G/TBT/N/CAN/705  
4 October 2023  
(23-6638) Page: 1/2 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade  Original:  English /French  
 
  
NOTIFICATION  
The following notification is being circulated in accordance with Article 10.6  
 
1. Notifying Member:  CANADA  
If applicable, name of local government involved (Article 3.2 and 7.2):   
2. Agency responsible:   
Department of Health  
Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers , email and website 
addresses, if available) of agency or authority designated to handle comments 
regarding the notification shall be indicated if different from above:   
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [X], 2.10.1 [  ], 5.6.2 [  ], 5.7.1 [  ], 3.2 [  ], 7.2 [  ], 
other :  
4. Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicable, otherwise national tariff 
heading. ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where applicable):  
Prepackaged and prepared foods  (ICS Code: 67.230)  
5. Title, number of pages and language(s) of the notified document:  Notice of Health 
Canada's proposal regarding a buffer zone between the front -of-package nutrition symbol 
and the supplemented food caution identifier or  between nutrition symbols ; (9 page(s), 
in English), (10 page(s), in French)  
6. Description of content:  Health Canada's Food Directorate has concluded that the 
Directory of Nutrition Symbol Specifications and Directory of Supplemented Food Caution 
Identi fier Specifications  should be amended to permit displaying the front -of-package 
(FOP) nutrition symbol and supplemented food caution identifier (SFCI), or two nutrition 
symbols, with no buffer between them where they share a border (i.e., are contiguous).  
Health Canada is therefore proposing to modify the Directory of Nutrition Symbol 
Specifications  and the Directory of Supplemented Food Caution Identifier Specifications  
to permit displaying the FOP nutrition symbol and SFCI, or two nutrition symbols, with no 
buffer between them.  
7. Objective and rationale, including the nature of urgent problems where 
applicable:  Health Canada's Food Directorate has considered industry's comments that 
displaying both the front -of-package (FOP) nutrition symbol and the supplemented food 
caution identifier (SFCI) on supplemented foods occupies a significant portion of the space 
available on a label. In addition, prepackaged products that contain an assortment of 
foods may be required to carry more than one FOP nutrition symbol and/or the SFCI. The 
Directorate concluded that the Directory of Nutrition Symbol Specifications  and Director y 
of Supplemented Food Caution Identifier Specifications  should be amended to permit a 
buffer as small as 0 mm between the FOP nutrition symbol and the SFCI, or between 
nutrition symbols on prepackaged products that contain an assortment of foods, where 
they share a border as described in the Notice of proposal information document.; 
Consumer information, labelling  G/TBT/N/CAN/705  
 
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  8. Relevant documents:   
Health Canada's Food and Nutrition – 'Public Involvement and Partnerships' Web site, 
posted September 25, 2023 (availab le in English and French):  
https://www.canada.ca/en/health -canada/services/food -nutrition/public -involvement -
partnerships.html  (English)  
https://www.canada.ca/fr/sante -canada/services/aliments -nutrition/participation -
public -partenariats.html  (French)  
9. Proposed date of adoption:  The proposed labelling modification will be legally enabled 
once published in Health Canada's Directory of Nutrition Symbol Specifications and the 
Directory of Supplemented Food Caution Identifier Specifications: 
(https://www.canada.ca/en/health -canada/services/technical -documen ts-labelling -
requirements/nutrition -symbol -specifications/nutrition -labelling.html  and  
https://www.canada.ca/en/health -canada/services/food -nutrition/supplemented -
foods/technical -documents/directory -supplemented -food-caution -identifier -
specifications.html ). 
Proposed date of entry into force:  The labelling modification noted in this document 
comes into force the day they are made to the Directory of Nutrition Symbol Specifications 
and the Directory of Supplemented Food Caution Identifier Specificat ions: 
(https://www.canada.ca/en/health -canada/services/technical -documents -labelli ng-
requirements/nutrition -symbol -specifications/nutrition -labelling.html  and  
https://www.canada.ca/en/health -canada/services/food -nutrition/supplemented -
foods/technical -documents/directory -supplemented -food-caution -identifier -
specifications.html ). 
10. Final date for comments:  8 December 2023  
11. Texts available from:  National enquiry point [ ] or address, telephone and fax 
numbers and email and website addresses, if available , of other body:   
The "Notice of Health Canada's proposal regarding a buffer zone between the front -of-
package nutrition symbol and the supplemented food caution identifier or between 
nutrition symbols" is available through the following weblink:  
 
Notice of Health Canada's proposal regarding the buffer zone between the front -of-
package nutrition symbol and the sup plemented food caution identifier or between 
nutrition symbols - Canada.ca  (English)  
 
Avis de proposition de Santé Canada concernant l'espace de dégagement entre un 
symbole nutritionnel sur le devant de l'emballage et un identifiant des aliments 
supplément és avec mise en garde ou entre symboles nutritionnels - Canada.ca  (French)