Food Safety Program (FSP)
$25,000
Grant
Description:
The Food Safety Program (FSP) seeks to increase adoption of new or improving existing food safety practices and systems by BC on-farm and BC post-farm businesses to enable the BC agrifood sector to meet existing and new national and international food safety regulatory requirements.
Comments on Funding:
Cost-shared funding is available for eligible activities under three categories. Each eligible participant may apply for and receive up to a total funding limit of $25,000 during the program term beginning November 28, 2023, and ending March 31, 2026.
Applications are closed. Stay tuned for future intake announcements.
Eligibility:
Applicants must:
1. Have an active nine-digit business registration number (BN) from the Canada Revenue Agency or have an active GST number and file business or farm income taxes in BC.
2. Be based and operating in BC.
3. Be a society, not for profit corporation, corporation, cooperative association, or an individual.
4. For post-farm applicants, be provincially and federally licensed, as required, to operate their businesses in BC.
5. For on-farm applicants, provide a copy of BC Assessment showing farm status*.
6. Operate an agrifood business that produces / processes / handles food, commodities, or beverages for human alimentary consumption.
7. Be following all requirements of the law and agree to remain in compliance for the term of the Sustainable CAP Initiative if the application is approved.
8. Be registered with the BC Premises Identification Program if they raise “animals” as defined in the Premises Identification Regulation made under the Animal Health Act, S.B.C. 2014, c. 16.
For Stream 1: On-Farm Applicants:
1. Farmers/growers producing crops for human consumption.
2. Producers/ranchers raising animals for human consumption.
3. Packers or co-packers that handle food for human consumption.
For Stream 2: Post-Farm include:
1. Processors, transporters, warehouses, distributors, packers, and importers that process or handle processed food and beverage for human consumption.
2. Processing facilities (beyond basic washing, grading, and packaging) located on or off a farm premise and not covered by a certified on-farm food safety program.
3. Food hubs, which are shared-use food and beverage processing facilities that offer food and agriculture businesses access to commercial processing space, equipment, expertise, and resources to support business development and growth.
Application Steps:
Applicants must:
1. Create an account and register organization:
a. Go to IAF’s Client Portal
b. Create a personal profile (name and email)
c. Provide organization information, including:
i. Name
ii. Contact details
iii. Type of organization
iv. BC ID / CRA numbers
v. Primary contact
2. Select ‘Funding Opportunities’ in the grey side menu. Select the Food Safety Program
3. For Category 1: Food Safety Assessment:
a. select a QFSP and request a quotation. Please note IAF has a list of pre-approved QFSP’s are listed here. This may be obtained prior to your initial call with the program’s Technical Advisor.
b. Share the quote with the Program’s Technical Advisor who will prepare the initial workplan.
c. Once your workplan is complete and approved, you will receive a project approval letter and will be able to complete your food safety assessment (gap-assessment).
Documentation Needed:
Applicants must submit:
1. Stream Selection (On-Farm or Post-Farm)
2. Applicant type
3. Project start & end dates
4. Alignment with program priorities
5. Description of key activities, who will oversee/undertake work, and project timeline.
6. Demonstrate how all technical, environmental, regulatory standards and/or requirements (as applicable) are met.
7. Copies of relevant documents (e.g., a letter of commitment from their Senior Management team to confirm their commitment to the improvement of their food safety system; a provincial or federal operating license, if one is required for the business; a letter from financial institution confirming the applicant’s ability to provide its share of the shared costs for, and to complete, the Eligible Activities; and documents supporting other requirements for eligibility that may be set by the Province.)
8. Performance measurement information
9. Funding request / project budget
10. Performance measurement information
11. Funding request / project budget
Other Things to Note:
About the author
Maurice
