English and French are the two most widely spoken languages in Canada, and both are the country’s two official languages, as per the Official Languages Act. Both have equal status in the operation of (and services provided by) federal institutions, and citizens can obtain federal government services in either official language.
Canada’s provincial and territorial governments have their own language policies. Quebec is the only province that acknowledges French as its sole official language; New Brunswick is the only officially bilingual province and recognizes English and French as official languages. The remaining provinces and territories use English as the main working language, while offering services in French and Aboriginal languages.
Product labelling laws are issued at the federal level, and labels on products sold throughout Canada must meet the bilingual requirements as stated by the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act. This means all information must be in both English and French and must also be of equal prominence on the package. Numbers are considered bilingual, and measurements must use the metric system. (These rules do not apply to shipping containers or test market products that are not offered for sale to consumers.)
There are two exceptions to this Act: medical devices and drugs, and food commodities are not included; they are instead covered instead by the Food and Drugs Act and the Safe Food for Canadians Act respectively.
Information that must appear on consumer goods’ packaging/labels include:
- Product identity declaration, in both English and French,
- Net quantity declaration, and
- Dealer’s name and principal place of business, in either English or French.
Canada’s existing packaging and labelling laws have built-in bilingual requirements, and Québec’s language laws include additional regulations that will impact foreign companies doing business in that jurisdiction. Changes cover everything from marketing and customer service to product labelling, trademarks, employment documents, and business contracts.
Translating for the Quebec market is not as simple as word-to-word English-to-French translation. In Canada, Canadian French is used, not European French, and there are significant differences (and subtle nuances) in vocabulary, punctuation, and grammar and, as per Canadian Packaging, getting it wrong “could mean the difference between your product being embraced or shunned by buyers.” Google translate and other online general translation tools offer inadequate results; a professional translator with expertise in Canadian compliance will be required.
Canadian Packaging offers additional tips for navigating Canada’s labelling requirements:
- Translate everything, including text, measurements, and icons or badges with claims such as ‘gluten-free’ – and all will need to be in Canadian French,
- Labelling must comply with regulatory requirements, and
- Label design will need to be considered – French content can be twice as long as the English equivalent, so modifications will need to be made for the extra word count.
Purolator, Lavery, and LAT all offer good advice about Canadian packaging and labelling laws. More information about consumer packaging labelling requirements (as well as requirements for food, textiles, precious metals, and pharmaceuticals) can be found on the Government of Canada’s website, as well as specifics pertaining to permits, licenses, and regulations for various businesses and industry sectors.
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