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Privacy

The Government of Canada and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) are committed to providing visitors with websites that respect their privacy. This section summarizes the privacy policy and practices on AAFC websites.

All personal information collected by this institution is governed by the Privacy Act. This means that you will be informed of the purpose for which your personal information is being collected and how to exercise your right of access to that information. As there are many AAFC programs and initiatives that are accessible online, each program's terms and conditions and related online collections of your personal information will provide additional details.

Your privacy and the Internet

The nature of the Internet is such that web servers automatically collect certain information about a visit to a website, including the visitor's Internet protocol (IP) address. IP addresses are unique numbers assigned by Internet Service Providers (ISP) to all devices used to access the Internet. Web servers automatically log the IP addresses of visitors to their sites. The IP address, on its own, does not identify an individual. However, in certain circumstances, such as with the co-operation of an ISP for example, the IP address could be used to identify an individual using the site. For this reason, the Government of Canada considers the IP address to be personal information, particularly when combined with other data automatically collected when visitors request a Web page. Automatically collected data includes the page or pages visited and the date and time of the visit.

Unless otherwise noted, AAFC does not automatically gather any specific personal information from you, such as your name, telephone number or email address. We would obtain this type of information only if you supply it to us. In such cases, how your personal information is handled will be provided in a privacy statement.

Communicating with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

If you choose to send us an email or complete a contact form online, your personal information is used by AAFC in order to respond to your inquiry. Personal information that you provide to AAFC via email or online contact form is collected under the authority of the Financial Administration Act, and in accordance with the Policy on Communications and Federal Identity. We do not use your information to create individual profiles. Your personal information may be shared with another government department if your inquiry relates to that department. Information you provide may also be used for statistical, evaluation and reporting purposes. Any disclosure of your personal information is in accordance with the Privacy Act.

Emails and other electronic methods used to communicate with AAFC are not secure unless it is specifically stated on a web page. For this reason, do not send sensitive personal information, such as your Social Insurance Number or your date of birth, through non-secure electronic means.

Third-party social media

AAFC has a presence on YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. These accounts are public, and are hosted by each social media provider. If you interact with AAFC on any of these platforms, then you are deemed to have read AAFC's additional Terms of Use for Third-Party Social Media, as well as the service provider's own terms of service and privacy policies and those of any third-party applications you use to access them.

AAFC does not endorse any particular social media site or tool.

Improving your experience on Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's websites

Digital markers (including cookies)

A digital marker is a resource created by the visitors' browser in order to remember certain pieces of information for the web server to reference during the same or subsequent visit to the website. Examples of digital markers are "cookies" or HTML5 web storage. Some examples of what digital markers do are as follows:

  • they allow a website to recognize a previous visit each time the visitor accesses the site;
  • they track what information is viewed on a site which helps website administrators ensure visitors find what they are looking for.

AAFC uses sessional and persistent digital markers on some portions of its website. During your online visit, your browser exchanges data with our Web server. The digital markers used do not allow us to identify individuals.

You may adjust your browser settings to reject digital markers, including cookies, if you so choose. However, it may affect your ability to interact with our website.

Web analytics

Web analytics is the collection, analysis, measurement, and reporting of data about web traffic and visits for purposes of understanding and optimizing web usage. Information in digital markers may be used for the purpose of web analytics to remember your online interactions with our website.

AAFC uses web analytics to improve its website. When your computer requests one of our web pages, we collect the following types of information for web analytics:

  • the originating IP address
  • the date and time of the request
  • the type of browser used
  • the page(s) visited

Web analytics information is collected under the authority of the Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food Act and is used by the department to understand the user experience and optimize our website. Aggregate information about AAFC's web analytics may be provided to Government of Canada central agencies such as the Privy Council Office. AAFC uses Adobe Analytics software to monitor our website and provide usage analytics. Personal information collected in support of web analytics may be held by AAFC for up to 18 months, then all personal identifiers will be removed from the data and only anonymous information will be retained, in accordance with the Policy on Privacy Protection and authorized by the Librarian and Archivist of Canada. The information is not disclosed to an external third party service provider.

Protecting the security of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's websites

AAFC employs software programs that monitor network traffic to identify unauthorized attempts to upload or change information, or otherwise cause damage. This software receives and records the IP address of the computer that has contacted our website, the date and time of the visit, and the pages visited. We make no attempt to link these addresses with the identity of individuals visiting our site unless an attempt to damage the site has been detected.

This information is collected pursuant to the Financial Administration Act. The information may be shared with appropriate law enforcement authorities if suspected criminal activities are detected. Such information may be used for network security related statistical purposes, audit, evaluation, research, planning and reporting and is described in Personal Information Bank PSU 939 (Security Incidents).

Inquiring about Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's privacy practices

Any questions, comments, concerns or complaints you may have regarding the administration of the Privacy Act and privacy policies regarding AAFC's web presence may be directed to our Access to Information and Privacy Coordinator.

If you are not satisfied with our response to your privacy concern, you may wish to contact the Office of the Privacy Commissioner by telephone at 1-800-282-1376.

Using files located on non-Government of Canada servers

To improve the functionality of our websites certain files (such as open source libraries, images, and scripts) may be delivered automatically to your browser via a third-party server or content delivery network. The delivery of these files is intended to provide a seamless user experience by speeding response times and avoiding the need for each visitor to download these files.

Providing content in Canada's official languages

The Official Languages Act, the Official Languages (Communications with and Services to the Public) Regulations and Treasury Board policy requirements establish when AAFC uses both English and French to provide services to or communicate with members of the public. When there is no obligation to provide these in both official languages, content may be available in one official language only. Information provided by entities not subject to the Official Languages Act is in the language(s) provided. Information provided in a language other than English or French is only for the convenience of our website visitors.

Linking to non-Government of Canada websites

Links to websites not under the control of the Government of Canada are provided for the convenience of users. It is not an endorsement by AAFC. AAFC is not responsible nor does it guarantee the accuracy, currency or reliability of the content or service.

The non-Government of Canada sites to which this website links are not subject to the Privacy Act, the Official Languages Act and may not be accessible to persons with disabilities. The information offered may be available only in the language(s) used by the sites. Your use and access to these non-Government of Canada websites is governed by the service provider's own terms of service and policies, such as privacy.

Criteria for hyperlinking to and from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's websites

AAFC's websites deliver information and services to users that are relevant and applicable to its mandate and that of the Government of Canada. To this end, the following criteria will be used by the Department to determine the suitability of links to and from its websites.

This criteria applies to all of the department's websites.

General parameters governing linking

  • AAFC reserves the right to refuse to post a link, to refuse to renew a link, or to terminate an existing link without prior notice. The department may do this because the information being linked does not comply with the criteria mentioned in the section Links from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's Websites or for any other appropriate reason. Reasons may include site navigation, content problems or frequent client complaints.
  • The department does not sell advertising or the benefits associated with links or banners.
  • Links may not work, as we do not control the availability of externally linked pages.
  • The department does not display third party logos, images or icons on its website unless a collaborative arrangement exists.

Links from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's websites

If you would like to request that AAFC provide a link to an external website, please review the criteria that follow before submitting your request. Decisions to post links on this site will be subject to these criteria.

  • The content of the site reflects the objectives of AAFC and is consistent with its mandate. In some cases, the department may consider linking to organizations that are related to the overall Government of Canada mandate, as opposed to the individual mandate of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.
  • The creation of a link does not provide unfair competitive advantage through online endorsements of third party interests. Links are provided for convenience purposes and are not an endorsement or rating of the content of the sites to which they are made.
  • Please note that links created within the context of a collaborative arrangement are not considered an endorsement, nor do they provide an unfair competitive advantage.
  • The site is not considered inappropriate due to its content or its affiliations.
  • The content of the site complies with the laws of Canada, which includes such items as copyright, privacy, etc.
  • The content of the site is kept current and accurate.
  • The site must allow users to navigate back to the present site. They cannot block the user's return to this site by using embedded code or other techniques within the linked page that prevent the use of the browser "back" button.
  • The site provides contact information that includes, as a minimum, two of the following:
    • email
    • postal mail
    • phone number
    • TTY/TTD number

In addition,

  • Preference may be given to sites that make their information available in both official languages.
  • Preference may be given to sites that meet the accessibility requirements outlined in the Standard on Web Accessibility.
  • Preference may be given to sites that provide uninterrupted, free access to users.

Links to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's websites

Generally, Government of Canada institutions encourage third parties to link to their sites. Organizations wishing to link to the department's website, therefore, do not need to request permission to do so. We do, however, ask that you follow these linking practices.

  • Use only text links for linking to the department's websites.
  • Do not link and/or use the official symbols of the Government of Canada and Federal Identity Program signatures as navigational aids.
  • The official symbols of the Government of Canada and the Federal Identity Program signatures appear on non-government sites only when they are used to identify a government contribution or participation in a Collaborative Arrangement.
  • The creation of a link does not confuse the user as to the source of the information through such practices as framing.
  • The links provided respect the Ownership and Usage of Content Provided on this Site notice that governs information published on the Department's websites.

Ownership and usage of content provided on this site

Information on this website is covered by the provisions of the Copyright Act and by Canadian laws, policies, regulations and international agreements. Such provisions serve to identify the information source and, in specific instances, to prohibit reproduction of information without written permission.

Information on this website is produced and/or compiled by AAFC to provide Canadians with direct access to information about the programs and services offered by the Government of Canada. You may use and reproduce the information only as follows:

Non-commercial reproduction

Information on this website has been posted with the intent that it be readily available for personal or public non-commercial use. It may be reproduced, in part or in whole, and by any means, without charge or further permission, unless otherwise specified.

Users are required to

  • Exercise due diligence in ensuring the accuracy of the information reproduced;
  • Indicate both the complete title of the information reproduced, as well as the author organization; and
  • Indicate that the reproduction is a copy of an official work that is published by the Government of Canada and that the reproduction has not been produced in affiliation with, or with the endorsement of the Government of Canada.

Unless otherwise specified, this authorization is also applicable to all published information regardless of its format.

Commercial reproduction

Unless otherwise specified, you may not reproduce any information on this site, in whole or in part, for the purposes of commercial redistribution without prior written permission from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC). Please send your requests for permission, along with details on the AAFC content you wish to reproduce, a synopsis of your publication or service, the number of pages (if applicable) and the suggested retail price of your publication or service, to aafc.publishing-publications.aac@agr.gc.ca.

Some of the content on this site may be subject to the copyright of another party. Where information has been produced and the copyright is not held by the Government of Canada, the information is protected under the Copyright Act and international agreements. Details concerning copyright ownership are indicated on the relevant page(s). To obtain additional information concerning copyright ownership and restrictions, please contact:

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
Marketing and Publishing Services
1341 Baseline Road, Tower 7, Floor 1
Ottawa, Ontario
Canada
K1A 0C5
aafc.publishing-publications.aac@agr.gc.ca

Trademarks

The official symbols of the Government of Canada, including the Canada Wordmark, the Arms of Canada, and the flag symbol may not be reproduced, whether for commercial or non-commercial purposes, without written authorization.

Accessibility

The Government of Canada is committed to achieving a high standard of accessibility as defined in the Standard on Web Accessibility and the Standard on Optimizing Websites and Applications for Mobile Devices. In the event of difficulty using our web pages, applications or device-based mobile applications, please contact us for assistance or to obtain alternative formats such as regular print, Braille or another appropriate format.

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