Verified Beef Production Plus

Canada’s beef farmers take great pride in their animals, their operations, the environment and the product they raise. The Verified Beef Production Plus (VBP+) program provides producers the opportunity to tell consumers and retailers their story with transparency and credibility.

The VBP+ program was developed by the cattle sector, for the cattle sector. It is meant to be simple, practical and trusted. It is a food safety-based program that is designed on the principles of an international quality control program called Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP). It is recognized by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and is a certification body for the Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (CRSB)'s Certified Program. Cargill's Certified Sustainable Beef Program currently offered through Cargill,  provides financial credits to certified producers along the supply chain for qualifying cattle from those operations. For cattle to be eligible for qualifying credits through the Cargill Certified Sustainable Beef Program, they must be raised their whole life on CRSB Certified farms, birth dates must be submitted, and their movements from farm to farm must be submitted into the Canadian Cattle Identification Agency's Canadian Cattle Livestock Tracking System (CLTS). Certified operations must also consent to sharing their operation information and certification status with the Canadian Cattle Identification Agency to verify their active certification status. 

To learn more about the CRSB's Qualifying Cattle Requirements, please click here. 

The CRSB Certified program enables consumer-facing sustainability claims, and makes it clear to consumers that they are purchasing beef from farms certified to sustainability standards, all while showcasing the Canadian beef sector's dedication to transparency. There is growing demand for CRSB Certified beef as retailers, restaurants and food service providers like McDonald’s, Walmart, Cactus Club  Cafe, Gordon Foodservice and Intercity Packers are all sourcing a portion of their beef with CRSB Certified claims. To meet this growing demand, more Ontario cattle need to be enrolled in certified on-farm quality assurance programs.

Quality Assurance Rebate Incentive Program

Beef Farmers of Ontario (BFO), in partnership with the Joint Marketing Committee, a partnership between BFO and the Ontario Cattle Feeders’ Association, are currently offering an Ontario Beef Quality Assurance Rebate Incentive Program, which provides BFO check-off paying members with a 100 per cent rebate on first time VBP+ audit fees paid by members who become certified through the completion of training, and an on-farm audit. For producers renewing their VBP+ audit, BFO will provide a rebate of 75 per cent on audit fees.

The goal of the incentive program is to improve the supply of Ontario CRSB Certified calves for Ontario certified feedlots, encourage enrollment and support in quality assurance programming (a key component of the Ontario Beef Market Development strategy), and to help offset VBP+ audit costs for our members.

As always, Ontario feedlots also have the option to be certified under the OCFBQA through the completion of training, assessments and an on-farm audit.

Steps to Become VBP+ Certified

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