On 1st July 2016, the Country of Origin Food Labelling Information Standard was introduced under Australian Consumer Law.
Following this announcement, businesses were given 2 years to comply with the new labelling Standard, before the changes became mandatory on 1st July 2018.
This labelling requirement is not just confined to food manufacturers and processors. All businesses, including importers, manufacturers and processors that offer food for retail sale in Australia must comply.
Products grown, produced or made in Australia now require their packaging to contain:
- The kangaroo in a triangle logo
- A bar chart indicating the percentage of Australian ingredients, and
- An explanatory statement on whether the food was grown, produced or made in Australia along with the percentage of Australian ingredients
Foods merely packed in Australia cannot feature the kangaroo in a triangle logo, and any food grown, produced, made, or packaged in a country other than Australia must specify the country of origin on the label. In most instances, these products will be required to carry a label featuring a bar chart and explanatory text, stating that the food was packaged in Australia and the proportion of Australian ingredients.
The labels cover four categories: Grown in Australia (for fresh produce), Produced in Australia (processed food made with exclusively Australian ingredients), Made in Australia (goods that may have imported ingredients with a bar chart detailing the percentage of its origin) and Packed in Australia (a product that cannot claim to have been grown, produced or made in Australia).
FPS has worked closely with all of our customers to ensure compliance with this new standard in food labelling and packaging, so that Australian consumers have the best information available to make their purchasing decisions, and a clear understanding of how they are supporting truly Australian products.
