Consumer Packaging and Labelling Regulations (C.R.C., c. 417)

Short Title

1 These Regulations may be cited as the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Regulations.

Interpretation

• 2 (1) In these Regulations,

  Act

  Act means the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act; (Loi)

  Canadian unit

  Canadian unit means a unit of measurement set out in Schedule II to the Weights and Measures Act; (unité canadienne)

  declaration of net quantity

  declaration of net quantity means the declaration of net quantity referred to in section 4 of the Act; (déclaration de quantité nette)

  metric unit

  metric unit means a unit of measurement set out in Schedule I to the Weights and Measures Act; (unité métrique)

  nominal volume

  nominal volume[Repealed, SOR/96-278, s. 1]

  ornamental container

  ornamental container means a container that, except on the bottom, does not have any promotional or advertising material thereon, other than a trademark or common name and that, because of any design appearing on its surface or because of its shape or texture, appears to be a decorative ornament and is sold as a decorative ornament in addition to being sold as the container of a product; (emballage décoratif)

  principal display surface

  principal display surface means,

  • (a) in the case of a container that has a side or surface that is displayed or visible under normal or customary conditions of sale or use, the total area of such side or surface excluding the top, if any,

  • (b) in the case of a container that has a lid that is the part of the container displayed or visible under normal or customary conditions of sale or use, the total area of the top surface of the lid,

  • (c) in the case of a container that does not have a particular side or surface that is displayed or visible under normal or customary conditions of sale or use, any 40 per cent of the total surface area of the container, excluding the top and bottom, if any, if such 40 per cent can be displayed or visible under normal or customary conditions of sale or use,

  • (d) in the case of a container that is a bag with sides of equal dimensions, the total area of one of the sides,

  • (e) in the case of a container that is a bag with sides of more than one size, the total area of one of the largest sides,

  • (f) in the case of a container that is a wrapper or confining band that is so narrow in relation to the size of the product contained that it cannot reasonably be said to have any side or surface that is displayed or visible under normal or customary conditions of sale or use, the total area of one side of a ticket or tag attached to such container, and

  • (g) despite paragraphs (a) to (f) of this definition, in the case of a container of wine in which the wine is displayed for sale to consumers, any part of the surface of the container, excluding its top and bottom, that can be seen without having to turn the container. (principale surface exposée)

  wine

  wine[Repealed, SOR/2018-108, s. 379]

• (2) For the purposes of the Act and these Regulations,

  principal display panel

  principal display panel means,

  • (a) in the case of a container that is mounted on a display card, that part of the label applied to all or part of the principal display surface of the container or to all or part of the side of the display card that is displayed or visible under normal or customary conditions of sale or use or to both such parts of the container and the display card,

  • (b) in the case of an ornamental container, that part of the label applied to all or part of the bottom of the container or to all or part of the principal display surface or to all or part of a tag that is attached to the container, and

  • (c) in the case of all other containers, that part of the label applied to all or part of the principal display surface. (espace principal)

Exemptions from All Provisions of the Act

• 3 (1) Prepackaged products that are produced or manufactured for commercial or industrial enterprises or institutions for use by such enterprises or institutions without being sold by them as prepackaged products to other consumers are exempt from all the provisions of the Act.

• (2) Prepackaged products that are produced or manufactured only for export or for sale to a duty-free store, are exempt from all the provisions of the Act.

• (3) Prepackaged products consisting of consumer textile articles that are subject to section 3 of the Textile Labelling Act are exempt from all the provisions of the Act.

• (4) Prepackaged products consisting of replacement parts for vehicles, appliances or other durable consumer goods are exempt from all the provisions of the Act unless they are intended to be displayed for sale to a consumer or are displayed for sale to a consumer.

• (5) Prepackaged products consisting of materials that are produced or manufactured for use by artists, namely,

  • (a) colours for painting, dyeing or printing,

  • (b) ceramic and enamelling colours and glazes, and

  • (c) surfaces and tools,

  are exempt from all the provisions of the Act.

Exemptions from Sections 4, 5, 6 and 10 of the Act

4 Prepackaged products that are subject to regulations respecting packaging, labelling and marking under the Feeds Act, Fertilizers Act, Seeds Act or Pest Control Products Act are exempt from sections 4, 5, 6 and 10 of the Act.

Exemptions from Section 4 and Subparagraph 10(b)(ii) of the Act

• 5 (1) A prepackaged product that

  • (a) [Repealed, SOR/2018-108, s. 381]

  • (b) is usually sold to a consumer by numerical count,

  • (c) is packaged in such a manner that the product contents are visible and identifiable, and

  • (d) has a label applied to it in accordance with sections 7 to 11 that shows the information referred to in subparagraph 10(b)(i) of the Act in the form and manner prescribed by these Regulations,

  is exempt from subparagraph 10(b)(ii) of the Act.

• (2) A prepackaged product that

  • (a) [Repealed, SOR/2018-108, s. 381]

  • (b) is usually sold to a consumer by numerical count,

  • (c) is packaged in such a manner that the product contents are visible and identifiable,

  • (d) consists of less than seven articles or consists of less than 13 articles and the actual number of those articles can be readily ascertained by an examination of the product without opening it, and

  • (e) has a label applied to it in accordance with sections 7 to 11 that shows the information referred to in subparagraph 10(b)(i) of the Act in the form and manner prescribed by these Regulations,

  is exempt from section 4 of the Act.

• (3) A prepackaged product that

  • (a) [Repealed, SOR/2018-108, s. 381]

  • (b) consists of a single article or consists of more than one article where the articles are packaged as a set,

  • (c) is usually sold to a consumer by numerical count,

  • (d) has on the principal display panel a pictorial representation which adequately indicates the identity and quantity of the product contents, and

  • (e) has a label applied to it in accordance with sections 7 to 11 that shows the information referred to in subparagraph 10(b)(i) of the Act in the form and manner prescribed by these Regulations,

  is exempt from section 4 and subparagraph 10(b)(ii) of the Act.

5.1 [Repealed, SOR/96-278, s. 2]

Bilingual Requirements and Exemptions

• 6 (1) In this section,

  local government unit

  local government unit means a city, metropolitan government area, town, village, municipality or other area of local government but does not include any local government unit situated within a bilingual district established under the Official Languages Act; (collectivité locale)

  local product

  local product means a prepackaged product that is manufactured, processed, produced or packaged in a local government unit and sold only in

  • (a) the local government unit in which it is manufactured, processed, produced or packaged,

  • (b) one or more local government units that are immediately adjacent to the one in which it is manufactured, processed, produced or packaged, or

  • (c) the local government unit in which it is manufactured, processed, produced or packaged and in one or more local government units that are immediately adjacent to the one in which it is manufactured, processed, produced or packaged; (produit local)

  mother tongue

  mother tongue means the language first learned in childhood by persons in any area of Canada and still understood by them as ascertained by the decennial census taken immediately preceding the date on which the prepackaged product referred to in subsection (3) is sold to the consumer; (langue maternelle)

  official languages

  official languages means the English language and the French language; (langues officielles)

  specialty product

  specialty product means a prepackaged product that is an imported product

  • (a) that is not widely used by the population as a whole in Canada; and

  • (b) for which there is no readily available substitute that is manufactured, processed, produced or packaged in Canada and that is generally accepted as being a comparable substitute; (produit spécial)

  test market product

  test market product means a prepackaged product that, prior to the date of the notice of intention respecting that product referred to in subsection (5), was not sold in Canada in that form and that differs substantially from any other product sold in Canada with respect to its composition, function, state or packaging form. (produit d’essai)

• (2) All information required by the Act and these Regulations to be shown on the label of a prepackaged product shall be shown in both official languages except that the identity and principal place of business of the person by or for whom the prepackaged product was manufactured, processed, produced or packaged for resale may be shown in one of the official languages.

• (3) Subject to subsections (4) to (6), a local product or test market product is exempt from subsection (2) if

  • (a) it is sold in a local government unit in which one of the official languages is the mother tongue of less than 10 per cent of the total number of persons residing in the local government unit; and

  • (b) the information required by the Act and these Regulations to be shown on the label of a prepackaged product is shown in the official language that is the mother tongue of at least 10 per cent of the total number of persons residing in the local government unit.

• (4) Where one of the official languages is the mother tongue of less than 10 per cent of the total number of persons residing in a local government unit and the other official language is the mother tongue of less than 10 per cent of the total number of persons residing in the same local government unit, subsection (3) does not apply.

• (5) Subsection (3) does not apply to a test market product unless the dealer who intends to conduct the test marketing of the product has, six weeks prior to conducting the test marketing, filed with the Minister of Consumer and Corporate Affairs a notice of intention in such form as the Minister may prescribe.

• (6) A test market product shall, for the purposes of subsection (3) and paragraph 36(3)(a), cease to be a test market product upon the expiration of 12 cumulative months after the date on which it was first offered for sale as a test market product but any test market product that was acquired for resale by a dealer, other than the dealer who filed the notice of intention referred to in subsection (5), before the expiration of those 12 cumulative months, shall continue to be a test market product for the purposes of subsection (3) and paragraph 36(3)(a) until it is sold to a consumer.

• (7) A specialty product is exempt from subsection (2) if the information required by the Act and these Regulations to be shown on the label of a prepackaged product is shown in one of the official languages.

• (8) Where there are one or more surfaces on the label of a prepackaged product that are of at least the same size and prominence as the principal display panel, the information required by the Act and these Regulations to be shown on the principal display panel may be shown in one official language if such information is shown in the other official language on one of those other surfaces.

• (9) A prepackaged product that is within one of the following classes of prepackaged products is exempt from subsection (2) if the information required by the Act and these Regulations to be shown on the label of a prepackaged product is shown in the language that is appropriate to the product:

  • (a) greeting cards;

  • (b) books;

  • (c) talking toys;

  • (d) games in which a knowledge of the language used is a basic factor essential to the use of the game.

Application of Label to Prepackaged Product

• 7 (1) Subject to subsection (2), the label of a prepackaged product shall be applied to the container in which the product is displayed for sale to the consumer.

• (2) Where the container of a prepackaged product is mounted on a display card, the label may be applied to the side of the display card that is displayed or visible under normal or customary conditions of sale or use.

8 Where the container of a prepackaged product is a wrapper or confining band referred to in paragraph (f) of the definition principal display surface in subsection 2(1), the label shall be a ticket or tag and shall be attached to the wrapper or confining band.

9 Subject to subsection 7(2) and section 10, all or part of the label of a prepackaged product shall be applied to the principal display surface of the container of that product.

10 Where the container of a prepackaged product is an ornamental container, all of the label of the prepackaged product may be applied to the bottom of the container or to a tag that is attached to the container.

11 The label of a prepackaged product shall be applied in such a manner that the prepackaged product will bear the label at the time it is sold to the consumer.

Part of Label on Which Information to Be Shown

12 The following information shall be shown on the principal display panel:

• (a) the net quantity of the prepackaged product;

• (b) the identity of the prepackaged product in terms of its common or generic name or in terms of its function; and

• (c) such other information required by the Act or these Regulations to be shown on the principal display panel.