Chicken Farmers of Nova Scotia Regulations
made under Section 9 of the
Natural Products Act
R.S.N.S. 1989, c. 308
N.S. Reg. 109/2020 (effective September 1, 2020)
amended to N.S. Reg. 65/2024 (effective May 4, 2024)
Effective December 1, 2024, these regulations are amended by N.S. Reg. 236/2024.
Table of Contents
Please note: this table of contents is provided for convenience of reference and does not form part of the regulations.
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Short title
Part 1 - Interpretation
Interpretation
Written notice
Part II - Base Quota
Requirement to hold base quota
Total production allotted
Associated producers
Minimum base quota
Maximum base quota
Interest in base quota
Applying for approval to transfer base quota
Commodity Board approval of application to transfer base quota
When application for transfer of base quota not approved
Applying for registration as Eligible New Farmer
New Producer Quota Fund
Production Loans
Adjusting base quota after base quota period
Impact of transfer on base quota adjustment
Impact of maximum and minimum base quota on base quota adjustment
Cancelling base quota or adjustment to base quota
Transition
Part III - Licensing, Fees and Production
Requirement to hold licence
Types of licences
Violation of Act or regulations by licence holder
Licence holder rights
Licences not transferable
Producer Licences
Producer licences
Producer licence fees
Deduction and payment of producer licence fees by processor
Effective date of producer licence
Transferring producer licence
Basis for licensed quantity of chicken
Adjustment to licensed quantity of chicken
Market adjustment in exceptional circumstances
Redistributing producer’s unused licensed quantity of chicken
Underproduction by producer
Overmarketing assessment levy
Production and marketing agreement
Maximum kilograms of live weight chicken for marketing period
Facilities requirements
Registering facilities
Examining buildings registered as facilities
Maximum barn capacity
When chicken marketed
Vendor licences
Special licences
Small Flock Production and Licences
Small flock licence
Small flock chicken labelling
Leasing of facilities for small flock production
Renewal of small flock licence
Small Flock Production Committee
Selection of small flock producers for Small Flock Production Committee
Small flock production allotment established for licensing period
Distribution of small flock production allotment
Review of small flock production allotment
Maximum number of chickens for small flock licence
Small flock licence fees
Requirement for small flock producer licensees to comply with national standards for
biosecurity and animal care
Facilities inspection for small flock licence
Underproduction of small flock producer licensee
Overmarketing assessment levy under small flock licence
Extenuating circumstances
Requirements to sell or market small flock chicken for human consumption
Production of small flock chicken by holder of producer licence
Transferring small flock licence
Part IV - Records and Reporting
Licensee required to maintain records
Requirement to give information
Forms approved by the Commodity Board
Processor reports
Small flock licence holder reports
Return recap form
Hatchery report
Vendor report
Certificate of interest in base quota
Commodity Board required to provide form or report
Failure to provide report, agreement, certificate or form
Part V - Pricing
Base price
Premium added to base price
Condemned chicken
Bruised chicken
Requirement to pay base price
Part VI - Appeals
Right and request to appeal to Council
Reconsideration of decision by Commodity Board
Request to appeal to Council
Requirements for reconsideration by Commodity Board or appeal to Council
Part VII - Final Offer Arbitration Procedure
No recommended base price
Parties to final offer arbitration hearing
Setting time and place of hearing
Approved list of arbitrators
Appointment of arbitrator
Representation at hearing
Exchange of documents
Conducting final offer arbitration hearing
Confidentiality
Evidence at hearing
Examination of parties
Decision of arbitrator
Arbitrator’s fees
Part VIII - Market Development
Request by processor for market development production
Eligibility for special licence for market development
Eligibility to receive market development regulated chicken
Total market development production permitted
Calculation of market development production utilization
Market development fee
Marketing and marketing development production and payment
Short title
1 These regulations may be cited as the Chicken Farmers of Nova Scotia Regulations.
Part 1 - Interpretation
Interpretation
2 (1) In these regulations, unless the context otherwise specifies,
“A-06” means the 8-week marketing period from April 14, 1996, to June 8, 1996,
inclusive;
“A-07” means the 8-week marketing period immediately following A-06;
“A7-0001” means the 7-week marketing period from January 21, 2018 to March
17, 2018, inclusive;
“A7-0002” means the 7-week marketing period immediately following A7-0001;
“aggregate base quota” means the aggregate of the base quota registered to a
producer and the total base quota registered to all other persons with whom the
producer is associated, determined in accordance with Section 6;
“base quota” means the number of kilograms of chicken registered by the
Commodity Board to a producer or to the New Producer Quota Fund in
accordance with these regulations, expressed as an annual figure in kilograms of
live weight and as adjusted by the Commodity Board;
“base quota period” means the 48-week period used to calculate adjustments to
base quota in accordance with Section 9G, beginning with the 48-week period
from December 24, 1995, to November 23, 1996, and from then on each
consecutive 48 weeks;
“beneficial shareholder” means a person who owns 1 or more shares issued by a
corporation, whether or not that person is listed as the registered owner of any such
share in the register of members of the corporation;
“Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Hatching Eggs, Breeders, Chicken
and Turkeys” means the Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Hatching
Eggs, Breeders, Chicken and Turkeys made by the National Farm Animal Care
Council, as amended from time to time;
“Eligible New Farmer” means a person whose name is entered in the register of
Eligible New Farmers kept by the Commodity Board under subsection 9D[(4)];
“extra-provincial amount” means the number of kilograms of chicken that the
Commodity Board determines a producer has been authorized or is otherwise
eligible to produce or market under the laws of another province in a base quota
period;
“facilities” means the building, lands, fixtures and equipment that are used for
producing chicken;
“flock” means any group of chickens housed in a producer’s facilities that are
being raised by the producer for marketing at the same or approximately the same
live weight at the same or approximately the same time;
“immediate family” of an individual means the individual’s spouse, parent, child
and grandchild and the spouse of any parent, child or grandchild of the individual;
“initial acquisition” means the quota transfer in which the Commodity Board first
registers base quota in a producer’s name;
“interest in base quota” means a legal or beneficial interest in base quota as
described in Section 9;
“licence” means a licence issued by the Commodity Board in accordance with
Section 11 to authorize a person to produce and market chicken in the regulated
area;
“licensed quantity of chicken”, in relation to a producer licence, means the total
kilograms live weight of chicken as determined under Section 21 that may be
produced under the licence;
“licensing period” means the period of time during which a licence is valid as
follows:
(i) for a producer, special, or producer-vendor licence, the marketing
period for which it was issued,
(ii) for a vendor licence, the period from the date of issue to December
31 of the calendar year in which it was issued,
(iii) for a small flock licence, the period from April 1 to November 30 in
a calendar year;
“live weight” means the weight of live chicken as measured by a processor on
delivery by a producer;
“market development chicken” means chicken produced under a special licence for
market development;
“marketing period” means any period established by the Commodity Board during
which producers, other than producers with small flock licences, are licensed to
market chicken;
“maximum barn capacity” means, in relation to a producer, the producer’s
maximum barn capacity as determined under Section 32;
“National Avian On-Farm Biosecurity Standard” means the National Avian
On-Farm Biosecurity Standard made by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, as
amended from time to time;
“New Producer” means a person who has acquired the minimum base quota while
registered as an Eligible New Farmer, and who remains a New Producer for 30
marketing periods, including the marketing period in which the initial acquisition
was made;
“New Producer Quota Fund” means a pool of base quota, expressed in kilograms
of chicken, set aside by the Commodity Board for the purpose of issuing one or
more Production Loans under Section 9F;
“overmarketing assessment levy” means the levy payable by a producer to the
Commodity Board for marketing more kilograms live weight than their licensed
quantity of chicken for an overmarketing assessment period as determined under
Section 26;
“overmarketing assessment period” means 2 consecutive marketing periods as
follows:
(i) for 8-week licences, A-06 and A-07, and every subsequent 2
consecutive 8-week marketing periods after that, and
(ii) for 7-week licences, A7-0001 and A7-0002, and every subsequent 2
consecutive 7-week marketing periods after that;
“partnership” includes a limited partnership;
“periodic base quota” means the portion of a producer’s base quota applicable to 1
marketing period, calculated using the formula PBQ = (BQ/357) × 56, in which
(i) PBQ is the producer’s periodic base quota, and
(ii) BQ is the producer’s base quota;
“person” means any of the following:
(i) a natural person,
(ii) a corporation,
(iii) a partnership,
(iv) a trust or estate;
“Plan” means the Nova Scotia Chicken Marketing Plan made under the Act;
“plant” means any permanent building or structure containing machinery or
equipment used for processing chicken;
“Price Negotiating Committee” means the committee established under Section 9
of the Plan to recommend the minimum price at which chicken must be bought or
sold as the base price;
“producer licensee” means a producer who holds a producer licence;
“producer-vendor” means a person who produces and markets, offers for sale, sells
or stores all or any parts of chicken in the regulated area;
“production and marketing agreement” means an agreement for each marketing
period entered into by a producer and a processor in accordance with Section 27;
“Production Loan” means a share of the total production loaned to a New Producer
for one or more marketing periods via special licence, in accordance with Section
9F;
“quota allocation” means the total number of kilograms of chicken allocated by the
Chicken Farmers of Canada to the Commodity Board for A-06 and for each
subsequent 8-week marketing period after that, expressed in kilograms of live
weight;
“small flock chicken” means chicken produced by a small flock producer;
“Specialty Poultry Growers Association of Nova Scotia” means the registered
society for specialty poultry growers in Nova Scotia;
“small flock producer licensee” means a producer who holds a small flock
producer licence;
“Small Flock Production Committee” means the committee established under
Section 40 to provide recommendations to the Commodity Board regarding small
flock production;
“total production” means the total kilograms live weight of chicken allotted
allocated by the Commodity Board among all producers; [sic]
“trust” includes a testamentary trust and an inter vivos trust;
“vendor” means a person who markets, offers for sale, sells or stores chicks in the
regulated area.
(2) For the purpose of these regulations, persons are associated with one another if any
of the following apply:
(a) they are members of the same immediate family;
(b) they are trustees, personal representatives or beneficiaries of the same trust
or estate;
(c) 1 of them is a donor of a power of attorney and the other is the attorney;
(d) 1 of them is a corporation and the other is an officer, director or shareholder
of the corporation;
(e) 1 of them is a partnership and the other is a partner in the partnership;
(f) 1 of them is a trust or corporation that owns shares of a corporation or has
an interest in a partnership and the other is that corporation or partnership;
(g) each of them is a corporation, partnership or trust and they are all controlled
directly or indirectly by the same person.
(3) For the purpose of these regulations, a person owns facilities if any of the
following apply:
(a) the person holds any of the following, whether or not subject to a mortgage
or other encumbrance:
(i) legal title to the facilities evidenced by a deed registered at the
relevant land registration office,
(ii) a certificate of title for the facilities issued by the Supreme Court of
Nova Scotia,
(iii) a Certified Statement of Registered and Recorded Interests for the
facilities issued by the Registrar of Deeds under the Land
Registration Act;
(b) the person is a borrower under an agreement of sale with the Nova Scotia
Farm Loan Board that applies to the facilities.
(4) Unless a different definition for the same term is set out in subsection (1),
definitions in the Plan apply to these regulations.
Written notice
3 (1) For the purpose of these regulations, unless otherwise specified, written notice
means written communication sent by
(a) registered mail;
(b) courier;
(c) letter mail;
(d) e-mail.
(2) Written notice sent by letter mail or registered mail is deemed to be received on the
5th business day after it was postmarked, or accepted, by Canada Post.
Part II - Base Quota
Requirement to hold base quota
4 (1) Except as provided in subsection (2), a person is not eligible for a producer licence,
a special licence or a producer-vendor licence unless that person has been issued
base quota.
(2) Dalhousie University is exempt from the requirement in subsection (1) for base
quota, but it must obtain a producer licence for each flock housed in its research
facilities and must pay the applicable fee.
Total production allotted
5 Subject to Section 23, the total production allotted among all licences must be equal to
the quota allocation.
Associated producers
6 (1) If 2 or more producers are associated, the Commodity Board must determine their
aggregate base quota by treating the base quota allotted to each of them as having
been allotted to all of them.
(2) If 2 or more producers become associated, the Commodity Board may reduce the
base quota of any of the associated producers so that the aggregate base quota held
by the associated producers does not exceed the maximum set out in Section 8.
(3) To determine if producers are associated, the Commodity Board may use all
information available that it considers relevant, including a certificate provided by
a producer under subsection 63(1) or (2).
Minimum base quota
7 (1) The minimum base quota that may be registered to a producer at initial acquisition
of base quota is 117,500 kg live weight.
(2) The Commodity Board may register less than the minimum base quota to a
producer if there has been an adjustment to decrease the total base quota under
subsection 9G(3).
Maximum base quota
8 (1) Subject to subsections (7) and (8), the maximum base quota that may be registered
to an individual producer is 5% of the total base quota registered by the
Commodity Board.
(2) Except as provided in subsections (3) and (5) and subject to subsections (6) to (8),
the maximum aggregate base quota that may be registered to 2 or more associated
producers is 5% of the total base quota registered by the Commodity Board.
(3) If 2 or more associated producers have a parent-child relationship, the maximum
aggregate base quota that may be registered among the parent or parents and all of
the children is 10% of the total base quota registered by the Commodity Board.
(4) A “parent-child relationship” includes a natural person, as well as any corporation,
partnership or trust that holds base quota, and in which one or more of the parents
or children are the only holders of a legal or beneficial interest.
(5) The maximum specified in subsection (2) for aggregate base quota does not apply
to a producer who, on the date this subsection comes into force, is in an association
with 1 or more other producers with an aggregate base quota greater than the
maximum specified in that subsection.
(6) A producer referred to in subsection (5) is not entitled to have additional base
quota transferred to them as long as the aggregate base quota held by the producer
and their associated producers exceeds the maximum specified in subsection (2) or
(3).
(7) If a producer has been permitted to produce or market an extra-provincial amount,
the extra-provincial amount is included in the calculation of base quota and
aggregate base quota for determining compliance with subsection (1) or (2).
(8) A producer who exceeds the maximum specified in subsection (1) or (2) for base
quota because of an extra-provincial amount is not eligible to receive a transfer of
base quota.
(9) No transfer of base quota is effective unless the Commodity Board is satisfied that
the requirements of this Section have been met.
Interest in base quota
9 (1) A person has an interest in base quota if that person is any of the following:
(a) a person that has a direct interest in base quota;
(b) a shareholder of a corporation that has an interest in base quota;
(c) a partner in a partnership that has an interest in base quota;
(d) a trustee or beneficiary of a trust that has an interest in base quota;
(e) the personal representative or a beneficiary of an estate that has an interest
in base quota.
(2) Either of the following is considered to be an interest in base quota:
(a) a direct interest in the base quota;
(b) an interest in the base quota through a series of associated persons with
direct or indirect ownership interests in one another.
Applying for approval to transfer base quota
9A (1) In this Section, “application” means an application under subsection (2) for
approval to transfer base quota.
(2) A person must apply to the Commodity Board for approval to transfer base quota
to another person.
(3) Each of the following is considered a transfer of base quota for the purposes of
subsection (2):
(a) any transfer of all or part of the base quota held by a person to another
person;
(b) any change in the shareholders or beneficial shareholders of a corporation
that has been issued base quota;
(c) any change in the partners of a partnership that has been issued base quota;
(d) any change in the income beneficiaries or capital beneficiaries of a trust that
has been issued base quota, whether the change occurred before or after the
final distribution of that trust;
(e) any change other than those listed in clauses (a) to (d) that results in a
person acquiring or disposing of an interest in base quota or that otherwise
affects a person’s interest in base quota.
(4) An application must include all of the following:
(a) the name of the applicant;
(b) the proposed transferee’s name and contact information;
(c) the amount of base quota to be transferred;
(d) a certificate as described in subsection 63(1) or (2) for each of
(i) the transferor of base quota after the transfer, if only a part of the
transferor’s base quota is being transferred, and
(ii) the transferee of base quota after the transfer;
(e) the facilities to be transferred, if any;
(f) written evidence of a binding agreement satisfactory to the Commodity
Board, including a specified transfer date;
(g) the signatures of the applicant and the proposed transferee;
(h) if the proposed transfer is without facilities, details about the facilities where
chicken will be produced;
(i) if chicken are to be produced in a leased facility, an application under
subsection 29(2) from the transferee for approval to produce chicken in a
leased facility;
(j) any information or documentation in addition to that specified in clauses (a)
to (i) that the Commodity Board considers relevant to the application.
(5) An application for approval must be in the form approved by the Commodity
Board and must be submitted to the Commodity Board at least 18 weeks before the
beginning of the marketing period on the first day of which the transfer of base
quota is intended to take place.
(6) The Commodity Board may consider any of the following additional information
in considering an application:
(a) information contained in a certificate provided by the applicant or the
proposed transferee under subsection 63(1) or (2);
(b) information provided to the Commodity Board by a broiler chicken
commodity board that is created under the laws of a province other than the
Province and has authority over quota for broiler chicken in that other
province;
(c) Commodity Board records pertaining to the applicant or the proposed
transferee;
(d) information obtained by the Commodity Board at any time as a result of an
inspection under the Plan or the Act;
(e) any information in addition to that specified in clauses (a) to (d) that it
considers relevant to the application.
(7) Nothing in these regulations affects the ability of the parties to a transfer to
establish terms and conditions in a contract of purchase and sale that are consistent
with the Act, the Plan and these regulations.
Commodity Board approval of application to transfer base quota
9B (1) If the Commodity Board is satisfied that an application under Section 9A for
approval to transfer base quota is complete, the Commodity Board may approve
the transfer.
(2) A transfer of base quota takes effect on the first day of the next marketing period
for which licences have not yet been issued by the Commodity Board.
(3) Approval of a transfer of base quota may include any condition that the
Commodity Board considers appropriate.
When application for transfer of base quota not approved
9C The Commodity Board must refuse an application under Section 9A for approval to
transfer base quota in any of the following circumstances:
(a) as a result of the proposed transfer, any producer’s base quota would fall
below the minimum base quota specified in Section 7;
(b) as a result of the proposed transfer, the base quota of any producer or the
aggregate base quota of any associated producers would exceed the
maximum base quota specified in Section 8;
(c) subsection 8(5) or subsection 8(8) applies to the proposed transferee;
(d) if a transfer of base quota without facilities is proposed, the transferee has
not complied with Sections 29 to 31;
(e) the applicant or proposed transferee owes any licence fees, levies, or other
money to the Commodity Board;
(f) the proposed transfer would violate the Act, these or any other regulations
made by the Commodity Board, or any policy, order or direction of the
Commodity Board;
(g) the proposed transfer involves quota that was transferred to a New Producer
or Eligible New Farmer within the preceding 18 marketing periods, in
accordance with subsection 9H(7).
Applying for registration as Eligible New Farmer
9D (1) A natural person who meets all of the following criteria may apply to the
Commodity Board at any time to be registered as an Eligible New Farmer:
(a) the person is at least 19 years old;
(b) the person does not have, and has never had, any interest in chicken quota
as set out in Section [subsection] 9(1) or in any type of quota under the Act,
the Dairy Industry Act, or similar legislation in other provinces of Canada;
(c) the person is a resident of the Province.
(2) A corporation, partnership or trust, in which all natural persons who would acquire
an interest, as set out in Section 9, in any base quota acquired by the corporation,
partnership or trust, meet the criteria in subsection (1), may apply to the
Commodity Board to be registered as an Eligible New Farmer.
(3) An application for registration as an Eligible New Farmer must be in a form
approved by the Commodity Board.
(4) Within 30 days of receiving the application, the Commodity Board must notify an
applicant of its decision to add the applicant’s name to the register of Eligible New
Farmers.
(5) An Eligible New Farmer will remain on the register of Eligible New Farmers until
the Eligible New Farmer no longer meets the criteria set out in subsection (1) or
the Eligible New Farmer requests to be removed.
(6) Once registered on the list of Eligible New Farmers, an Eligible New Farmer may
(a) acquire base quota, if available, in an initial acquisition that is subject to the
minimum base quota requirement in subsection 7(1) and to the Commodity
Board’s approval of a quota transfer, at which time the Eligible New Farmer
will become a New Producer;
(b) subject to clause 9F(1)(a), apply for a Production Loan when the
Commodity Board calls for applications under subsection 9E(4).
New Producer Quota Fund
9E (1) At the end of each base quota period, the Commodity Board must determine each
of the following:
(a) whether to register base quota to the New Producer Quota Fund;
(b) whether to issue a call for applications for one or more Production Loans
from the New Producer Quota Fund, in accordance with subsection (4).
(2) The total base quota registered to the New Producer Quota Fund must not exceed
117,500 kilograms.
(3) If the Commodity Board decides to register base quota to the New Producer Quota
Fund under clause (1)(a), it must provide written notice to all producer licensees,
New Producers, and Eligible New Farmers.
(4) If the Commodity Board decides to issue a call for applications for one or more
Production Loans available under clause 1(b), the Commodity Board must provide
written notice to all producer licensees, New Producers, and Eligible New Farmers.
(5) Any Production Loan under subsection (4) will be issued on special licences for a
period of 30 marketing periods, and the base quota remains registered to the New
Producer Quota Fund for the duration of the loan.
(6) Each marketing period, any share of the total production based on base quota
registered to the New Producer Quota Fund that is not being used as a Production
Loan must be redistributed by the Commodity Board on a pro rata basis among all
producer licensees, based on each producer licensee’s share of the total base quota
registered to producers by the Commodity Board, by way of special licences in
accordance with Section 35.
Production Loans
9F (1) Only the following persons are eligible to apply for a Production Loan:
(a) Eligible New Farmers who do not have any direct or associated interest in
base quota, as defined in Section 9; and
(b) New Producers who do not have any direct or associated interest in base
quota, as defined in Section 9, other than their own direct interest.
(2) Any Production Loan must
(a) be issued as a special licence based on 58,750 live kilograms of base quota;
(b) have no impact on any base quota registered to the recipient; and
(c) only be loaned after the recipient becomes a New Producer, if the recipient
is an Eligible New Farmer.
(3) Applications under subsection 9E(4) must be submitted in a form approved by the
Commodity Board and must include confirmation that the applicant has acquired,
or can acquire within 12 months of the Commodity Board’s approval of their
application, the minimum base quota specified in subsection 7(1) through a quota
transfer under Section 9A.
(4) After the Commodity Board issues a call for applications under subsection 9E(4),
the Commodity Board must appoint a panel of three independent adjudicators who
are familiar with the agricultural industry in Nova Scotia and who do not have any
interest in base quota.
(5) The independent adjudicators appointed under subsection (4) must review all
applications and recommend one or more applicants as candidates for a Production
Loan.
(6) If the number of candidates recommended by the independent adjudicators under
subsection (5) exceeds the Production Loans available, the recommended
candidates will be entered in a random draw, to be administered by the Commodity
Board, to determine one or more successful candidates.
(7) The candidate(s) recommended by the independent adjudicators under subsection
(5) or determined by random draw under subsection (6), as the case may be, must
be approved by the Commodity Board.
(8) Any Production Loan will be issued as a special licence
(a) if the successful candidate is a New Producer, in the first marketing period
after the Production Loan is granted;
(b) if the successful candidate is an Eligible New Farmer, in the first marketing
period after the Eligible New Farmer becomes a New Producer, subject to
subsection (10).
(9) Any Production Loan under subsection (8) will terminate automatically 30
marketing periods after the marketing period in which the Production Loan is first
issued.
(10) The Commodity Board may cancel a Production Loan to an Eligible New Farmer
if they fail to acquire the minimum base quota required under subsection 7(1)
within 12 months of being notified that they are the successful applicant to receive
a Production Loan.
(11) The Commodity Board may cancel the Production Loan to a New Producer for any
of the following reasons:
(a) the recipient of the Production Loan transfers any part of their base quota
while still producing licensed kilograms from the Production Loan;
(b) the recipient of the Production Loan dies and their base quota is transferred
under Section 9A to a beneficiary who does not meet the criteria for
registering as an Eligible New Farmer under subsection 9D(1);
(c) the recipient of the Production Loan fails to comply with the Act, these
regulations, or any other applicable legislation.
(12) If a New Producer dies while receiving a Production Loan, the Production Loan
may be reassigned to any beneficiary to whom the loan recipient’s base quota is
transferred, provided the transferee meets the criteria for registering as an Eligible
New Farmer under subsection 9D(1).
Adjusting base quota after base quota period
9G (1) The Commodity Board must adjust each producer’s base quota after each base
quota period to reflect increases or decreases in the quota allocation and to reflect
the total kilogram increase or decrease in the Province for the base quota period
then ended.
(2) Subject to Sections 9H and 9I, if there is an increase as described in subsection (1),
the Commodity Board must apportion base quota adjustments in the following
manner:
(a) first, if the Commodity Board has decided to register base quota to the New
Producer Quota Fund under subsection 9E(1), the Commodity Board must
allot some or all of the amount of the increase to the New Producer Quota
Fund;
(b) second, the Commodity Board must apportion any remaining amount of the
increase on a pro rata basis among all producers, based on each producer’s
share of the total base quota registered by the Commodity Board.
(3) Subject to Sections 9H and 9I, if there is a decrease as described in subsection (1),
the Commodity Board must apportion the amount of the decrease on a pro rata
basis among all producers, based on each producer’s share of the total base quota
registered by the Commodity Board.
Impact of transfer on base quota adjustment
9H (1) When base quota is transferred the increase or decrease with respect to the amount
of the transferred quota applies to the transferee on a pro rata basis from the date of
the transfer.
(2) Subject to subsection (4), a producer who transfers all of their base quota does not
retain any part of any adjustment to base quota.
(3) A producer who transfers part of their base quota is not eligible for increases to
base quota under subsection 9G(2) if the increase results in the producer having
more base quota than they had immediately after the transfer.
(4) Subsection (3) applies from the beginning of the marketing period for which the
transfer was effective until the beginning of the first marketing period of the third
full base quota period after the effective date of the transfer.
(5) Subsection (2) will not apply when a producer who is a natural person applies to
and obtains approval from the Commodity Board to transfer all of their base quota
and any adjustment to base quota to a corporation, partnership or trust in which the
natural person is a beneficial shareholder, partner or beneficiary.
(6) Subsection (3) does not apply when a producer is transferring part of their base
quota to a New Producer or Eligible New Farmer, provided the producer has not
done so in the last 18 marketing periods.
(7) A New Producer or Eligible New Farmer acquiring base quota under a transfer
where subsection (6) applies may not transfer their base quota for 18 marketing
periods.
Impact of maximum and minimum base quota on base quota adjustment
9I (1) The Commodity Board may modify the amount of an adjustment to increase base
quota apportioned to a producer under subsection 9G(2) if necessary to maintain
compliance with the maximum base quota and maximum aggregate base quota
requirements in Section 8.
(2) The Commodity Board may modify the amount of an adjustment to decrease base
quota apportioned to a producer under subsection 9G(3).
(3) Any amount of a base quota adjustment that would be apportioned to a producer
except that the producer is not eligible for an adjustment under subsection 9H(3)
must be apportioned to all remaining producers on a pro rata basis, except to those
producers to whom subsection 8(6) or subsection 8(8) applies.
Cancelling base quota or adjustment to base quota
9IA (1) The Commodity Board may cancel all or part of a producer’s base quota or the
amount of any adjustment to increase the producer’s base quota, or both, in any of
the following circumstances:
(a) the producer fails to provide the Commodity Board with any report required
under Sections 55 to 65 with respect to the production and marketing of
chicken;
(b) the producer fails to comply with a condition imposed on an approval to
transfer quota issued under Section 9B;
(c) the producer raises a flock in facilities not owned by the producer without
the prior written approval of the Commodity Board;
(d) the producer fails to allow an inspector to inspect the books and records
related to and the premises used by the producer in producing chicken;
(e) the producer violates the Act, the Plan or these regulations other than as
described in clauses (a) to (d).
(2) Any base quota or amount of an adjustment to base quota cancelled in whole or in
part under subsection (1) is transferred to the Commodity Board and may be
(a) retired; or
(b) reissued by the Commodity Board to any other person or persons, subject to
any conditions the Commodity Board considers appropriate.
(3) A producer whose base quota is transferred to the Commodity Board under this
Section is not entitled to compensation from the Commodity Board.
Transition
9J The Commodity Board, in its sole discretion, may recognize as valid any transfer of base
quota made under any agreement, will or other instrument executed before the date this
Section comes into force.
Part III - Licensing, Fees and Production
Requirement to hold licence
10 (1) Except as provided in subsection (2), a person must not produce or market chicken
unless the person holds a valid applicable licence.
(2) A person who produces 100 or fewer chickens on their premises in a calendar year
for personal consumption is not required to hold a licence.
Types of licences
11 The Commodity Board may issue licences for the production and marketing of chicken
in any of the following categories:
(a) producer licence: authorizes the holder to produce and market chicken in the
regulated area;
(b) producer-vendor licence: authorizes the holder to produce and market, offer
for sale, sell or store all or any parts of chicken in the regulated area;
(c) vendor licence: authorizes the holder to market, offer for sale, sell or store
chicks;
(d) special licence: authorizes a producer to produce and market chicken for a
specified purpose and time period to meet market requirements in
accordance with Section 35;
[(e)] small flock licence: authorizes a producer to produce and market small flock
chicken during a licensing period in accordance with Section 35.
Applying for licence
12 A person may apply to the Commodity Board for a licence by submitting a completed
application, in a form approved by the Commodity Board, for each type of licence
sought.
Violation of Act or regulations by licence holder
13 If a holder of a licence violates the Act or the regulations made under the Act, the
Commodity Board may do any of the following:
(a) refuse to issue a licence, in whole or in part, for future marketing or
licensing periods;
(b) refer the matter to the Council for a decision on suspending or revoking
their licence under Section 10 of the Act.
Licence holder rights
14 (1) The holder of a licence is not entitled to any rights other than those specifically
stated in the licence.
(2) The issuance of a licence does not confer any right to receive additional licences or
base quota.
Licences not transferable
15 A licence is not transferable, except as provided:
(a) Section 20, for a producer licence;
(b) Section 52, for a small flock licence;
(c) subsection 9F(12), for a special licence for a Production Loan.
Producer Licences
Producer licences
16 A producer licence must include all of the following information:
(a) the name of the licensee;
(b) the marketing period for which the licence is issued;
(c) the licensed quantity of chicken;
(d) the number of weeks in the licensing period.
Producer licence fees
17 (1) Except as provided in Section 18, no later than 7 days after marketing chicken, a
producer must pay to the Commodity Board a producer licence fee of $1.59 per
100 kg live weight of chicken marketed, plus any applicable taxes.
(2) The kilograms live weight of chicken marketed under subsection (1) includes any
chicken marketed under a special licence.
Deduction and payment of producer licence fees by processor
18 (1) If a producer licensee is marketing chicken through a processor’s plant, the
processor must deduct the producer fees set out in subsection 17(1) before making
any settlement with the producer.
(2) Producer licence fees collected by a processor under subsection (1) must be paid to
the Commodity Board on behalf of the producer no later than 15 days after the end
of the month in which the fee was collected.
(3) If a processor fails to pay the producer fees in accordance with subsection (2), the
producer must immediately pay the fees to the Commodity Board.
Effective date of producer licence
19 (1) Subject to subsection (2), a producer licence is effective on the date that the
Commodity Board receives the production and marketing agreement.
(2) A production and marketing agreement must be completed and submitted in
accordance with Section 27 by the filing date specified in the production and
marketing agreement.
(3) Despite a producer licence not being in effect, if a person markets chicken after
missing the filing date for the production and marketing agreement, the person
must still pay all of the following:
(a) the producer licence fee set out in Section 17;
(b) any applicable overmarketing assessment levy calculated under Section 26,
based on the total kilograms live weight of chicken actually marketed by the
person and the licensed quantity of chicken.
Transferring producer licence
20 (1) A producer licence may be transferred at the end of an overmarketing assessment
period if all of the following criteria are met:
(a) the amount to be transferred does not exceed 20% of the producer’s licensed
quantity of chicken for the 2nd marketing period of the overmarketing
assessment period;
(b) if more than 1 licence is involved, the licences are issued for the same
marketing period.
(2) An application for approval of a transfer under subsection (1) must be submitted to
the Commodity Board in a form approved by the Commodity Board and within the
time limit set by the Commodity Board, together with a licence transfer fee of $50.
Basis for licensed quantity of chicken
21 Subject to Sections 16 and 32, and any adjustment under Section 22 or 23, the licensed
quantity of chicken for a producer licence is based on the length of the marketing period
for which the licence is issued and the lesser of the following:
(a) the producer’s maximum barn capacity;
(b) the producer’s periodic base quota as adjusted by
(i) that producer’s share of any increase or decrease from the quota
allocation for the marketing period, with any increase or decrease
being subject to Sections 9G, 9H, and 9I, and
(ii) any market adjustment for exceptional circumstances granted under
Section 23 for the marketing period.
Adjustment to licensed quantity of chicken
22 If the Commodity Board adjusts the total production, including a market adjustment
under Section 23, the licensed quantity of chicken for a producer licence must be
adjusted based on the producer’s share of the total production.
Market adjustment in exceptional circumstances
23 (1) In exceptional circumstances, the Council may grant a market adjustment to the
quota allocation for a marketing period after licences have been issued by the
Commodity Board for the marketing period, such that the total licences adjusted
may be less than the quota allocation.
(2) For the purposes of this Section, exceptional circumstances means conditions that
are unusual, unforeseen, and out of the ordinary course of events that reduce the
market demand for chicken produced in the regulated area.
(3) The Commodity Board may apply to Council for a market adjustment by making a
written request that includes all of the following:
(a) the proposed market adjustment to the quota allocation;
(b) the proposed marketing period for the proposed market adjustment,
including the beginning and end date of the marketing period;
(c) details of the exceptional circumstances upon which the request is based.
Redistributing producer’s unused licensed quantity of chicken
24 (1) If the licensed quantity of chicken for a producer licence is limited by the
producer’s maximum barn capacity, the difference between the licensed quantity of
chicken and the producer’s maximum barn capacity must be redistributed to
eligible producers by special licence based on the eligible producer’s share of the
total base quota registered by the Commodity Board.
(2) A producer who has a cumulative total of more than 100 000 kg live weight of
chicken redistributed under subsection (1) during a base quota period must acquire
additional facilities no later than the end of the next six 8-week marketing periods.
(3) A producer who does not comply with subsection (2) is not eligible for any
adjustment under Section 22 until additional facilities are acquired.
Underproduction by producer
25 (1) A producer licensee who markets less than 96% of the total licensed quantity of
chicken among all licences held by that producer is considered to be under
producing during the applicable time period:
(a) for a producer with an 8-week licence, a base quota period;
(b) for a producer with a 7-week licence, a period covering
(i) eight 7-week marketing periods beginning with A7-0001, or
(ii) any 8 consecutive 7-week marketing periods after the period referred
to in subclause (i).
(2) A producer who is under producing, as described in subsection (1), must appear
before the Commodity Board to explain why less chicken was marketed than
licensed for.
(3) If the Commodity Board is not satisfied with the explanation given by the producer
under subsection (2), the Commodity Board may do either of the following:
(a) refuse to issue a licence, in whole or in part, for future marketing or
licensing periods;
(b) refer the matter to the Council for a decision on suspending or revoking
their licence under Section 10 of the Act.
Overmarketing assessment levy
26 (1) Except as provided in subsection (4), if a producer markets more kilograms live
weight of chicken during an overmarketing assessment period than their total
licensed quantity of chicken for the period, the producer must pay the following
overmarketing assessment levy to the Commodity Board:
(a) $0.44 for every kilogram live weight of chicken marketed that is over 102%
and up to and including 104% of their total licensed quantity of chicken for
the period;
(b) $0.88 for every kilogram live weight of chicken marketed that is over 104%
of their total licensed quantity of chicken for the period.
(2) The Commodity Board must send written notice of the amount of any
overmarketing assessment levy due under subsection (1) to the producer.
(3) A person required to pay an overmarketing assessment levy under subsection (1)
must send the payment to the Commodity Board no later than 30 days after the
date that the written notice under subsection (2) was received.
(4) A producer is not required to pay all or part of an overmarketing assessment levy if
the Commodity Board determines that there are extenuating circumstances for the
excess marketed.
Production and marketing agreement
27 (1) Before each marketing period, any producer intending to produce chicken under a
producer licence during the marketing period and a processor for the chicken must
enter into a production and marketing agreement for the marketing period.
(2) A production and marketing agreement must be in the form approved by the
Commodity Board and must specify all of the following:
(a) the number of chickens to be produced by the producer;
(b) the target average weight for each chicken at marketing;
(c) the scheduled processing week for the chickens;
(d) the marketing period covered by the agreement.
Maximum kilograms of live weight chicken for marketing period
28 (1) The kilograms of live weight chicken that may be produced and marketed under a
production and marketing agreement during a marketing period are determined by
the following formula:
LC > (NC - EM) × TW
in which
LC = licensed quantity of chicken for the producer licence plus any additional
chicken produced under a special licence for the marketing period
NC = the number of chickens to be produced by the producer during the
marketing period
EM = the expected mortality, expressed in number of chickens
TW = the target average weight at marketing.
(2) A producer and processor must not enter into a production and marketing
agreement for greater than the maximum kilograms permitted by subsection (1).
Facilities requirements
29 (1) Except as provided under this Section, all chicken produced by a producer
licensee, including chicken produced under a special licence, must be produced in
facilities owned by the producer and registered with the Commodity Board under
Section 30.
(2) To produce chicken in facilities owned by another person, a producer must submit
an application to the Commodity Board, in a form approved by the Commodity
Board, for approval to produce chicken in leased facilities.
(3) The Commodity Board may approve an application to produce chicken in leased
facilities submitted under subsection (2) if all of the following requirements are
met:
(a) the applicant and the owner have signed a written agreement, in a form
approved by the Commodity Board, that permits the applicant to produce
chicken in the leased facilities for the marketing period of the applicant’s
producer licence or special licence;
(b) there is a clearly segregated and definable space allocated to the applicant in
the leased facilities that permits chick placement and marketings to be
accurately reported;
(c) the applicant has agreed to do the following to confirm that the requirement
in clause (b) is being met:
(i) provide photographic evidence to the Commodity Board, or
(ii) allow a designated representative of the Commodity Board to inspect
the leased facilities;
(d) the lease agreement for the leased facilities is for
(i) at least 1 full marketing period, and
(ii) no more than 12 marketing periods;
(e) the leased facilities are registered with the Commodity Board under Section
30.
Registering facilities
30 (1) The owner of any facility used by a producer licensee in the production of chicken
in the regulated area must register their facilities with the Commodity Board.
(2) A small flock producer licensee is not required to register their facilities under this
Section.
(3) All of the following information must be provided to the Commodity Board to
register facilities:
(a) name and address of each owner of the facilities;
(b) the civic address of the facilities;
(c) GPS coordinates for the facilities;
(d) interior measurements of all buildings that are part of the facilities;
(e) the usable production floor space of each building, expressed in square
metres.
Examining buildings registered as facilities
31 (1) After giving reasonable notice, the Commodity Board may examine any buildings
in which chicken will be produced for the purpose of collecting the information
required for registering them as facilities under Section 30.
(2) A producer must allow a representative of the Commodity Board to enter the
producer’s owned or leased facilities for any of the following purposes:
(a) to conduct an examination under subsection (1);
(b) for leased facilities, to ensure that there continues to be a clearly segregated
and definable space as required by clause 29(3)(b).
Maximum barn capacity
32 (1) The Commodity Board must determine a producer licensee’s maximum barn
capacity under a producer or special licence using the following formula:
MBC = 31 kg × RS
in which
MBC = maximum barn capacity
RS = registered space in square metres-registered under clause 30(3)(e), whether
owned or leased,
as recorded with the Commodity Board at the time of issuing the licence.
(2) Despite Section 21 and subject to the maximum in subsection (3), a producer may
market more kilograms live weight of chicken in a marketing period than their
maximum barn capacity if the producer and the processor specify their agreement
to exceed the maximum barn capacity in the production and marketing agreement
filed with the Commodity Board for that marketing period.
(3) A producer who markets more than 38 kg live weight of chicken per square metre
of registered space in a marketing period exceeds housing density requirements
under the Animal Care Program as defined in the Animal Care Program and
On-Farm Food Safety Assurance Program Regulations made under the Act and is
subject to the consequences of failure to meet program requirements under
subsection 6(2) of those regulations.
When chicken marketed
33 (1) A person is deemed to have marketed a chicken when any of the following occurs:
(a) for a producer who is also a processor, when the live chicken is removed
from the producer’s facilities for the purposes of processing or marketing;
(b) in all other circumstances other than as described in clause (a), when the
chicken is delivered to the plant of the processor who is paying the producer
for the chicken.
(2) Despite clause (1)(b), if chicken is delivered to a plant and not subsequently resold
in any form for human consumption because it is condemned by inspectors acting
under the Health of Animals Act (Canada) or the Meat Inspection Act as unsuitable
for resale,
(a) the condemned chicken is not considered to be marketed; and
(b) a producer licence fee under Section 17 is not required to be paid to the
Commodity Board for the condemned chicken.
Vendor licences
34 (1) The Commodity Board may issue a vendor licence at any time.
(2) A vendor licence expires on December 31 of the calendar year in which it is
issued.
(3) Each vendor of chicks intended to be used for meat production in the regulated
area must apply for a vendor licence and be registered as a vendor by the
Commodity Board.
(4) A licensed vendor must pay to the Commodity Board a licence fee of $0.10 for
each chick sold to any person in the regulated area who does not hold a licence
issued by the Commodity Board.
Special licences
35 The Commodity Board may issue a special licence to a producer licensee for any
marketing period for any of the following:
(a) production requested by a processor for market development fulfillment
under Section 88;
(b) redistribution of any excess kilograms live weight of chicken determined
under subsection 43(2);
(c) allotment of any portion of the quota allocation established for small flock
production under Section 41 that is not issued through a small flock licence;
(d) allotment of a Production Loan for a period not exceeding 30 marketing
periods;
(e) redistribution of production associated with any base quota registered to the
New Producer Quota Fund that is not being produced through a Production
Loan under subsection 9E(6);
(f) any other circumstance that requires licensing of kilograms live weight of
chicken from the quota allocation not otherwise licensed.
Small Flock Production and Licences
Small flock licence
36 (1) A small flock licence must include all of the following information:
(a) the producer’s name;
(b) the licensing period;
(c) the number of chickens authorized to be produced under the licence;
(d) [repealed]
(e) the address of the production facility authorized by the Commodity Board to
produce the specialty chicken.
(2) The Commodity Board must determine the number of chickens authorized to be
produced under a small flock licence.
(3) In determining the number of chickens under subsection (2), the Commodity Board
must take all of the following into consideration:
(a) the amount requested in the licence application under Section 12;
(b) the maximum kilograms live weight of chicken available for allotment by
small flock licence under Section 41;
(c) the maximum number of chickens that may be authorized to be produced
under a small flock licence under Section 44.
Small flock chicken labelling
37 (1) Small flock chicken must be clearly identified using a “Licensed by Chicken
Farmers of Nova Scotia” chicken label to indicate that the chicken is chicken
produced under the authority of the Commodity Board.
(2) A small flock producer licensee may apply to the Commodity Board for approval
of a licence holder-generated chicken identification label by submitting the
proposed identification label with their application.
Leasing of facilities for small flock production
38 (1) A small flock producer licensee may only produce chicken in facilities owned by
the small flock producer licensee except as authorized under this Section.
(2) A small flock producer licensee may apply to produce small flock chicken in
facilities leased by the small flock licence holder.
(3) An application to the Commodity Board to produce small flock chicken in a leased
facility must include all of the following:
(a) a copy of the written permission from the owner of the facilities for the
small flock producer licensee to produce small flock chicken in the
facilities;
(b) written confirmation that the small flock producer licensee currently lives on
the land in question, or has a plan satisfactory to the Commodity Board for
attending to the chickens;
(c) written confirmation that only one licensed producer will be using the
facilities.
Renewal of small flock licence
39 (1) A small flock producer licensee who is in compliance with these regulations may
make a request to the Commodity Board to renew their small flock licence, instead
of re-applying under Section 12.
(2) The Commodity Board must renew a small flock licence if the conditions in
subsection (1) are met.
(3) A request to renew a small flock licence under subsection (1) must be made in a
form approved by the Commodity Board.
Small Flock Production Committee
40 The Commodity Board must appoint a Small Flock Production Committee annually
made up of all of the following:
(a) 2 members appointed by the Commodity Board;
(b) 2 small flock producer licensees selected through an application process
open to all registered small flock licensees.
Selection of small flock producers for Small Flock Production Committee
40A (1) Each year, the Commodity Board must issue a call for applications for small flock
producers to sit on the Small Flock Production Committee.
(2) Only the following persons are eligible to sit on the Small Flock Production
Committee:
(a) a small flock producer licencee [licensee] who has been issued a small flock
licence for the current calendar year; or
(b) a small flock producer licencee [licensee] who is eligible to renew their
small flock licence for the current calendar year.
(3) Applications under subsection (1) must be submitted in a form approved by the
Commodity Board and must include all of the following:
(a) name of applicant;
(b) name and address of small flock producer licencee [licensee] represented by
the applicant;
(c) statement of applicant qualifications.
(4) After the Commodity Board issues a call for applications under subsection (1), the
Commodity Board must appoint a panel of three independent adjudicators who are
familiar with the agricultural industry in Nova Scotia and who do not have any
interest in base quota.
(5) The independent adjudicators appointed under subsection (4) must review all
applications and recommend two applicants as candidates for the Small Flock
Production Committee.
(6) The candidate(s) recommended by the independent adjudicators under subsection
(5) must be appointed to the Small Flock Production Committee by the
Commodity Board.
Small flock production allotment established for licensing period
41 (1) The Small Flock Production Committee must recommend to the Commodity
Board the number of kilograms live weight of chicken to be allotted for small flock
production in each licensing period.
(2) After considering the recommendations received under subsection (1), the
Commodity Board must establish the number of kilograms live weight of chicken
to be allotted for small flock production in each licensing period.
Distribution of small flock production allotment
42 (1) The number of kilograms live weight of chicken to be allotted for small flock
production in a licensing period established by the Commodity Board under
subsection 41(2) must be fully distributed to applicants for small flock licences as
follows:
(a) first, to small flock producer licensees who held a small flock licence in the
preceding licensing period and whose renewal requests were received by the
Commodity Board on or before January 15, on a pro rata basis based on the
licensee’s share of the total renewal requests received by January 15, up to
an amount equal to the licensee’s licensed production in the preceding
licensing period;
(b) second, to small flock producer licensees who have received a small flock
production allotment under clause (a) and who have requested an increase,
on a pro rata basis, based on the licensee’s share of the total increases
requested;
(c) third, to small flock producer licensees who held a small flock licence in the
preceding licensing period, who applied after January 15 but on or before
February 15, on a first-come, first-served basis;
(d) fourth, to first-time small flock licence applicants who have applied to the
Commodity Board on or before February 15, on a first-come, first-served
basis;
(e) fifth, to small flock producer licensees who held a small flock licence in the
preceding licensing period, and first-time applicants who have applied to the
Commodity Board after February 15 and on or before June 1, on a
first-come, first-served basis.
(2) The Commodity Board will only consider applications to increase, decrease or
cancel small flock licences approved for the current licensing period between April
1 and July 1.
Review of small flock production allotment
43 (1) After June 1 of each year, the Commodity Board must review the number of
kilograms live weight of chicken authorized to be produced under small flock
licences for the current licensing period.
(2) If the review under subsection (1) determines that the kilograms live weight of
chicken licensed for the current licensing period is less than the small flock
production allotment established under Section 37, the Commodity Board may
make adjustments before producer licences are issued for the last marketing period
during which small flock production will take place in the licensing period in the
following manner until the excess small flock production allotment is completely
allocated:
(a) first, any producers with small flock licences who have applied for, and are
eligible for, an increase of more than 1000 chickens under their licence, but
who have not yet received that increase, must be offered the opportunity to
increase their licence by a maximum of 1000 chickens;
(b) second, if any chickens remain unassigned to a small flock producer licence,
producers with small flock licences other than those under clause (a) must
be offered an opportunity to increase their licence by a maximum of 1000
chickens, except for the following producers:
(i) a producer whose production is restricted under Section 47 as a result
of underproduction,
(ii) a producer who is already licensed to produce the maximum number
of chickens that may be produced under a small flock licence under
subsection 44(2);
(c) third, despite subsection 44(2), producers with small flock licences who are
already licensed to produce the maximum number of chickens that may be
produced under a small flock licence under subsection 44(2) must be
offered an opportunity to request up to an additional 500 chickens;
(d) fourth, any remaining allotment must be allocated by special licence to
eligible registered quota holders.
Maximum number of chickens for small flock licence
44 (1) After consulting with the Small Flock Production Committee, the Commodity
Board must establish the maximum number of chickens that may be produced
under a small flock licence.
(2) In accordance with subsection (1), the maximum number of chickens established
by the Board that may be produced under a small flock licence in a licensing
period is 11 000 chickens.
(3) Despite subsections (1) and (2), for a first-time applicant for a small flock licence,
the maximum number of chickens in subsection 44(2) that may be produced under
the licence in the licensing period is 1000 chickens.
(3A) An applicant who held a specialty licence expiring on December 31, 2023, is not a
first time applicant for the purposes of this Section.
(4) The maximum increase to a small flock licence from one licensing period to the
next is 1000 chickens.
Small flock licence fees
45 Before a small flock licence is issued by the Commodity Board, the applicant must pay
all of the following fees to the Commodity Board:
(a) a licensing fee of $0.09 per chicken applied for, plus any applicable taxes;
(b) a non-refundable licence application fee of $25;
(c) a fee covering the cost of any small flock labels issued by the Commodity
Board.
Requirement for small flock producer licensees to comply with national standards for
biosecurity and animal care
45A A small flock producer licensee must comply with the most current published version of
the Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Hatching Eggs, Breeders, Chicken and
Turkey and the National Avian On-Farm Biosecurity Standard.
Facilities inspection for small flock licence
46 (1) The Commodity Board may visit, examine, measure and photograph a producer’s
facilities at any time to ensure that they comply with the Code of Practice for the
Care and Handling of Hatching Eggs, Breeders, Chickens and Turkeys and the
National Avian On-Farm Biosecurity Standard.
(2) The Commodity Board must conduct an inspection of the facilities of a first-time
applicant for a small flock licence before July 1.
Underproduction of small flock producer licensee
47 If a small flock producer licensee markets less than 92% of the chicken that they are
authorized to produce under their small flock licence during a licensing period, then they
are eligible for only their actual amount produced plus 10% as the maximum amount
that may be produced under a licence in the following licensing period.
Overmarketing assessment levy under small flock licence
48 (1) A small flock producer licensee who markets more chicken for a licensing period
than is authorized by their small flock licence must pay the following
overmarketing assessment levy to the Commodity Board:
(a) $1.40 for every chicken marketed that is over 102% and up to and including
104% of the total number of chickens authorized to be produced under the
licence; and
(b) $2.80 for every chicken marketed that is over 104% of the total number of
chickens authorized to be produced under the licence.
(2) The Commodity Board must send written notice of the amount of any
overmarketing assessment levy due under subsection (1) to the small flock
producer licensee.
(3) A person required to pay an overmarketing assessment levy under subsection (1)
must send the payment to the Commodity Board no later than 30 days after the
date that the written notice under subsection (2) was received.
Extenuating circumstances
49 (1) A small flock producer licensee’s eligibility for the number of chickens to be
produced under a small flock licence is not reduced under Section 47 if the
Commodity Board determines that there are extenuating circumstances for the
underproduction.
(2) A small flock producer licensee is not required to pay all or part of an
overmarketing assessment levy under Section 48 if the Commodity Board
determines that there are extenuating circumstances for the excess marketed.
(3) A small flock producer licensee claiming that extenuating circumstances led to the
overproduction or underproduction of chicken during a licensing period must
provide a detailed explanation to the Commodity Board outlining the
circumstances that led to the overproduction or underproduction.
(4) The detailed explanation under subsection (3) must be received by the Commodity
Board no later than 14 days after the producer receives the written notice
specifying the utilization calculation for that licensing period.
Requirements to sell or market small flock chicken for human consumption
50 A person must not sell or market small flock chicken for human consumption unless the
chicken meets all of the following:
(a) the chicken is produced under an annual licence issued by the Commodity
Board for no more than the maximum as set out in subsection 44(2);
(b) the chicken is processed in a provincially-inspected processing plant
between April 1 and November 30; and
(c) the chicken is grown and marketed directly in Nova Scotia to retail or the
consumer by the licensee.
Production of small flock chicken by holder of producer licence
51 (1) Except as provided in subsection (2), a person is not eligible to hold a producer
licence and a small flock licence at the same time.
(2) A producer may produce small flock chicken under their producer licence if they
meet all of the following conditions:
(a) they produce all or a portion of their licensed quantity of chicken as small
flock chicken;
(b) they report the kilograms live weight of chicken marketed to the
Commodity Board in the marketing period for which they were licensed;
(c) they pay the fee as stipulated in clause 45(a) for all chicken marketed;
(d) they comply with all requirements for chicken marketed as small flock
chicken, including the labelling requirements in Section 37.
Transferring small flock licence
52 (1) Subject to subsection (2), the Commodity Board may approve a transfer of a small
flock licence if the transfer meets either of the following criteria:
(a) it is part of a sale of a complete farm business;
(b) it is done for the purposes of succession planning.
(2) The Commodity Board may approve a transfer of a small flock licence under
subsection (1) only if the small flock licence proposed to be transferred was issued
in the farm business name.
(3) A small flock licence transferred under subsection (1) must continue to be
produced in the original production facility location for a period of 12 months after
the transfer.
(4) If a small flock licence is transferred in accordance with this Section, the transferee
is not considered a first-time applicant.
53 Chicken processed in the regulated area must be processed by
(a) a federally-inspected processor;
(b) a provincially-inspected processor.
54 A person licensed by the Commodity Board may only purchase chicks from
(a) a federally-inspected hatchery;
(b) a licensed vendor.
Part IV - Records and Reporting
Licensee required to maintain records
55 A licence holder must maintain complete and accurate records relating to their
production, marketing, processing and hatching of chicken.
Requirement to give information
56 (1) If requested in writing by the Commodity Board, a licence holder must provide any
information relating to their production, marketing, processing, or hatching of
chicken to the following:
(a) the Commodity Board;
(b) any agent of the Commodity Board authorized for that purpose.
(2) The information provided under subsection (1) must be in the appropriate forms as
referred to in this Part.
Forms approved by the Commodity Board
57 Any report, form or certificate required to be provided to the Commodity Board under
this Part must be in a form approved by the Commodity Board.
Processor reports
58 (1) A federally-inspected processor must send the Commodity Board a properly
completed processor marketing report in relation to all chicken processed by the
processor during the previous week no later than 3 business days after the end of
each week.
(2) A provincially-inspected processor must send the Commodity Board a properly
completed processor marketing report in relation to all chicken processed by the
processor during the previous month no later than 10 business days after the end of
each month.
Small flock licence holder reports
59 A small flock producer licensee must send the Commodity Board a properly completed
small flock chicken production report no later than 10 days after the shipment of each
flock.
Return recap form
60 A producer licence holder must send a properly completed return recap form to the
Commodity Board in relation to all chicken marketed by the producer no later than 21
days after marketing the chicken.
Hatchery report
61 (1) A hatchery operator must send the Commodity Board a properly completed
hatchery report no later than 10 days after the end of each month.
(2) A hatchery report under subsection (1) must include all of the following
information for all chicks delivered within the regulated area:
(a) the number and variety of chicks delivered to each person;
(b) the name and address of each person chicks were delivered to.
Vendor report
62 (1) A vendor licence holder who sells chicks to any person must send the Commodity
Board a completed vendor report no later than 10 days after the end of each month.
(2) A vendor report under subsection (1) must include all of the following information:
(a) the vendor’s name and address;
(b) the quantity of chicks sold or delivered in the reporting period to each
person;
(c) the name and address of each person chicks were sold or delivered to in the
reporting period.
Certificate of interest in base quota
63 (1) At least once every 36 months, a person who has been issued base quota must
submit a certificate of interest in base quota to the Commodity Board that identifies
all of the following:
(a) each person who has an interest in the base quota as of March 1 of the
calendar year in which the certificate is provided;
(b) all persons who are associated with each person identified under clause (a);
(c) any creditors with a security interest in an interest in base quota held by any
person identified under clause (a).
(2) At any time, the Commodity Board may require a person who has been issued base
quota to submit a certificate of interest in base quota in accordance with subsection
(1) to the Commodity Board no later than 30 days after receiving notice of the
requirement.
(3) If a natural person who has been issued base quota or has an interest in base quota
dies, that person’s executor, administrator or other authorized representative must
submit an application for transfer of base quota pursuant to subsection 9A(3) no
later than 120 days after the person’s death.
Commodity Board required to provide form or report
64 The Commodity Board must, upon written request, provide a copy of any form or report
to be completed under these regulations.
Failure to provide report, agreement, certificate or form
65 If a licence holder or applicant fails to provide any completed report, agreement,
certificate or form required by these regulations, the Commodity Board may
(a) refuse to issue a licence, in whole or in part; or
(b) refer the matter to the Council for a decision on suspending or revoking the
licence holder’s licence under Section 10 of the Act.
Part V - Pricing
Base price
66 (1) The Price Negotiating Committee must immediately send the Executive Director
of the Commodity Board the price that is
(a) recommended as the base price under clause 8(1)(b) of the Plan; or
(b) established as the base price by final offer arbitration under Part VII.
(2) The Executive Director of the Commodity Board must do all of the following on
receiving the base price under subsection (1):
(a) publish the base price;
(b) distribute the base price as soon as practicable to each producer and
processor.
(3) The base price includes all costs incurred in catching chickens at the facilities of a
producer.
Premium added to base price
67 (1) In addition to the base price, the Commodity Board may, by motion, determine a
premium per kilogram of live weight of chicken to be paid by a processor to a
producer.
(2) The premium paid to a producer by a processor must be based on the average
kilograms live weight of chicken contained in each individual truckload shipped by
the producer to the processor.
Condemned chicken
68 A processor purchasing chickens must pay for all chickens received at the facilities of a
producer except for chickens that are condemned at the processing plant by inspectors
acting under the Health of Animals Act (Canada) or the Meat Inspection Act because of
reasons of disease or emaciation.
Bruised chicken
69 A processor must not seek compensation from a producer for bruised chicken parts or
wholly bruised chickens received from the producer.
Requirement to pay base price
70 Unless authorized by the Commodity Board in writing, a producer must not sell or offer
to sell, and a processor must not buy, chicken at a price less than the base price.
Part VI - Appeals
Right and request to appeal to Council
71 (1) An interested person or class of persons affected by a decision of the Commodity
Board has the right to appeal to the Council a decision on any of the following:
(a) cancellation of a licence;
(b) refusal to issue a licence;
(c) refusal to approve a quota transfer;
(d) cancellation of base quota;
(e) refusal to issue quota allocation.
(2) Upon request, Council must hear an appeal of a decision listed in subsection (1).
(3) An interested person or class of persons affected by a decision of the Commodity
Board has the right to appeal to Council for decisions other than those specified in
subsection (1) and upon request Council may, in its discretion, determine whether
to hear the appeal.
Reconsideration of decision by Commodity Board
72 (1) Before requesting an appeal under Section 71, an interested person or class of
persons affected by a decision must first make a formal request to the Commodity
Board to reconsider its decision.
(2) A request under subsection (1) must be submitted in writing to the Executive
Director of the Commodity Board no later than 30 days after the decision that is
the subject of the request was made.
Request to appeal to Council
73 A request for appeal under Section 71 must be submitted in writing to the Council no
later than 30 days after the date the reconsidered decision was made by the Commodity
Board under Section 72.
Requirements for reconsideration by Commodity Board or appeal to Council
74 (1) A request for a reconsideration of a decision under Section 72 must set out,
concisely and completely, all of the reasons for the reconsideration or appeal,
including all of the following:
(a) the specific act or omission of the Commodity Board;
(b) the date of the act or omission of the Commodity Board;
(c) the grounds for the request for reconsideration or appeal;
(d) the grounds that the appellant has for believing that they have a sufficient
personal interest in the subject matter of the reconsideration or appeal.
(2) A request for an appeal to the Council under Section 73 must be made in the form
and manner required by Council.
Part VII - Final Offer Arbitration Procedure
No recommended base price
75 If the Price Negotiating Committee fails to agree on a base price to recommend to the
Commodity Board, as provided for in clause 8(1)(b) of the Plan, a final offer arbitration
hearing must be held.
Parties to final offer arbitration hearing
76 The Commodity Board and each federally-inspected processor are the parties to a final
offer arbitration hearing.
Setting time and place of hearing
77 (1) The Executive Director of the Commodity Board must send a written meeting
notice to the parties by e-mail that includes the date and time for the final offer
arbitration hearing.
(2) The date set for a final offer arbitration hearing must be no later than the Thursday
immediately after the beginning of a marketing period.
(3) A final offer arbitration hearing takes place at the office of the Commodity Board,
unless the parties and the arbitrator agree on another location.
Approved list of arbitrators
78 (1) The Commodity Board must maintain a list of at least 3 arbitrators that is agreed to
by each party and must update the list at least annually.
(2) By April 30 of each year, the Commodity Board must send all of the following by
e-mail to each federally-inspected processor:
(a) the current approved list of arbitrators;
(b) the Commodity Board’s recommendations for any names to be added to, or
deleted from, the current approved list of arbitrators;
(c) a request that the federally-inspected processors make further
recommendations for any names to be added to, or deleted from, the current
approved list of arbitrators.
(3) Each federally-inspected processor must respond to the recommendations and
request sent under subsection (2) by providing all of the following to the
Commodity Board by e-mail on or before May 31 of each year:
(a) their approval or disapproval of the Commodity Board’s recommendations
under clause (2)(b);
(b) their recommendations under clause (2)(c) regarding any names to be added
to, or deleted from, the current approved list of arbitrators.
(4) Despite subsection (1), if the Commodity Board and federally-inspected processors
are unable to agree on a list of arbitrators by June 30 of any year,
(a) the Commodity Board must notify Council as soon as possible that an
agreement has not been reached; and
(b) after receiving notification under clause (a), the Council must provide a list
of at least 3 arbitrators to the Commodity Board and each
federally-inspected processor.
(5) A list provided by the Council under clause (4)(b) is deemed to be the approved
list of arbitrators and remains in effect until the Commodity Board and
federally-inspected processors agree on an approved list.
Appointment of arbitrator
79 (1) The Commodity Board must appoint an arbitrator from the approved list of
arbitrators at least 5 days before the date set for the final offer arbitration hearing.
(2) The Commodity Board must appoint arbitrators in the order in which their names
appear in the list, on a rotational basis, subject to their availability.
Representation at hearing
80 (1) Each party to a final offer arbitration hearing may be represented by counsel or 1 or
more agents.
(2) Except with the consent of the arbitrator, no more than 3 officers or directors of a
party may be present during a final offer arbitration hearing.
(3) Any of the officers or directors present during a final offer arbitration hearing may
speak on behalf of the party that they represent.
Exchange of documents
81 (1) At the beginning of a final offer arbitration hearing, each party must provide
(a) 1 copy of their written submission specifying their final offer regarding
price and outlining the facts supporting the final offer to the arbitrator; and
(b) 2 copies of the written submission referred to in clause (a) to each other
party.
(2) A party must not remove any written submission from the place of the final offer
arbitration hearing until each party has made representations to the arbitrator with
respect to their written submissions.
Conducting final offer arbitration hearing
82 (1) An arbitrator may conduct a final offer arbitration hearing in accordance with these
regulations in any manner the arbitrator considers appropriate, as long as each party
is treated fairly and given full opportunity to present their case.
(2) Except as agreed to by all parties and the arbitrator, a final offer arbitration hearing
must begin with oral presentations by each party during which only the arbitrator
may ask questions.
(3) Except as agreed to by all parties and the arbitrator, there must be a break in the
hearing after the parties have made oral representations, for a duration determined
by the arbitrator, to permit the parties and the arbitrator to review the written
submissions and oral representations.
(4) Following the break referred to in subsection (3), each party has the right to
cross-examine each representative of each other party on their written submissions
and oral representations made.
(5) A person must not, at any time, convey any information to the arbitrator except as
part of the final offer arbitration hearing and in the presence of all parties to the
arbitration.
(6) An arbitrator must not meet separately with any party or receive information from
a party without full disclosure of the information to the other parties.
Confidentiality
83 (1) A final offer arbitration hearing must be held in private.
(2) All documents relevant to a final offer arbitration hearing, including the written
decision of the arbitrator, must be kept confidential by the arbitrator and the parties
and must not be disclosed to any other person, except with the written consent of
all parties.
Evidence at hearing
84 (1) Each party must provide a statement of facts and relevant documents in support of
its position.
(2) An arbitrator is the judge of the relevancy and materiality of the evidence offered
in a final offer arbitration hearing and is not required to apply the legal rules of
evidence.
Examination of parties
85 Subject to subsection 82(6), an arbitrator may order a party, or their representative, to
submit to examination by the arbitrator under oath or affirmation and to submit all
documents that the arbitrator requires.
Decision of arbitrator
86 (1) An arbitrator must select 1 of the parties’ final offers as set out in the party’s
written submission as the base price for the purpose of subsection 66(1).
(2) An arbitrator must provide all of the following to all parties to a final offer
arbitration hearing:
(a) an oral decision, no later than 24 hours after the conclusion of the hearing;
(b) a written decision with reasons, no later than 7 days after the conclusion of
the hearing.
(3) In making a decision, an arbitrator must consider only the written and oral
representations made by the parties during a final offer arbitration hearing.
(4) An arbitrator’s decision is final and binding upon the parties.
Arbitrator’s fees
87 An arbitrator’s fees for conducting a final offer arbitration hearing must be paid by the
Commodity Board.
Part VIII - Market Development
Request by processor for market development production
88 A processor requesting market development production must
(a) have completed a Market Development Commitment Form and have the
form approved by Chicken Farmers of Canada; and
(b) include the market development production on a production and marketing
agreement entered into under Section 27.
Eligibility for special licence for market development
89 A producer licensee is eligible to be issued a special licence for market development for
a marketing period if their maximum barn capacity is sufficient to accommodate
production under both their producer licence and a special licence for market
development within 1 marketing period.
Eligibility to receive market development regulated chicken
90 A processor is eligible to receive market development chicken for processing if the
processor holds a valid market development licence issued by the Chicken Farmers of
Canada.
Total market development production permitted
91 Total market development production for a marketing period must not exceed 16% of
the quota allocation for the marketing period.
Calculation of market development production utilization
92 A producer licensee who holds a special licence for market development production will
have their production attributed to their licences as follows:
(a) first, their production will be attributed to their special licence for market
development;
(b) second, subject to Sections 25 and 26, all remaining production by the
producer for that marketing period will be attributed to the producer’s
producer licence.
Market development fee
93 (1) A processor requesting market development chicken for processing must establish
a market development fee for each 8-week marketing period, expressed as a dollar
amount per live kilogram of market development production.
(2) A producer providing market development regulated chicken to a processor for
processing must pay the market development fee to the processor for each 8-week
marketing period.
(3) A processor must communicate the market development fee for an 8-week
marketing period under subsection (1) to the Commodity Board at least 2
marketing periods before the marketing period of production.
Marketing and marketing development production and payment
94 Marketing of market development production and payment for that production by the
requesting processor is subject to all of the following provisions respecting payment of
fees:
(a) Section 17, respecting producer licence fees;
(b) Section 18, respecting deduction of producer licence fees;
(c) subsection 33(2) and Section 68, respecting condemned chicken.
The following regulations are not
yet in force and are not included in the current consolidation:
Note: Only regulations that are specifically repealed and
replaced appear in this table. It may not reflect the entire history of
regulations on this subject matter.