Canadian Nursery Certification Program

The Canadian Nursery Certification Program (CNCP) is an export certification program of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and is primarily on interest to those growers that export product regularly to the US.  CNCP certified growers are not required to have their product inspected by CFIA prior to export and they are able to generate their own phytosanitary certificates. 

Certifying under the CFIA’s Canadian Nursery Certification Program (CNCP) provides distinct advantages for nurseries that export regularly to the US.  Like the DPCP, this is a systems-based certification program. The primary advantage to growers is that nursery stock does not need to be inspected by CFIA prior to export as participating nurseries are able to self-issue their own Phytosanitary Certificate.
There is a high level of compatibility between CNCP and DPCP, and DPCP is now recognized by CFIA as a “feeder program” to CNCP.
Complete requirements for CNCP can be found in CFIA's Policy Directive D-04-01.

Please note: CNCP is NOT currently administered by the Canadian Nursery Certification Institute.  To participate in this program, contact your local Canadian Food Inspection Agency Inspector and request detailed information.

Origin of the Requirements for CNCP
The North American Plant Protection Organization (NAPPO), which includes Mexico, United States and Canada, applied a system approach to develop standards for production of plants on which DPCP, P. ramorum and CNCP certification programs are based.  In particular, the following two documents provide context and requirements for a ‘pest-free place of production’:

ISPM No. 14 (2002): The Use of Integrated Measures in a Systems Approach for Pest Risk Management
RSPM 24: Integrated Pest Risk Management Measures for the Importation of Plants for Planting into NAPPO Member Countries

 For more information visit the CFIA website.