The agriculture and agri-food sector uses biotechnology in a variety of ways to produce agricultural inputs and food products. Products are regulated by government in order to protect human, animal and environmental health and to protect consumers against fraud.
Regulations also serve to maintain international quality and safety standards that facilitate trade.
In 1993, the federal government announced a framework for the regulation of biotechnology products in Canada. One of the principles of the framework was that existing legislation and regulatory bodies would be used to regulate biotechnology products, and that they would build on existing laws and expertise, rather than developing entirely new laws and agencies. This means that agricultural products of biotechnology are regulated under the same broad legislation and structures, with the addition of some new regulations and administrative procedures, as agricultural products produced in more traditional ways. As a result, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency is the lead agency responsible for regulating these products under, among others, the Health of Animals Act , the Plant Protection Act , the Seeds Act , the Fertilizers Act , and the Feeds Act . Regulations passed in 1996 clearly describe how the CFIA will conduct environmental assessments of agricultural products of biotechnology.