Bill C-205 explained in plain English
An Act respecting the labelling of food products
Federal Parliament bill summary, status, timeline, sponsor, votes, and official sources.
At a glance
Official Parliament of Canada snapshot for 40th Parliament, 1st Session. MP vote breakdowns appear when the House of Commons publishes a recorded division export for that bill. Senate and House stage details include official debate/sitting links when LEGISinfo publishes them.
Our plain-language take, written for civic education.
Source: By PoliticalData.ca
Bill C-205 requires the Minister of Health to create regulations within nine months mandating that meat, poultry, and food products made with certain production methods (hormones, antibiotics, slaughterhouse waste, pesticides, or genetically modified organisms) must carry clear labels identifying these ingredients or processes.
Bill C-205, titled the Food Products Labelling Act, is a short bill that focuses on food labelling requirements. The bill gives the Minister of Health nine months from when the law comes into effect to create new regulations. These regulations would require labels on meat and poultry products that were made using hormones, antibiotics, or rendered slaughterhouse waste. The labels must clearly state which of these three things were used in production. The regulations would also require labels on any food product made using pesticides or genetically modified organisms (organisms whose genetic material has been changed using genetic engineering). Again, the label must clearly show that these production methods were used. The bill states that the Minister must make these regulations despite anything in the existing Food and Drugs Act or its current regulations, meaning this bill would override certain existing food rules if passed.
- Requires the Minister of Health to make regulations for mandatory labelling of meat and poultry products produced using hormones, antibiotics, or rendered slaughterhouse waste
- Requires the Minister of Health to make regulations for mandatory labelling of any food product produced using pesticides or genetically modified organisms
- Sets a deadline of nine months after the Act comes into force for the Minister to create these regulations
- States that these new requirements override existing Food and Drugs Act provisions and regulations
- Meat and poultry producers who use hormones, antibiotics, or rendered slaughterhouse waste in production
- Food product manufacturers who use pesticides or genetically modified organisms in production
- Any person or company that sells meat, poultry, or food products covered by the labelling requirements
- Consumers purchasing these food products
- No person shall sell meat or poultry products produced using hormones, antibiotics, or rendered slaughterhouse waste without a clear label identifying which of these was used
- No person shall sell food products produced using pesticides or genetically modified organisms without a clear label identifying that these production methods were used
- The Minister of Health is required to create the regulations within nine months
- Nine months after the Act comes into force: Minister of Health must create and put in place the regulations requiring the labelling
- The bill does not identify any financial impacts, costs to producers, taxes, or fees
- The bill text does not specify what penalties or enforcement mechanisms would apply for violations
- The bill text does not specify what penalties or enforcement mechanisms would apply if sellers fail to label products correctly
- The bill does not detail the exact format, size, or placement of the required labels
- The bill does not specify how the regulations would handle products made with a combination of these production methods
- The bill does not explain how the Minister would distinguish between products made with these methods and those made without them in enforcement
- The bill does not address imported food products or whether they would be subject to the same labelling requirements
- The bill does not state whether there are exceptions for certain products, producers, or circumstances
The bill states it applies 'Despite anything in the Food and Drugs Act or the regulations made under that Act,' meaning new labelling requirements in this bill would take priority over existing food and drug rules
Generated using AI from official bill text. Not legal advice. It is written by PoliticalData.ca for civic education, automatically checked and spot-reviewed before publishing.
Official textParliamentary Process
We don't have a plain-language summary for First reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Second reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Third reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
Bill C-205, concerning food product labelling, completed its first reading in the House of Commons on November 21, 2008, and is currently awaiting scheduling.
On November 21, 2008, Bill C-205, an Act respecting the labelling of food products, was introduced in the House of Commons for its first reading. This is the initial stage where the bill is formally presented. At this point, the bill is considered 'Outside the Order of Precedence,' meaning it has not yet been scheduled for debate or further action. The provided text also notes similar bills that were introduced in previous parliamentary sessions.
On November 21, 2008, the House of Commons commenced debate on the Speech from the Throne and saw the introduction of Bill C-205, An Act respecting the labelling of food products, during routine proceedings.
This document is the official report (Hansard) of a sitting of the House of Commons on November 21, 2008. During this sitting, Members of Parliament (MPs) formally elected the Speaker and Deputy Speakers. The House then began debate on the Speech from the Throne. Several MPs delivered speeches on various topics, including the economy, health care, cultural programs, young offenders, and international trade. Bill C-205, "An Act respecting the labelling of food products," was introduced and received first reading.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Second reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Consideration in committee yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Report stage yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Third reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
Debate and sitting links point to official parliamentary sources when LEGISinfo publishes them. Any plain-language discussion summaries should be generated from those official texts and reviewed before public display.
Vote Summary
This bill is still active. We only show vote counts after the legislature publishes a recorded division.
No published representative vote breakdown
This bill is still moving through the process. When a recorded division is published, representative positions can be listed here.
Official sources
Status, sponsor, votes, and timeline on this page are drawn from these official legislative sources and public records. Each summary above is attributed to its own source.
How this data is sourced