The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has withdrawn a ban that saw removal of a number of Israeli wines from store shelves in the Ontario province.

The CFIA previously issued a directive to cease the sale of wine products produced in West Bank occupied territory. The Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) issued a letter to vendors ordering that the 'Product of Israel' label would no longer be an acceptable declaration for wine products grown, fermented, processed, blended, or finished in the region. However, the order resulted in the agency facing severe criticism. 

A recent statement posted on the CFIA's website read: “The CFIA regrets the outcome of the wine labelling assessment, which led to the LCBO's response regarding products from two wineries labelled as 'Product of Israel'.

"In our assessment, we did not fully consider the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement (CIFTA)."

“In our assessment, we did not fully consider the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement (CIFTA).

“Further clarification of the CIFTA (Article 1.4.1b) indicates that these wines adhere to the agreement and therefore we can confirm that the products in question can be sold as currently labelled".

The CFIA is a government body that controls all marketing and sales of wine in Canada.