Should Ethyl Carbamate Limits in Alcoholic Beverages Be Updated?

Official title: Proposal to transfer the maximum levels for ethyl carbamate in alcoholic beverages to the List of Contaminants and Other Adulterating Substances in Foods

Closed Regulations & Permits Agriculture & Food Health & Safety
Health Canada wants to move existing safety limits for ethyl carbamate (a naturally occurring contaminant) from an administrative list to a formal regulatory list. The actual limits won't change, but some product categories will be updated to reflect today's wine and spirits market. For example, sweet dessert wines and pre-1995 vintage wines would get their own categories with appropriate limits.

Why This Matters

If you drink wine, spirits, or sake, this affects what's allowed in your glass. Ethyl carbamate forms naturally during fermentation and can be harmful at high levels. The good news? Health Canada says current limits are safe and achievable—over 94% of products already meet them.

What Could Change

The limits themselves stay the same, but they'll become legally enforceable regulations instead of administrative guidelines. Sweet wines with over 60g/L residual sugar would be allowed 100 ppb instead of 30 ppb. Pre-1995 vintage wines get higher allowances since older production methods may have created more ethyl carbamate.

Key Issues

  • Should the ethyl carbamate limits move from an administrative list to enforceable regulations?
  • Should sweet wines (over 60g/L sugar) have a higher limit of 100 ppb instead of 30 ppb?
  • Should pre-1995 vintage wines have separate, higher limits?
  • Should 'fruit brandies and liqueurs' be renamed to 'distilled spirits from fruit'?

How to Participate

  1. Review the current ethyl carbamate risk management information and the List of Contaminants and Other Adulterating Substances in Foods to understand the proposed changes.
  2. Email your comments to food.ibr-ipr.aliments@hc-sc.gc.ca with 'ethyl carbamate (P-CON-25-01)' in the subject line.

Key Documents