Regulatory
REGULATORY NEWS FOR THE WEEK OF MARCH 6, 2023
The governments have negotiated a Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership (Sustainable CAP) for Ontario that will see upwards of $1.77 billion in support for the agri-food sector over the life of the agreement. Through Sustainable CAP, $569 million will be invested in strategic initiatives, which is a 25 percent increase over the previous funding agreement. There will also be roughly $1.2 billion for continued, demand-driven, business risk management supports for farmers. A new component of our food safety education effort is the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Health Canada and the US Partnership for Food Safety Education, signed in January 2023. The collaboration will allow the two organizations to share information and cooperate on food safety related projects. One project currently underway is the Safe Recipe Style Guide, which provides easy-to-follow food safety advice and encourages consumers to adopt these behaviours, with the goal to reduce foodborne illness. Wood packaging material (WPM) is a pathway for wood-boring pests that can harm forest and natural resources. And for this reason, more than 20 years ago, the International Plant Protection Convention adopted an international standard to help reduce the risk of moving wood pests in WPM in international trade. Except for a foundational investigation published in 2014, this pathway and the impact of the international standard on pests in WPM had not been studied in years. That all changed with the publication of a new scientific paper. The Codex Guidelines for ready-to-use therapeutic foods, or RUTF, have been published in the revised format which is part of the drive in the Codex Secretariat to enhance the availability of all Codex standards, guidelines and codes of practice. By the implementation of a digital object identifier (doi) –which remains unique over the lifetime of a document, even when its location and other metadata may change – the Secretariat is aligning its texts to industry standards and taking advantage of the security, citation and cataloguing features that FAO, where the Codex Secretariat is based, offers. The Food Directorate’s Bureau of Chemical Safety would like to advise you of the following update(s) on “Food Additives”: Notice of Modification to the List of Permitted Food Enzymes to Enable the Use of Transglutaminase from Streptomyces mobaraensis M2020197 in Various Foods – Reference Number: NOM/ADM-0196 Notice of Modification to the List of Permitted Food Additives with Other Accepted Uses to Extend the Use of Acetic Acid to 2′-Fucosyllactose – Reference Number: NOM/ADM-0197 This guideline technical document was prepared in collaboration with the Federal-Provincial-Territorial Committee on Drinking Water (CDW) and assesses all available information on boron. A maximum acceptable concentration (MAC) of 5 mg/L (5 000 μg/L) is established for total boron in drinking water based on treatment achievability. The purpose of this notice is to inform interested stakeholders of the intent of the Minister of Health to make a consequential amendment to the Fees in Respect of Drugs and Medical Devices Order (Fees Order) in order to change the reference for Performance Standard and Remission exceptions (section 6(2)(c)) from “COVID-19 Drug” to “public health emergency drugs”. This will give Health Canada the flexibility to quickly implement Interim Orders (IO’s) to address emerging public health needs such as COVID-19 in the future. The Minister assessed information on one substance new to Canada (CAN 19501-9) and determined that it meets the criteria for addition to the Domestic Substances List (DSL), under subsection 87(5) of CEPA. The substance subject to this SNAc is alkanoic acid, trialkyl-, mixed polyesters with alkylalkanoic acid and poly(substituted alkyl)alkanepolyol (Confidential Accession Number [CAN] 19501-9). This substance was deleted from the Non-domestic Substances List (NDSL). Access the new April 1, 2023, Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria – anywhere, any time on your mobile device with the CVSA Out-of-Service Criteria app. The app contains the out-of-service criteria; inspection bulletins; real-life photo examples of vehicle, cargo securement and hazardous materials/dangerous goods violations; inspection procedures; operational policies; access to the CVSA Learning portal; and more. The clause-by-clause review by the ENVI Parliamentary Committee continues Monday March 6th at 11:00 am ET. The Health Canada Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) is responsible for pesticide regulation in Canada. The public registry is where you can learn more about all pest control products registered for use in Canada. This past week postings cover: Open consultation – Pyrethrins (PMRL2023-15) Open consultation – Piperonyl butoxide (PMRL2023-16) Decision – Pyrethrins (RVD2023-06) Decision – Piperonyl butoxide (RVD20263-07)
Provides employers with information about some key occupational health and safety requirements related to emergency response planning. The kit also provides a step-by-step approach to planning, that employers can customize to their own work site. The Government of Alberta, a number of upcoming changes to the Occupational Health and Safety Code (OHS Code) will be taking effect on March 31, 2023. New and revised regulatory requirements for crane misadventure and zone-limiting devices in tower cranes are now in effect. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) (jointly, we) are announcing the withdrawal of the proposed rule entitled “General Principles and Food Standards Modernization,” which published in the Federal Register of May 20, 2005. FDA and FSIS are taking this action in response to comments received in 2005 and in 2020 after FDA reopened the comment period for the proposed rule. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced that it has begun a national search for a new Deputy Commissioner for Human Foods and is providing an update on last month’s proposed restructuring of the agency’s Human Foods Program and Office of Regulatory Affairs (ORA) to enhance coordination, prevention and response activities. The USDA National Organic Program (NOP) published the Strengthening Organic Enforcement (SOE) Final Rule on January 19, 2023. This rulemaking is the single largest update to the NOP regulations since their original publication in 2000, and works to strengthen the existing organic regulations in the face of complex supply chain challenges, robust market growth, and fraud in the organic industry. EPA is issuing significant new use rules (SNURs) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for chemical substances that were the subject of premanufacture notices (PMNs). The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA) has announced two public listening sessions to receive individual input related to concerns about potential liability under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), commonly known as “Superfund.” The input received will be reviewed and considered by EPA in drafting a CERCLA per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) enforcement discretion and settlement policy to the extent that PFAS cleanup enforcement efforts occur under CERCLA. This Safety Advisory alerts hazardous materials tank car owners and offerors of the potential harm to certain manway assemblies with aluminum protective housing covers when exposed to extreme heat. See Safety Advisory for more details. This Safety Advisory alerts those engaged in the rail transportation of hazardous materials of their obligation to appropriately plan for emergencies and share information about available emergency response resources, as well as urges actions to ensure emergency responders are adequately equipped to respond to rail transportation incidents involving hazmat. The California Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) intends to list 1,1,1-trichloroethane (CAS RN 71-55-6) and leucomalachite green (CAS RN 129-73-7), as known to the state to cause cancer under the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986 (Proposition 65) The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has updated recommendations will help companies to comply with REACH requirements and ensure the safe use of chemicals. They focus on avoiding animal testing, specifically providing advice on read across. Safety Share The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) has announced May 16-18 as this year’s International Roadcheck. International Roadcheck is a high-visibility, high-volume 72-hour inspection and enforcement event where CVSA-certified inspectors in Canada, Mexico and the U.S. will conduct inspections of commercial motor vehicles and drivers at weigh/inspection stations, designated inspection areas and along roadways. The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) has included this important topic in their most recent health and safety report. Have an event you would like to share? Please send details to [email protected]. ChemCon The Americas 2023 is a global platform which brings together many experts representing companies, authorities and international organisations from over 25 countries. Presentations given by more than 50 speakers from governments and industry will focus in the field of international chemical legislation all over the world, like TSCA, EU-REACH, K-REACH, GHS and country specific information on inventories, labelling requirements, etc. The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) is hosting a webinar to discuss climate change and its impacts on people in the workplace. PetroChem Canada West brings together the western Canadian petrochemical, chemical, emerging biochemical manufacturers together with their supply chain and multiple levels of government to discuss the opportunities to expand and further develop a sustainable downstream sector in Alberta. Take this opportunity to mark in your calendars next years Bakery Showcase, May 14, 15 2023 in Vancouver BC. The workshop will be an opportunity to bring stakeholders together and develop a common understanding of what new approach methodologies (NAMs), can achieve in the short and long term. Over two days delegates will come to learn from dozens industry leaders and technical experts about the exciting opportunities within Canada’s downstream sector. There is no other health and safety event like this in Canada. Make a plan to join us for this two-day national event that will bring together leaders, change makers, and subject experts representing government, labour, and workplaces, to share their knowledge and experience around current and emerging health and safety issues.Advocacy
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