CFIA Feed Import Guidance Updated, AIRS Lags Behind—What to Bring to Release

CFIA updated RG-10 and its feed importer quick reference guide, tightening documentation requirements for Part 1 Single Ingredient Feeds. The problem is that AIRS—the Automated Import Reference System CBSA officers rely on for OGD clearance—hasn’t finished updating to match. So you’ve got a mismatch: current CFIA policy asks for CFIT numbers, license numbers or registration numbers at import, but AIRS may not flag them, or may flag the wrong ones.

This is the kind of regulatory lag that costs days at release. Your broker files the CAD, CBSA releases for payment, but the OGD hold sits there because the officer’s screen says one thing and CFIA’s current guidance says another.

What CFIA wants now

Part 1 Single Ingredient Feeds are exactly what they sound like: feeds made of a single ingredient (soybean meal, corn gluten feed, dried distillers grains, etc.). They used to clear under a simpler regime. CFIA’s updated guidance now requires:

• A CFIT number (Canadian Feed Ingredients Table reference) for eligible Part 1 SIFs
• A license number if the ingredient requires CFIA licensing
• A registration number for feeds that fall under CFIA registration requirements

The actual requirement depends on the specific ingredient and its regulatory classification. Some Part 1 SIFs are eligible for streamlined treatment under CFIT; others need a full CFIA import license. The problem is that until AIRS updates finish, the system may not reliably tell the officer which bucket your shipment falls into.

CFIA’s updated guidance is posted at inspection.canada.ca, and the RG-10 document walks through the decision tree. If you’re importing feed ingredients regularly, download it. The quick reference guide is shorter but doesn’t cover edge cases.

Why AIRS lag matters for release timing

AIRS is the system that auto-flags OGD requirements on your entry. If AIRS says “CFIA approval required” and you don’t have the right reference number on the CAD, the entry holds until you produce it. If AIRS doesn’t flag it but the officer manually reviews and sees that current CFIA policy requires a CFIT number you didn’t provide, same hold.

During this transition, we’re seeing both: shipments that should have cleared without extra documentation getting flagged because AIRS hasn’t updated, and shipments that should have been flagged slipping through initial release and then getting pulled back for secondary review.

The second scenario is worse. If your shipment releases and then CFIA asks for documentation post-release, you’re looking at a potential verification audit, not just a delay. Get it right on the CAD the first time.

What to file on the CAD until AIRS catches up

Until AIRS updates finish, assume CFIA’s current guidance is the rule and file accordingly:

• If you’re importing a Part 1 SIF that’s listed in CFIT, include the CFIT number in the OGD reference field on the CAD.
• If the ingredient requires a CFIA import license, include the license number.
• If it requires CFIA registration, include the registration number.

Your customs broker should know which bucket your specific ingredient falls into, but if there’s any ambiguity, file with the reference number. It’s easier to explain why you included an extra reference than to explain why you didn’t include a required one.

The other thing: make sure your commercial invoice and any CFIA documentation (license, registration, CFIT reference) match the product description on the CAD. CFIA officers have zero patience for mismatches during a system transition. If the invoice says “soybean meal” and the CAD says “animal feed—other”, expect a hold.

Storage and handling during the transition

Feed ingredients are a mixed bag for storage. Some are shelf-stable bulk commodities; others are temperature-sensitive or have short shelf lives. If your shipment hits a CFIA hold during this transition and you’re using a Montreal sufferance warehouse, make sure the warehouse can handle the product. Soybean meal sitting in a non-climate-controlled bay in August is a different risk than a pallet of packaged dry goods.

Most CFIA holds for documentation issues resolve in 24 to 48 hours, but if the hold extends over a weekend or if there’s a back-and-forth about which CFIT category applies, you’re looking at extra dwell time. That’s when storage conditions matter.

The broader CFIA import licensing mess

This AIRS update is part of a larger CFIA move to tighten import controls on animal feed. The agency’s been under pressure since the 2020-2021 feed contamination incidents, and the regulatory response has been to add more pre-import licensing and registration requirements across the board.

The trade-off is predictable: tighter controls mean fewer post-import food safety failures, but more documentation burden up front and more border holds when importers don’t have their paperwork lined up. CFIA’s position is that the documentation should be straightforward if you’re importing a known ingredient with a CFIT listing. The reality is that “straightforward” assumes AIRS is up to date, and right now it isn’t.

Expect this transition to take a few more months. CFIA doesn’t publish timelines for AIRS updates, and CBSA doesn’t make promises about when OGD system integrations will finish. In the meantime, treat every feed ingredient shipment as if current CFIA guidance applies, not what AIRS says.

If you’re importing feed ingredients weekly and you’re not sure whether your current documentation setup matches CFIA’s updated requirements, that’s a compliance review conversation. Most importers we work with had their CFIA documentation dialed in under the old regime and haven’t updated for RG-10 yet. Better to fix it now than to discover the gap when a shipment sits at port. Get in touch.

Source: CSCB