Country of Origin Labelling approved

Country of Origin Labelling approved

08-Apr-2016

The states and territories have signed off on the Federal Government’s plans for new country of origin labels, which will start appearing from July 1.
The new labels make clear the percentage of a product that is grown or manufactured in Australia and will be phased in over two years.
Products on Australian shelves with food made, produced or grown in Australia will be required to include the Australian Made logo. The new system will also include a bar chart indicating the proportion of Australian ingredients.
CEO Judith Damiani said Citrus Australia has called for an effective country-of-origin system for years and is pleased with the new version.
“Finally we have a simple logo which should help consumers understand where their food comes from. It should assist particularly with the sales of Australian juice.”
Judith said the new system will not mandate the disclosure of the actual country of origin from the imported ingredients.
“Companies can only be encouraged to provide this additional information,” she said.
“Consumers have a right to know where their food comes from so I can only encourage everyone to continue to demand this information” she concluded.