INDUSTRY

WINE LABELLING IN CANADA

Wine labels in Canada are governed by the Food and Drug Act (1985) and the Safe Food for Canadians Act (2012).

The Acts and their related Regulations are enforced by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), which covers health standards, safety standards, food packaging, labelling and advertising. The CFIA ensures that wine makers abide by wine labelling requirements when selling Canadian wine in the domestic market.

Products must also comply with labelling, net quantity and standardized container size requirements under the Food and Drugs Act (1985), as well as the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations (2012). There are three categories of Canadian-made or Canadian-bottled wine sold in Canada:

Vintners Quality Alliance (VQA) certified
100% Canadian Wine (Product of Canada)
International blends, made from imported and domestic content

Each of these three categories of wine must be labelled in a manner that adheres to Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) regulations, ensuring consumers are aware of the origin of the wine and that the label is truthful and not misleading. This provides accurate information for consumers, including common mandatory information such as the product name, volume, alcohol content and origin.

Vintners Quality Alliance (VQA) Wines

There are two VQA systems in Canada: one in Ontario and the other in British Columbia.

Ontario’s VQA appellation system began in 1989. VQA Ontario was formalized in 1999 when the VQA Act (1999) meant production standards were proclaimed into law, through which VQA Ontario – a not-for-profit corporation – was made Ontario’s wine authority responsible for administering the VQA Act.

Ontario’s VQA system has designated 3 appellations, 2 regional appellations and 10 sub-appellations. These places – each mapped by their unique terroir and micro-climates – are supported by strict standards to create consumer knowledge and trust. This expectation is enhanced through a rigorous mandatory independent tasting panel which each VQA wine must go through before being certified as VQA.

Under VQA Ontario regulation, 100% of the grapes sourced to make the wine must be grown in Ontario. If the label includes a stated appellation, regional appellation, varietal or year, 85% of the wine must be from that specific appellation, regional appellation, single varietal or vintage. And finally, if there is a stated sub-appellation or vineyard on the bottle, 100% of the wine must be from that sub-appellation or vineyard.

The content rules for VQA Ontario labelling declarations are as follows:

Ontario (100% Ontario)
Appellations/ viticultural areas of Niagara Peninsula, Lake Erie North Shore, Prince Edward County (85% from stated area, the rest can be from anywhere in Ontario)
Regional appellations of Niagara-on-the-Lake, Niagara Escarpment (85% from stated area, the remainder can be from elsewhere in Niagara)
Sub-appellation (100%)
Vineyard designation (100%)
Estate Bottled (100% grown, made, bottled)

Ontario’s appellations are as follows:

Visit VQA Ontario for more

British Columbia’s VQA appellation system was established in 1990. The BC VQA system was enacted into law in 2013, under the Wines of Marked Quality Regulation (2013), and is enforced by the British Columbia Wine Authority.

British Columbia VQA system has 9 appellations – Okanagan Valley, Similkameen Valley, Fraser Valley, Vancouver Island, Gulf Islands, Kootenays, Lillooet, Shuswap and Thompson Valley – and 12 sub-appellations – East Kelowna Slopes, Golden Mile Bench, Golden Mile Slopes, Lake Country, Okanagan Falls, Naramata Bench, Skaha Bench, South Kelowna Slopes, Summerland Bench, Summerland Lakefront, Summerland Valleys and Cowichan Valley.

The content rules for BC VQA labelling declarations, under the Wines of Marked Quality Regulation (2013), are as follows:

British Columbia (100% British Columbia)
Appellations/ sub-appellation (95% must come from that specific appellation or sub-appellation)
Vintage/ varietal (85% must be from that vintage year/ stated varietal)
Vineyard designation (100%)

For more information, please see the BC Wine Authority website.

An example of the labelling
of a VQA wine is as follows:

An example of the labelling
of a BC VQA wine is as follows:

100% Canadian Wines/ Product of Canada

100% Canadian wines, which are not VQA certified, are quality wines made from grapes grown in Canada. These include:

Wines from a province outside of BC or Ontario, such as Nova Scotia or Quebec, where there is no provincially regulated VQA system;
Wines from BC or Ontario that do not meet the VQA standard (e.g. the wine may exhibit flavours that contrast what the VQA tasting panel expected for a specific appellation area);
Wines from a BC or Ontario winery that has chosen not to have that wine VQA certified. These wines are labelled ‘Product of Canada’.

A 100% Canadian wine must have the following information stated in a single field of vision (i.e. front or back label) on the wine bottle

International Blends from Imported and Domestic Content

Wine bottled and blended in Canada from both imported and domestic content must either: (a) list all countries of origin in the blend (e.g. Blended in Canada with wine from Country A and Country B) or (b) use the label designation “International blend from imported and domestic wines” for wine made with majoritarily imported wine or “International blend from domestic and imported wines” for wine made with primarily Canadian wine.

The label designations “International blend from imported and domestic wines” and “International blend from domestic and imported wines” were introduced in March 2018. Prior to this, these wines had the option of being labelled as “Cellared in Canada from imported and/or domestic wines.” The labelling change took place to ensure higher levels of consumer awareness through wine labelling. Its implementation follows industry and government consultation with members of the public and industry in 2016 and 2017, who felt the new labelling was clearer and more transparent.

An example of the labelling of a wine which has been blended in Canada is as follows:

We’re committed to prioritizing diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Our DE&I initiative