CPMA is happy to announce the release of Canadian Nutrition Facts data, serving sizes and eligible nutrient content claims for the most commonly consumed fresh fruits and vegetables in Canada. This is a culmination of over 3 years of effort working with Health Canada. With their guidance this information was developed for use by the Industry to promote the marketing and consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables in the Canadian marketplace.
Presently, pre-packaged fresh fruit and vegetable products in Canada cannot make health or nutrient content claims about their product without the presence of a Nutrition Facts Table, which reduces consumers’ ability to compare these nutrient dense healthy foods with other products on the market. Nutrition labelling provides an opportunity for consumers to learn about the nutrient content and health benefits of the food that they choose to eat, and to compare products on the market. Previous to the release of this information, the determination of the nutrition content of produce items was left to individual companies. Industry can now use the data to provide Canadian Nutrition Facts Tables with the confidence that these were developed for industry by industry and under the direction of Health Canada.
Recently Health Canada also announced the formal process to confirm the use of the following health claim for eligible fruits and vegetables: A healthy diet rich in a variety of vegetables and fruit may help reduce the risk of heart disease. This should go through the regulatory amendment process in the coming months and CPMA will advise once the health claim can be used.
The produce industry is now being given the tools to enable us to tell our story with confidence and help consumers understand the importance of produce consumption to their health.
