CFIA feed ingredient consultations open through August 24: clearance gaps for Quillaja, yucca, and L-lysine
CFIA is consulting on three feed ingredient descriptions through August 24. If you import Quillaja wood powder, yucca extracts, or L-lysine solution, the consultation window creates a border clearance problem - ingredients under review can't clear until approved.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is consulting on three feed ingredient descriptions through August 24, 2026: Quillaja saponaria wood powder (new), amended specs for yucca-based ingredients, and L-lysine solution from fermentation (new). If you import any of these, the consultation window creates a clearance problem.
CFIA maintains a list of approved single-ingredient feeds. Ingredients not on the list can’t clear. During a consultation, the ingredient is in limbo - under review but not approved. Shipments arriving now might not release until the consultation closes and CFIA publishes the updated list.
Border clearance during the consultation window
CBSA won’t release a feed ingredient shipment until CFIA clears it. CFIA clearance is gated by the approved ingredients list. If your container holds Quillaja wood powder and it’s not yet on the list, CFIA holds it.
The hold resolves one of two ways: CFIA tells you to withdraw the shipment (export it back or destroy it), or CFIA tells you to wait until the consultation closes and the ingredient is added. Neither is fast. Withdrawal costs drayage both ways and days of coordination. Waiting until late August or later means sufferance warehouse storage fees while the product sits in bond.
We’ve seen this with other feed ingredient consultations. The period is real - CFIA wants industry input on safety and labeling, but it also means the regulatory door isn’t open yet.
If you’re already importing these ingredients
If you’ve been bringing in Quillaja wood powder or L-lysine solution without issues, check what CFIA actually approved. You might be importing under a different ingredient description already on the list, and the new consultation covers a variant: different processing, source, or concentration.
The yucca consultation is an amendment to existing descriptions. If you import yucca extract now, the amendment might tighten or loosen the specs. Read the proposed change. If your supplier’s product doesn’t match the amended description, you’ll have a compliance gap when it takes effect.
CFIA publishes consultations on their Feeds Program page with the proposed ingredient description, intended use (species, inclusion rate), and restrictions. That’s the documentation CFIA expects on your import paperwork once approved.
Planning first-time imports of these ingredients
Don’t assume the consultation means imminent approval. CFIA might receive comments that change, delay, or kill the proposal. August 24 is the comment deadline, not the approval date.
If you have a shipment on the water or a signed purchase order, talk to your broker now. We can file a compliance review with CFIA before arrival to confirm whether the ingredient clears under current rules or whether you need to wait.
If the answer is “wait,” you can delay the shipment (ask your supplier to hold it) or bring it into a sufferance warehouse and hold it in bond. In bond means no duty or GST yet, but you pay storage. The math works if CFIA approves within a few weeks. It doesn’t if the consultation stretches into September or October.
Our operations partner FENGYE LOGISTICS handles this regularly for food and feed imports waiting on CFIA. Product sits in bond until clearance, then we file the CAD and release. But sufferance storage isn’t free, and if CFIA says no, you’re paying to withdraw after weeks of fees.
HS classification considerations
Feed ingredients usually fall under HS Chapter 23 (residues and waste from food industries, prepared animal feeds). Quillaja saponaria wood powder likely lands in 2308 (vegetable materials used in animal feeding). Yucca-based ingredients similarly. L-lysine solution is less clear: could be 2309 (preparations used in animal feeding) or 2922 (amino-acids) depending on concentration and use.
The HS code sets the duty rate and flags other import restrictions (anti-dumping, CUSMA origin, etc.). If you’re switching from an existing approved ingredient to one of these, verify the HS code. The duty rate might differ.
CFIA doesn’t care about your HS code. They want the ingredient description to match the approved list. CBSA cares about the HS code, and your brokerage team needs it right on the CAD. Misclassification triggers an AMPS penalty if CBSA audits later.
Should you comment on the consultation?
CFIA is asking for input on safety, labeling, and whether the proposed descriptions are enforceable. If you import these ingredients or use them in feed manufacturing, comment. This is your window to flag problems before CFIA locks the final rule.
Most importers skip commenting, assuming the supplier or an industry association will handle it. That’s a mistake. CFIA reads the comments. If ten importers say “the proposed yucca description is too narrow, our supplier’s product won’t qualify,” CFIA might broaden it. If nobody speaks up, CFIA publishes the narrow version and your product doesn’t clear.
Commenting is simple. CFIA lists a contact email on the consultation notice, usually on the CFIA Feeds Program page. Send a plain email: “We import yucca extract from [supplier], concentration X%, for [species] at Y% inclusion. The proposed description says Z. Our product doesn’t match because [reason]. Please amend to [suggestion].”
CFIA doesn’t accept every comment, but they read them. Enough importers flagging the same issue usually gets the proposal adjusted.
Next steps
If you import Quillaja, yucca, or L-lysine for feed use:
- Read the full consultation on CFIA’s site.
- Compare your supplier’s spec to the proposed description. If there’s a mismatch, comment by August 24.
- If a shipment arrives before late August, confirm with your broker whether it clears now or needs to wait.
If you’re not sure how to read the proposed descriptions, a customs compliance review will compare the CFIA notice to your supplier’s documentation and tell you if you have a problem.
Most consultations close quietly and the ingredient gets added to the approved list. The ones that don’t can drag for months. Better to know now than when your shipment is stuck at the port.
If this consultation touches your feed ingredient supply chain, get in touch. We handle CFIA clearance requests weekly.
Source: CSCB