Canadian Food Inspection Agency Intercepts Record Amounts of Food Fraud
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is raising concerns about the scale of food fraud in Canada after intercepting staggering volumes of misrepresented products in its latest annual report. The agency says it stopped the sale of more than 150,000 kilograms of “misrepresented food” between April 1, 2024 and March 31, 2025.
Adulterated honey topped the list, with the CFIA preventing the sale of 133,420 kilograms of the tainted product. Honey and maple syrup were tested for extraneous sugar, while fruit juices were also subjected to sugar checks and tested for dilution with water or cheaper juice alternatives.
Olive Oil, Cheese, and Fish Among Most Commonly Fraudulent Foods
While the overall compliance rate remained broadly comparable to previous years, certain high-value products stood out as particularly vulnerable to fraud. Expensive oils, grated hard cheese, and fish were among the most commonly counterfeit foods identified by inspectors.
Olive oil emerged as the worst performer in targeted testing. Of 85 samples tested, 33% were found to be unsatisfactory due to adulteration or mislabeling as cold-pressed or extra virgin varieties. The agency also intercepted 7,245 liters of adulterated olive oil, which was either removed from Canada, voluntarily destroyed, or relabeled before sale.
The CFIA highlighted specific cases of fish fraud, noting that it identified fish labeled as Patagonian hake — which sells for approximately $41.70 per kilogram — that were actually Antarctic hake, a lower-value species worth roughly $23.17 per kilogram. Of 70 fish samples tested, 10% were unsatisfactory, while mislabeling was even more pronounced among imports, with 16% of foreign fish samples failing to meet standards.
Honey Testing Reveals Stark Divide Between Domestic and Imports
The agency tested 886 samples for authenticity and conducted 362 label checks during the 2024-25 period, confirming basic details such as the amount of food declared on packaging.
Of 81 honey samples tested, 19% were found to be unsatisfactory. However, the data revealed a significant gap between domestic and imported products: all local honey passed the test, while 22% of foreign honey samples failed. The report also noted that 16% of 37 grated hard cheese samples did not meet standards, with inspectors checking for excessive cellulose levels.
Beyond honey and olive oil, the CFIA also intercepted 2,632 liters of counterfeit fruit juice, 1,161 kilograms of fish, 132 kilograms of misrepresented rice porridge, and 156 kilograms of oatmeal. The oatmeal case was particularly notable, as the Cape Breton Oatcake Society’s oatcakes were found to contain almonds that were not listed as an ingredient, prompting a recall in January 2025.
Meat Fraud Remains Relatively Rare but Present
While meat fraud concerns were less common, 6% of 95 meat samples tested were unsatisfactory. Complaints related to meat typically involved misrepresentation of weight or country of origin rather than the substitution of species or adulteration with other substances.
Consumer Push for Canadian-Origin Products Drives Spike in Complaints
Toward the end of the 2024-25 fiscal year, a renewed interest in purchasing Canadian goods — driven in part by the federal Liberals’ election campaign under Mark Carney — led to a sharp increase in complaints about false or misleading Canadian content claims.
According to the CFIA, complaints about origin labeling exploded from just one or two per month to 25 in February and 33 in March. The agency attributed the surge to heightened consumer scrutiny of Canadian content claims on food packaging.
Maple Syrup Passes With Flying Colors
Amid the widespread fraud findings, maple syrup stood out as a bright spot. Every sample of maple syrup tested by the CFIA passed the test, a point the agency highlighted as a testament to the integrity of that particular product category.
Significant Enforcement Actions Taken Against Fraudsters
The CFIA issued eight administrative penalties of $60,000 each during the reporting period. However, the most significant enforcement action involved MPY Trading Ltd., which was fined more than $1 million for mislabeled crabs.
The company had imported crab from the United States, relabeled it as a Canadian product, and exported it to China. MPY Trading Ltd. pleaded guilty in November 2024 and is no longer operating, according to the CFIA.
“We track, monitor, and analyze the data and results of our food misrepresentation work from year to year,” the agency stated in its report. “Our program design continues to improve as we leverage previous findings to increase the likelihood of detecting food misrepresentations, improve compliance promotion and improve enforcement.”
