OTTAWA, ON – During an appearance at Beau’s Oktoberfest last Friday October 3rd, Pierre Lemieux – Parliamentary Secretary to Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz and Member of Parliament for Glengarry-Prescott-Russell – announced that the Government of Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) are proceeding with plans to update Canada’s compositional standards for beer to better align with the modern brewing industry.
From a press release about the announcement:
Brewers have expressed concerns that the existing standard is outdated and can create barriers for the introduction of new products. The new proposed standard, which was developed in collaboration with industry, would provide for clearer and more modern regulations that would enable the industry to take full advantage of innovation and market developments. For example, the new standard would expand the definition of beer to allow for non-traditional ingredients such as spices and fruit. These changes would lead to more choices for consumers.
A consultation period to receive further input about the proposed changes from brewers and other industry stakeholders is open until November 16th. It has not yet been announced when the new standard will officially go info effect.
For more details, see the original press release and backgrounder.
[Photo of MP Pierre Lemieux from the CFIA Facebook page]