Vendors at Ottawa's Byward Market have introduced stickers aimed at distinguishing locally grown produce from imports, but critics say the system only creates more confusion.

The Byward Market Standholders Association presented its new labelling system to reporters Wednesday. It uses four colour-coded, circular stickers:

• Red means Canadian.
• Blue means imported.
• Green means from within 100 kilometres of Ottawa.
• Yellow means organic produce from anywhere.

An index explaining what each colour means will be posted on large signs.

"We are hoping that this will encourage all the vendors to have integrity and to be honest with the customers," said association spokeswoman Jay Acton, who said about a quarter of the market's 200 vendors have signed up for the system so far.

The system was launched as the City of Ottawa worked to develop a bylaw that would set down similar rules, in response to criticism that much of the produce at the market isn't local and its origins aren't clearly labelled.

Acton said vendors didn't like the system that the city is proposing because it seems to focus on the origin of the vendor rather than the origin of the product.

However, many journalists present for the launch said they found the system confusing.

"I'm looking at the potatoes. Local potatoes have the blue sign. That's imports," pointed out Robin Duetta, publisher of the local magazine Food Mode.

"Yes, that's a contradiction. That can't be right," Acton agreed.

Some signs at the market bore up to three stickers of three different colours, such as one above blueberries, raspberries and strawberries being sold together in one basket, which did not indicate which berries came from where.

Acton said those are just start-up problems, that the new system will be a learning process for both the vendors and the public. She added that she is confident it will become popular with both customers and more of the vendors.