Go Ad Free

Health Canada recently attempted to usher in cloned and gene-edited animals and their products without labels, public consultation, or so much as a press release. The silent policy shift was paused only after one industry leader raised the alarm: Vincent Breton, CEO of DuBreton, one of Canada’s largest organic and humane-certified pork producers.

Breton, whose family-run Quebec company supplies major retailers such as Whole Foods Market, Chipotle and IKEA, says the federal regulator’s move threatened both consumer transparency and the integrity of Canada’s organic and animal-welfare-focused farmers.

“It’s a question of trust, of transparency,” he said, explaining that DuBreton became aware of the issue after the United States approved CRISPR-edited pigs, which marked a major escalation in genetic manipulation in the food system. When DuBreton met with Health Canada this fall, the company learned that Canada was preparing to adopt a similar position, and worse, to do so quietly.

Health Canada claimed that their scientific review found they could not make any distinguishable differentiations between a real natural animal and one produced through cloning or gene editing. As a result, the agency planned to remove labelling requirements and redefine what qualifies as “natural.”

Under the proposed policy, foods derived from cloned or gene-edited animals would be permitted on shelves under the same labels—including “all-natural”—as traditionally raised animals.

“In Canada, you could call an animal natural… but it could be coming from a gene-edited animal or a cloned animal and be called natural. We think it’s wrong not to give the consumer the information,” says Breton, who noted that there was no public warning about the planned change that seemed very rushed through.

According to him, Health Canada refused to conduct public communications or broader consultations, claiming they had already consulted “around 1,200 people” and would move ahead.

That secrecy sparked alarm within DuBreton, who warns that eliminating labelling doesn’t just mislead consumers—it harms farmers who invest heavily in transparent, humane, and non-GMO production. Without mandatory labelling for gene-edited or cloned products, the responsibility to prove ethical practices shifts to the very producers already doing things right.

Smaller organic and humane-certified farms would bear significant testing and certification costs just to differentiate their products from genetically engineered ones.

“It’s going to be a nightmare for the consumer to actually have the information if it’s not labelled… And it creates a real challenge for farmers doing the real thing,” he relays.

Even though Health Canada has issued a temporary pause, Canadians must remain vigilant. While public pressure forced Health Canada to pause its policy change, Breton warns the issue is far from resolved.

“I think it’s not too late,” he says. “You can call Health Canada, you can make complaints, and ask your retailers to take a stance.”

Breton emphasizes that Canadians must demand accountability now, before gene-edited and cloned meat enters the food supply unannounced, reminding Canadians that “We cannot escape from the responsibility to make our government accountable.”

For now, cloned and gene-edited meats are not entering Canadian stores. But the temporary nature of Health Canada’s reversal leaves the door open for the policy to (quietly) re-emerge, unless consumers and retailers continue to push back.