Licensing and Inspection

Be prepared for regular inspections of your plant and your products from a variety of inspectors.

• Plant Inspections
• Product Inspections
• Product Recalls

Plant Inspections

Each licensed cheesemaking plant receives at least one full, in-depth inspection each year that is based on provincial regulations and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s Dairy Plant Establishment Inspection Manual.

Cheesemaking plants that are federally registered are inspected by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA). Plants must receive an acceptable inspection report in order to have their licence renewed.

Other licensed cheesemaking plants are inspected by Dairy Plant Inspection Program staff from the Food Inspection Branch, Dairy Food Safety of the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA). OMAFRA also inspects federally registered cheesemaking plants that produce fluid milk as well as cheese.

In addition, CFIA inspects federally registered plants six times a year for good manufacturing processes. These inspections focus mainly on the processing activities that have the most impact on food safety, such as pasteurization. Plants that participate in CFIA’s Food Safety Enhancement Program (a HACCP-based system) are also inspected to make sure they comply with the FSEP Implementation Manual.

Since sheep’s milk does not fall under the Ontario Milk Act, plants that produce sheep’s milk cheese are not licensed or inspected by OMAFRA. Instead, they are considered food premises under the Health Protection and Promotion Act and are inspected by local public health units. They must still meet all the requirements of the Food and Drug Act.

If, during the course of any inspection, a potential food safety risk is identified, you must implement corrective measures immediately. There will be follow-up inspections to verify that corrective actions are implemented and effective.

The Ministry of the Environment and the Ministry of Labour may also inspect your plant to make sure it complies with other regulations, unrelated to food safety.

Product Inspections

The CFIA establishes yearly sampling plans. The cheese samples it collects are tested for:

• Chemical residues — to monitor compliance with maximum residue levels for agricultural chemicals, veterinary drugs and industrial pollutants
• Microbiological counts — to monitor compliance with microbiological requirements
• Composition — to monitor compliance with quality and nutrition standards and to detect unfair marketing practices
• Net quantity — to monitor the accuracy of the net quantity declaration on the product label
• Approved material — to verify packaging materials are acceptable
• Ingredients — to assess the completeness and accuracy of the list of ingredients on the product label
• Grade — to verify that cheddar cheese marked with the Canada grade mark meets the grade stated on the package

CFIA also checks labelling to make sure it is accurate and complies with mandatory label requirements and composition standards. For exported cheese, it reviews and verifies the accuracy of export documentation.

Product Recalls

If one of your products is found to be unsafe or is implicated in an outbreak of food-borne illness, regulatory agencies will ask you to withdraw or recall the product from the marketplace. If you refuse, or if there is an imminent threat to public safety, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency or municipal health units may withdraw or remove the product from sale.

Food and Consumer Products of Canada sells a Supply Chain Product Recall Manual that can help you develop a plan for recalling products that pose a health hazard.