🇨🇦 Foods banned or restricted in Canada but legal in the US

Overview

Health Canada regulates food safety under the Food and Drugs Act, maintaining an approved list of food additives (List of Permitted Food Additives). Substances not on this list are prohibited. Canada has banned potassium bromate in flour, restricted BHA, and prohibited several synthetic hormones in livestock production that are permitted in the US.

Key differences vs. the United States

Partially hydrogenated oils (PHOs), the main dietary source of industrial trans fats, were removed from Canada's List of Permitted Food Additives by Health Canada's September 15, 2018 Notice of Modification with a two-year phase-out; the US FDA revoked GRAS status for PHOs in 2015 with a longer compliance timeline. Recombinant bovine somatotropin (rBST/rBGH) has never been approved in Canada — Health Canada refused approval in January 1999 citing animal-health concerns — while it is legal in US dairy production. Potassium bromate is not on Canada's List of Permitted Food Additives with Other Accepted Uses, so it cannot be used as a flour treatment agent, while it remains legal in US bread. Brominated vegetable oil (BVO) is no longer on the list of permitted food additives following Health Canada's 2024 update, aligning ahead of the US FDA revocation which takes full effect August 2025.