Country of Origin Labelling (CoOL)
3 May 2005
Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) has sought public comment on the Draft Assessment Report for Proposal P292, Country of Origin Labelling.
This proposal seeks to amend the current requirements for the country of origin labelling of food to:
- bring the country of origin labelling requirements for unpackaged foods into line with the general labelling provisions of the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code(the Code); and
- address the inconsistencies between the current transitional standard of the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code (the Code) and Australia’s World Trade Organisation (WTO) obligations .
The proposed changes differs from the current standard especially with the requirements applied to unpackaged foods such as fish, fruit and vegetables (including nuts), regardless of origin.
Where these foods are sold unpackaged, the proposed standard requires that displayed with the food or provided or made available to the purchaser on request is:
- a statement identifying the country of origin of the food; or
- a statement indicating that the food is imported.
FSANZ develops standards for food labelling if there is:
- a demonstrated risk to public health and safety; and/or
- a need to ensure the adequacy of information for informed choice; and/or
- the potential for misleading or deceptive conduct.
The specific risk management approach taken is commensurate with risk. Labelling for country of origin is considered a risk management option to address primarily the need to give consumers an informed choice. The labelling recommendations described in the Draft Assessment Report are considered to be consistent with providing assurance of adequate consumer information.
No final decision has been made as the matter is still under consideration.
The relevant document for comment is available on the FSANZ website: http://www.foodstandards.gov.au/standardsdevelopment/proposals/proposalp292countryo2452.cfm