Fertilizers Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. F-10)

Short Title

Marginal note:Short title

1 This Act may be cited as the Fertilizers Act.

Interpretation

Marginal note:Definitions

2 In this Act,

analyst

analyst means a person designated as an analyst pursuant to section 6; (analyste)

conveyance

conveyance means a vessel, aircraft, train, motor vehicle, trailer or other means of transportation, including a cargo container; (véhicule)

document

document means anything on which information that is capable of being understood by a person, or read by a computer or other device, is recorded or marked; (document)

environment

environment means the components of the Earth and includes

• (a) air, land and water,

• (b) all layers of the atmosphere,

• (c) all organic and inorganic matter and living organisms, and

• (d) the interacting natural systems that include components referred to in paragraphs (a) to (c); (environnement)

establishment

establishment means any place, including a conveyance, where a fertilizer or supplement is manufactured, stored, packaged or labelled; (établissement)

fertilizer

fertilizer means any substance or mixture of substances, containing nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium or other plant food, manufactured, sold or represented for use as a plant nutrient; (engrais)

inspector

inspector means a person designated as an inspector pursuant to section 6; (inspecteur)

item to which this Act applies

item to which this Act applies means

• (a) a fertilizer or supplement,

• (b) anything used in an activity regulated under this Act, and

• (c) a document that is related to a fertilizer or supplement or to any activity regulated under this Act; (chose visée par la présente loi)

label

label includes any legend, word, mark, symbol or design applied or attached to, included in, belonging to or accompanying any fertilizer, supplement or package; (étiquette)

Minister

Minister means the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food; (ministre)

package

package includes a sack, bag, barrel, case or any other container in which fertilizers or supplements are placed or packed; (emballage)

penalty

penalty means an administrative monetary penalty imposed under the Agriculture and Agri-Food Administrative Monetary Penalties Act for a violation; (sanction)

prescribed

prescribed means prescribed by regulation; (Version anglaise seulement)

sell

sell includes sell, offer for sale, expose for sale, have in possession for sale and distribute; (vente)

supplement

supplement means any substance or mixture of substances, other than a fertilizer, that is manufactured, sold or represented for use in the improvement of the physical condition of soils or to aid plant growth or crop yields; (supplément)

Tribunal

Tribunal means the Review Tribunal continued by subsection 27(1) of the Agriculture and Agri-Food Administrative Monetary Penalties Act; (Commission)

violation

violation means any contravention of this Act or the regulations that may be proceeded with in accordance with the Agriculture and Agri-Food Administrative Monetary Penalties Act. (violation)

Prohibitions

Marginal note:Absence of registration, etc.

3 No person shall sell, or import into Canada, any fertilizer or supplement unless the fertilizer or supplement

• (a) has, in accordance with the regulations, been approved by the Minister or registered;

• (b) conforms to prescribed standards; and

• (c) is packaged and labelled in accordance with the regulations.

Marginal note:Fertilizers and supplements presenting risk of harm

3.1 No person shall manufacture, sell, import or export in contravention of the regulations any fertilizer or supplement that presents a risk of harm to human, animal or plant health or the environment.

Marginal note:Prescribed activity with licence or registration

3.2 No person shall conduct a prescribed activity in respect of a prescribed fertilizer or supplement that has been imported for sale — or that is to be exported or to be sent or conveyed from one province to another — unless the person is authorized to do so by a registration made under subsection 5.2(1), by a licence issued under that subsection or by both such a registration and licence, as provided for in the regulations.

Marginal note:Prescribed activity in registered establishment

3.3 No person shall conduct a prescribed activity in respect of a prescribed fertilizer or supplement that has been imported for sale — or that is to be exported or to be sent or conveyed from one province to another — unless the activity is conducted in an establishment registered under subsection 5.3(1) in accordance with the regulations.

Marginal note:Recall order — Canadian Food Inspection Agency Act

3.4 No person shall sell a fertilizer or supplement that is the subject of a recall order referred to in subsection 19(1) of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency Act.

Marginal note:Destructive ingredients or harmful properties

4 No person shall sell any fertilizer or supplement that contains destructive ingredients or properties harmful to plant growth when used according to the directions that accompany the fertilizer or supplement or that appear on the label of the package in which the fertilizer or supplement is contained.

Regulations

Marginal note:Regulations

• 5 (1) The Governor in Council may make regulations

  • (a) respecting applications for registration or for approval of fertilizers or supplements and the information to be furnished with the applications;

  • (b) respecting the registration of fertilizers and supplements and prescribing fees for registration;

  • (b.1) respecting the approval of fertilizers and supplements;

  • (c) respecting the duration and cancellation of the registration or approval of fertilizers and supplements;

  • (c.1) respecting the manufacturing, sale, importation or exportation of any fertilizer or supplement that presents a risk of harm to human, animal or plant health or the environment;

  • (c.2) respecting the sending or conveying from one province to another or the importation or exportation of any fertilizer or supplement;

  • (c.3) respecting the manufacturing or sale of any fertilizer or supplement that is to be exported or to be sent or conveyed from one province to another;

  • (c.4) respecting the sale of any fertilizer or supplement that has been imported;

  • (d) exempting, with or without conditions, any item to which this Act applies, or a person or activity in respect of a fertilizer or supplement, from the application of this Act or the regulations or a provision of this Act or the regulations;

  • (e) prescribing the form, composition and other standards for fertilizers and supplements;

  • (f) respecting the packaging of fertilizers and supplements and the labelling of packages thereof;

  • (f.1) respecting the evaluation of a fertilizer or supplement, including regulations respecting

    • (i) the provision of samples of the fertilizer or supplement,

    • (ii) the provision of information in respect of the fertilizer or supplement, including information that

      • (A) permits the fertilizer or supplement to be distinguished from other fertilizers or supplements, and

      • (B) is required for evaluating the potential impact of the fertilizer or supplement on, and the risk of harm posed by the fertilizer or supplement to, human, animal or plant health or the environment, and

    • (iii) the evaluation of the potential impact of the fertilizer or supplement on, and the risk of harm posed by the fertilizer or supplement to, human, animal or plant health or the environment;

  • (g) respecting the taking of samples and the making of analyses for the purposes of this Act;

  • (g.1) requiring persons to take or keep samples of any fertilizer or supplement, or its package or label, and to provide the Minister or an inspector with, or with access to, those samples, and respecting the manner in which those samples are to be taken or kept and the manner in which they are to be provided or access to them is to be provided;

  • (h) providing that fertilizers registered under this Act and containing a pest control product as defined in subsection 2(1) of the Pest Control Products Act are, in prescribed circumstances and subject to prescribed conditions, deemed to be registered under that Act;

  • (h.1) respecting

    • (i) the registration of persons or the issuing of licences to persons under section 5.2 or the registration of establishments under section 5.3,

    • (ii) the suspension, cancellation and renewal of those licences and registrations, and

    • (iii) the amendment of those licences and registrations or of any of the conditions to which they are subject by reason of subsection 5.2(3) or 5.3(4);

  • (h.2) respecting quality management programs, quality control programs, safety programs, preventive control plans or any other similar programs or plans to be implemented by persons who conduct any activity regulated under this Act;

  • (i) respecting the detention, preservation and safeguarding of anything seized under section 9;

  • (j) respecting the disposition of anything forfeited under section 9;

  • (j.1) requiring persons to prepare, keep or maintain documents and to provide the Minister or an inspector with, or with access to, those documents, and respecting

    • (i) the information in those documents,

    • (ii) the manner in which they are to be prepared, kept or maintained,

    • (iii) the place where they are to be kept or maintained, and

    • (iv) the manner in which they are to be provided or access to them is to be provided;

  • (j.2) respecting the issuance of certificates or other documents for the purpose of section 5.5;

  • (k) prescribing anything else that by this Act is required to be prescribed; and

  • (l) generally, for carrying out the purposes and provisions of this Act.

• Marginal note:Paragraphs (1)(c.1) and (c.2)

  (1.1) Regulations made under paragraph (1)(c.1) or (c.2) may, among other things, establish preclearance or in-transit requirements for any imported fertilizer or supplement or anything imported with it.

• Marginal note:Paragraph (1)(j.1)

  (1.2) Regulations made under paragraph (1)(j.1) may, among other things, require persons who conduct any activity regulated under this Act and who become aware that a fertilizer or supplement presents a risk of harm to human, animal or plant health or the environment or does not meet the requirements of the regulations to provide written notice to that effect to the Minister or an inspector.

• Marginal note:Regulations — international agreements

  (2) Without limiting the authority conferred by subsection (1), the Governor in Council may make any regulations the Governor in Council considers necessary for the purpose of implementing, in relation to fertilizers or supplements, any of the following provisions:

  • (a) Article 20.45 of the Canada–United States–Mexico Agreement;

  • (b) paragraph 3 of Article 39 of the Agreement on Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights set out in Annex 1C to the WTO Agreement; or

  • (c) Article 18.47 of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement as incorporated by reference into the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership by Article 1 of that Agreement.

• Marginal note:Definitions

  (3) The following definitions apply in subsection (2).

  Canada–United States–Mexico Agreement

  Canada–United States–Mexico Agreement has the meaning assigned by the definition Agreement in section 2 of the Canada–United States–Mexico Agreement Implementation Act. (Accord Canada–États-Unis–Mexique)

  Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership

  Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership has the meaning assigned by the definition Agreement in section 2 of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership Implementation Act. (Accord de partenariat transpacifique global et progressiste)

  WTO Agreement

  WTO Agreement has the meaning assigned by the definition Agreement in subsection 2(1) of the World Trade Organization Agreement Implementation Act. (Accord sur l’OMC)

Incorporation by Reference

Marginal note:Incorporation by reference

• 5.1 (1) A regulation made under subsection 5(1) may incorporate by reference any document, regardless of its source, either as it exists on a particular date or as it is amended from time to time.

• Marginal note:Accessibility

  (2) The Minister must ensure that any document that is incorporated by reference in a regulation made under subsection 5(1), including any amendments to the document, is accessible.

• Marginal note:Defence

  (3) A person is not liable to be found guilty of an offence or subjected to an administrative sanction for any contravention in respect of which a document that is incorporated by reference in a regulation made under subsection 5(1) is relevant unless, at the time of the alleged contravention, the document was accessible as required by subsection (2) or it was otherwise accessible to the person.

• Marginal note:No registration or publication

  (4) For greater certainty, a document that is incorporated by reference in a regulation made under subsection 5(1) is not required to be transmitted for registration or published in the Canada Gazette by reason only that it is incorporated by reference.