Declarations of grain eligibility in force as of July 1 for Ontario and eastern Canada – RealAgriculture

Declarations of grain eligibility is nothing new for western Canadian producers, however, producers in eastern Canada will need to familiarize themselves with the soon-to-be implemented process.

The change comes in the wake of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), which was signed in 2018. Declaration requirements were put in place in Western Canada during the 2020-2021 crop year.

The Canadian Grain Commission says that through CUSMA, U.S.-grown grain is able to receive an official grade if moved in to Canada, and declarations are a way to assure the dependability and quality of grain at entry into the Canadian licensed grain handling system.

The grain declaration requirement was delayed a year in eastern Canada, to allow for an implementation phase.

Eastern producers need not fret though, as the process will not make wait times at terminals any more lengthy then they already are.

Producers will need to provide one declaration, once per year,  to each delivery facility they use. This will not be a “per-haul procedure,” says Remi Gosselin, head of communications for the Canadian Grain Commission.

“We did not want to add additional administrative burdens to producers, we wanted to make these declarations flexible, and only a one-time thing per year, per facility. So in that way, we do have the assurances that we’re looking for, but at the same time, we’re not imposing extra paperwork on producers,” he says.

Only certain crops and varieties will need to be declared —  corn and soybeans are exempt.  Many producers in Ontario and points easts will not be affected by the upcoming changes.

“The two major crops that producers don’t need to worry about are corn and soybeans because they are not part of the quality assurance system. And some of these crops don’t even need to register varieties at all,” says Gosselin.

Grain that will require a variety declaration of eligibility include:

• barley
• beans
• buckwheat
• canola
• faba beans
• flaxseed
• lentils
• mustard seed
• oats
• peas
• rapeseed
• rye
• triticale
• wheat

However, producers will not need to specify what they are hauling, just that they “declare that, unless otherwise specified by me, the grain to be delivered, or sold by me, or on my behalf is of a variety eligible for the kind of grain and class (if applicable) declared by me in my dealings with the recipient of this declaration.”

Declarations of eligibility will be implemented July 1, 2022, for eastern Canada and August 1, 2022, for Western Canada. For more information or for a printable version of the declaration of eligibility, click here.

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