Privacy Policy

Last updated: 2026-07-18

Plain-language summary: HarvestGuide.ca is a static informational site. We don’t require accounts, run comments, or sell anything directly. We receive basic server-side traffic data through Cloudflare (our host), and we use Google Analytics 4, Google AdSense, and Amazon Associates — each of which sets its own cookies and processes information under the providers’ own privacy policies — plus cookieless Ahrefs Web Analytics. For most visitors these load under implied consent; visitors in the EU, EEA, UK, and Switzerland are shown a consent banner and the ad/analytics cookies stay off until they accept. Details and opt-outs are in the Cookies and consent section. We never sell your information.

1. Who we are

HarvestGuide.ca (the “Site”, “we”, “us”) is a Canadian preserving and home-canning informational website operated from Ontario, Canada. You can reach us at [email protected].

2. What we collect

2.1 Automatically, from your browser

• Server logs. Our host, Cloudflare, automatically records standard request data: IP address, user agent, referring URL, requested URL, response status, and timestamp. We use this to operate and secure the Site.
• Analytics. Google Analytics 4 (GA4) sets cookies and collects engagement data (pages viewed, session duration, device, approximate geography from IP). Data is processed by Google. We also run Ahrefs Web Analytics, which is cookieless and collects only aggregate, non-identifying traffic data.
• Advertising. Google AdSense may set cookies for ad delivery and measurement.
• Affiliate tracking. When you click an Amazon affiliate link on the Site, Amazon may set cookies to attribute the visit. We see only aggregate, anonymized referral data from Amazon Associates Central.

2.2 Information you provide

• Email. If you email us, we receive your email address, name (if provided), and message contents. We use this only to respond to you and keep a record of the exchange.
• Newsletter sign-up. If you subscribe to our email list, we collect your email address, your first name (only if you enter it), and — to understand what content brings readers in — the page you signed up from, the placement, and the site language (English or French). This is stored and delivered by our email provider, systeme.io, and used only to send you the newsletter and the free resources you requested. You can unsubscribe from any email at any time.

2.3 Information we do not collect

• No accounts, logins, or passwords.
• No payment information.
• No comments or user-generated content (at the time of this writing).

3. How we use information

• To operate and improve the Site.
• To understand which content readers find useful and where they come from.
• To respond to email enquiries.
• To comply with applicable Canadian law.

4. Cookies and consent

HarvestGuide.ca itself does not set first-party tracking or cross-site marketing cookies. The third-party services above — GA4, AdSense, and (only when you click an affiliate link) Amazon — may set their own cookies. Our secondary analytics provider, Ahrefs Web Analytics, is cookieless.

How consent works depends on where you are. We use Google Consent Mode v2. For visitors outside the regions listed below — including our primary Canadian audience — the analytics and advertising scripts load on page load: under PIPEDA, consent for standard analytics and advertising on a free informational site of this kind may be implied by continued use, and we set no first-party marketing cookies of our own. This policy and the disclosures above are how we provide notice of, and document, that consent.

Visitors in the EU, EEA, UK, or Switzerland are shown a consent banner, and ad and analytics storage is denied by default until you choose. Nothing non-essential is stored unless you select “Accept”; choosing “Reject” leaves the default denial in place. Your choice is remembered in your browser so the banner does not reappear. You can reset it by clearing this site’s browser storage.

How to opt out:

• Disable or clear cookies in your browser settings — the Site continues to function without them.
• Google Analytics: install the GA opt-out browser add-on.
• Google AdSense / personalized advertising: adjust your Google Ad Settings.
• Amazon affiliate cookies: manage cookies through your browser or your Amazon account settings.

5. Third-party processors

• Cloudflare — hosting (Cloudflare Pages), DNS, email routing for [email protected].
• Google LLC — Analytics (GA4) and Advertising (AdSense).
• Ahrefs Pte. Ltd. — cookieless Web Analytics (aggregate traffic only).
• Amazon.com.ca, Inc. — Amazon Associates affiliate tracking when you click an affiliate link.
• Systeme.io — email newsletter list management, if you subscribe (stores your email, first name, and sign-up context). Based in France (EU).

Each of these processors has its own privacy policy; we encourage you to review them.

6. Data location and transfers

Server logs, analytics data, and ad-tech cookies are processed on infrastructure operated by Cloudflare, Google, and Amazon, and — for newsletter subscribers — by systeme.io, which may include processing outside Canada, including in the United States and the European Union. By using the Site, you consent to such cross-border processing.

7. Retention

• Cloudflare server logs: retained according to Cloudflare’s standard log policy (currently a rolling window measured in days).
• GA4 event-level data: 14 months by default.
• Email correspondence: as long as reasonably needed to respond and keep a record of the exchange.

8. Your rights under PIPEDA

If you are in Canada, the federal Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) gives you the right to:

• Know what personal information we hold about you.
• Access and correct that information.
• Withdraw consent to its use, subject to legal or contractual restrictions.
• Make a complaint to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.

To exercise these rights, email [email protected].

9. Quebec residents — Law 25

If you reside in Quebec, the Commission d’accès à l’information du Québec oversees additional rights under Law 25, including the right to data portability, the right to be informed of automated decision-making (we do not use it), and the right to file a complaint directly with the Commission. The Site is operated from Ontario; if data residency in Quebec is a requirement for you, please contact us before using the Site.

10. Children

The Site is not directed at children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe we have inadvertently collected information from a child, please contact us so we can remove it.

11. Security

We use HTTPS site-wide and rely on Cloudflare’s infrastructure security. No internet transmission is perfectly secure; we cannot guarantee absolute security but we make reasonable efforts to protect information in our custody.

12. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. The “Last updated” date at the top reflects the most recent change. Material changes will be highlighted on the home page.

13. Contact

Questions, complaints, or requests under PIPEDA / Law 25: [email protected].