Regulatory Gap Creates Uncertainty for Certain Hard Surface Food Contact Surface Sanitizer Products 

When Canada’s Biocide Regulations came into force in 2025, one of the intended goals was to bring greater regulatory oversight to products that had previously fallen outside of a formal framework. Among these were Hard Surface Food Contact Surface Sanitizers, which historically could be marketed without regulatory approval, although manufacturers had the option of obtaining a Letter of No Objection (LONO) from Health Canada. 

While many DIN Disinfectant products have successfully transitioned into the new Biocide regulatory regime, a significant gap has emerged for a specific category of Hard Surface Food Contact Surface Sanitizers: those generated through devices at the point of use. 

One example is hypochlorous acid, a sanitizer commonly used in food processing and food service environments. Hypochlorous acid is valued for its effectiveness and favourable safety profile; however, it has a relatively short shelf life and degrades quickly after production. As a result, the most practical and effective way to use these solutions is often to generate them on-site as needed. Many suppliers therefore provide devices that produce hypochlorous acid solutions directly at food processing facilities, ensuring a fresh and effective sanitizer is always available. 

These types of sanitizer-generating devices are not new. Similar disinfectant products were previously regulated under the former Hard Surface Disinfectant framework. However, the current Biocide Regulations do not provide a pathway for these products. Instead, Health Canada’s current interpretation appears to direct this category of food surface sanitizers toward regulation under the Pest Control Products Act. 

This approach raises concerns for manufacturers and suppliers. The pesticide regulatory framework was designed for a very different class of products and comes with extensive data requirements, lengthy review timelines, and significant costs. Many companies may be unaware that products they previously considered low-risk could now be subject to a substantially more burdensome regulatory process that includes full quality, safety and efficacy data dossiers. 

There are also broader questions about implementation. If a large number of affected products are required to transition into the pesticide regulatory system, it remains unclear whether sufficient resources are available to manage the anticipated increase in submissions and reviews. 

At Dell Tech Laboratories, we believe there may be a more practical regulatory solution that maintains product safety while avoiding unnecessary regulatory burden. We are actively engaging with regulators and advocating on behalf of industry stakeholders to explore alternative pathways for these products. 

If you manufacture, distribute, or use sanitizer-generating devices and are unsure how your products may be affected, we encourage you to reach out. The more information we can gather from industry participants, the better positioned we will be to communicate the real-world impacts of this regulatory gap and advocate for a workable solution.