokers of organic products into Canada will be required to provide a digital copy of the organic product certificate when declaring organic products using the Integrated Import Declaration (IID) system.
The Canada Organic Trade Association presented a detailed summary of the new requirements during a webinar on January 31. The CFIA has also prepared a Q&A document compiling questions received from members of several impacted associations.
Avoid potential import delays by ensuring that you, your suppliers, and customs partners are using the correct Other Government Department (OGD) codes for your products and have digital copies of the organic certificates.
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Background
Phase I of this initiative began in 2019 and was completed in November 2024. It involved uploading new commodity identifiers (Other Government Department, OGD codes) in the Automated Import Reference System (AIRS) for all organic products by commodity type, allowing the differentiation of organic from conventional imports. Importers and brokers have been required to confirm possession of the organic product certificate at the time of import in the Integrated Import Declaration (IID). It is the responsibility of the importer to familiarize themselves with the new codes in AIRS and comply with the import requirements.