Will Canada Lift The Regulation on Food Packaging Sizes?

Canada's government has very specific regulations in place which state that all packaged foods must adhere to a certain size and weight. If it doesn't, the manufacturer could be subject to fines, penalties, and they could possibly even be required to forfeit their packaged food. This may only seem like a minor nuisance on the surface, but forcing every manufacturing and processing company based in Canada to package their products in a specific way costs both time and money.

You might be wondering what the purpose is for regulating the sizes of packaged foods. After all, it's not going to lower or eliminate the risk of food-borne illness, so what's the point? The main reason why this regulation was first set in place was to streamline the jobs of food inspectors. If all of the food products they had to inspect were a certain size, they would be able to perform their job faster and more efficiently. As a result, they could then focus their efforts on products that may have been contaminated with peanuts or other items commonly associated with allergies.

Of course most food manufacturers have to argue that such packaging regulations is an unnecessary burden that places their companies in jeopardy. The additional time, money and resources it takes to package their food products a certain way could be the difference between turning a profit and losing money. There are plenty of major food manufacturing companies with headquarters and branches in Canada, such as Heinz for one, and they are voicing their opinions on this regulation by meeting with lawmakers.

Essex County mayors are also backing the proposed deregulation of packaged food sizes. They claim that unless lawmakers at Parliament Hill life the regulation, several income-producing companies will take their business down into the U.S., leaving Canada with less tax revenue. Why would a company stay in Canada where they are forced to adhere to packaging regulations when they could simply close up shop and move south? This is a real issue that could be the turning point on Canada's current packaging regulation.

Do you think Canada should lift its regulation on food packaging sizes?