As with all claims, the Bureau’s guidelines provides a reminder to consider the general impression, which will include examining the visual or audio elements in addition to the actual language of the claim. In fact, pictorial representations alone may be sufficient to be considered a “Made in Canada” claim.
Application of the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards
When a complaint submitted to Ad Standards raises a Code concern involving a “Made in Canada”, “Buy Canadian”, “Proudly Canadian” or similar claim, the complaint is adjudicated by the independent Standards Council under Clause 1 (Accuracy and Clarity). Generally, these claims are considered under Clause 1(a), set out below:
Clause 1: Accuracy and Clarity
In assessing the truthfulness and accuracy of a message, advertising claim or representation under Clause 1 of the Code the concern is not with the intent of the sender or precise legality of the presentation. Rather the focus is on the message, claim or representation as received or perceived, i.e. the general impression conveyed by the advertisement.
(a) Advertisements must not contain, or directly or by implication make, inaccurate, deceptive or otherwise misleading claims, statements, illustrations or representations.
Useful advice for advertisers on how Council has interpreted and applied Clause 1(a) to these claims may be distilled from the following council decisions of upheld cases.
A consumer complained about a “Truly Canadian” claim made by a retailer that had been acquired by a US entity. Council determined that despite the Canadian origins of the company and number of high-level employees who are Canadian, the fact that the company was not owned and controlled by a “Truly Canadian” entity, created a claim that conveyed an inaccurate general impression under Clause 1(a) of the Code. In this case, the claim “Truly Canadian” used in an unqualified and unlimited way, conveyed the impression that the retailer was Canadian owned and controlled. This decision was upheld on appeal.
A consumer also took issue with “Proudly made in Canada” statements made on a manufacturer’s website in relation to its clothing. Some of the products that the manufacturer sold had labels that indicated that the products were, in fact, made in other countries. The advertiser took the position that the claim does not mean that 100% of their products are made in Canada, but that the majority of the products are made in Canada. Council’s view was that the “Proudly made in Canada” claim made on the company’s homepage was an absolute claim. It noted that the country of origin for each product was not noted elsewhere on the website. On this basis, Council held that the general impression is that all of the advertiser’s products are made in Canada. Since this was not accurate, there was a contravention of Clause 1(a) of the Code. Council suggested that a claim such as “A Proudly Canadian Company” would be acceptable under the Code.
A “Canadian” claim about a product was considered in a 2020 Advertiser Dispute decision. This adjudication under Clause 1 of the Code by an Ad Dispute Panel determined that the correct framework in which to assess the claim about the product being “Canadian” was the Competition Bureau’s guidance, referenced above, for “Product of Canada” or “Made in Canada” claims. In this instance, the defendant advertiser did not provide evidence to satisfy these criteria and so the claim about the product being “Canadian” was found to violate the Code.
What principles can be derived from these Council Decisions?
Many advertisers will likely want to promote their companies, products and services as “Made in Canada” or “Proudly Canadian”, now more than ever. In doing so, they must ensure that these advertising messages are not misleading, and that they are accurate and can be supported.
Some tips to keep in mind:
- Express or implied claims about “Product of Canada”, “Made in Canada”, or similar statements or images that imply Canadian content or origin should comply with the Competition Bureau’s guidance.
- If an advertiser sells products that are made outside of Canada as well as products that are made in Canada, they must make sure that any “Made in Canada” claim is appropriately modified or placed in a way that makes it clear that it refers to specific products only.
- Advertiser businesses that are not Canadian-owned should not make claims that that the company is “Truly/Proudly Canadian”, even if it has locations or leadership within Canada.
- While Council has not yet considered a “Buy Canadian” claim, based on these cases, care should be taken to ensure that the items being advertised in association with that claim are in fact Canadian-made.
- Don’t overstate the Canadian nature of your product, service or business. You can advertise specific elements of your product, service or business that are ‘Canadian.’ But it could be problematic under the Code if you are claiming to be Canadian more broadly or without qualification, or if the ad creates a general impression about the overall nature of your product, service or business that overreaches about how Canadian it is.
Always remember that claims are assessed in the context of the ad in which they appear, and the general impression created.
