Every time you reach for a shiny Ontario apple, slice into a juicy local tomato or add a bag of home-grown potatoes to your grocery cart, you’re trusting that food is safe to eat. That trust isn’t blind — it’s backed by one of the most rigorous food safety systems in the world. 

That’s because behind every bite of fresh produce are layers of protections that keep harmful pests away from crops while safeguarding both the people who grow our food and the Canadians who bring it home to their families. 

Crop protection products, including pesticides and herbicides, play a vital role in helping farmers protect crops from insects, weeds and diseases. Without them, many of the foods we rely on simply wouldn’t make it to harvest. But using these products comes with responsibility — and that’s why there are strong measures in place to keep everyone safe. 

Layers of oversight protect our food supply 

In Canada, the use of pesticides is tightly regulated from start to finish. Before any product can be used on crops, it must go through years of scientific testing reviewed by the Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) of Health Canada. These tests are designed to make sure products meet strict health, safety and environmental standards. Only those that pass are approved for use. 

Once crops are harvested, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) monitors the food that reaches grocery store shelves. CFIA inspectors regularly sample fruits and vegetables to check that pesticide residues do not exceed Canada’s strict safety limits — and year after year, their testing confirms that Canadian-grown produce consistently meets these high standards. 

This means consumers can have confidence that the fresh Canadian produce you buy is both nutritious and safe to eat. Every product, including those better known to the public like glyphosate herbicide (found in Roundup), is monitored. Glyphosate is rarely used on fruit and vegetable crops because it can damage them — so residue from it is almost never found on the produce we eat. 

Protecting the people who grow our food 

Safety doesn’t stop with what’s on our plates. Protecting the workers who handle and work around pesticides is just as important as protecting consumers who eat the food we grow. That’s why Ontario requires everyone who purchases, handles, mixes or applies pesticides to complete training through the Ontario Pesticide Education Program (OPEP). 

This training covers everything from proper handling and application techniques to understanding the detailed safety information on product labels. Workers must pass an exam to become certified farmers or receive on-farm instruction to qualify as farmer assistants. Farmers and farmer assistants must also renew their training every five years, so they stay current with the latest safety standards. To make training accessible, it’s even offered in multiple languages including English, French, Spanish, Low German and Thai. 

Labels themselves are another key part of the safety system. Every registered pesticide comes with detailed instructions about safe use, protective gear and how long to wait before workers can re-enter fields or consumers can eat the treated crops. These labels are available in English and French and are legally binding. Employers are responsible for ensuring workers understand and follow them — and for providing personal protective equipment as required. 

A culture of safety on Canadian farms

Farm work carries risks, and pesticides are just one part of that. But through mandatory training, clear safety rules, protective gear, and ongoing education from organizations like OPEP and the Occupational Health Clinics for Ontario Workers, farmers are creating safer workplaces for everyone — including the thousands of international agricultural workers who help grow our food each year. 

There’s no such thing as risk-free, but it’s important to know there’s a strong system in place to manage those risks — one that protects both the people who work with these products and the people who eat the food grown with them.  

Thanks to rigorous regulations, constant monitoring and a shared commitment to safety, Canadians can trust that the fruits and vegetables on their tables are among the safest in the world. 

For more information, visit ofvga.org.