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Bill C-517

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2nd Session, 39th Parliament,
56-57 Elizabeth II, 2007-2008
house of commons of canada
BILL C-517
An Act to amend the Food and Drugs Act (mandatory labelling for genetically modified foods)
R.S., c. F-27
Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:
1. Section 2 of the Food and Drugs Act is amended by adding, in alphabetical order, the following:
“genetically modified”
« génétiquement modifié »
“genetically modified”, with respect to a food or one of its components, means that the genetic make-up of the food or component has been modified by a technique that combines DNA fragments of the food or component with DNA fragments from another source in a way that could not occur without the use of modern technology.
2. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 7:
Genetically Modified Food
Duties of Minister
7.1 (1) The Minister is responsible for establishing, on the basis of scientific evidence, that a food or one or more of its components is genetically modified.
Publication in the Canada Gazette
(2) As soon as the Minister declares that a food or one or more of its components is genetically modified, the Minister shall cause the name of the food to be published in the Canada Gazette.
List
(3) The Minister shall prepare a list of all foods whose names have been published in the Canada Gazette under subsection (2) and shall cause a copy to be sent at no cost to any person who requests it.
Internet
(4) The Minister shall cause an electronic version of the list to be posted on a site of the Government of Canada that is generally accessible to the public through the Internet.
Access to the Internet
(5) The Minister shall ensure that an electronic version of any list posted on the Internet under subsection (4) is accessible at no cost, without a password, and in downloadable form.
Sale prohibited
7.2 Beginning on the sixteenth day following publication of the name of a food in the Canada Gazette under subsection 7.1(2), no person shall sell the food or a food product of which the food is a component in a package, unless a label is affixed to the package that contains the following notice:
This product or one or more of its components has been genetically modified
Ce produit ou un ou plusieurs de ses composants ont été génétiquement modifiés
Sale prohibited
7.3 Beginning on the sixteenth day following publication of the name of a food in the Canada Gazette under subsection 7.1(2), no person shall sell the food or a food product of which the food is a component, unless a sign in the prescribed form has been posted near the food that contains the following notice:
Genetically modified
Génétiquement modifié
3. Subsection 30(1) of the Act is amended by adding the following after paragraph (e):
(e.1) respecting the form of the label referred to in section 7.2 and the sign referred to in section 7.3;
Published under authority of the Speaker of the House of Commons
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