Strong international partnerships are essential to keeping national and global food systems safe, trusted and innovative.

FSANZ CEO Dr Sandra Cuthbert and Public Health Branch General Manager Christel Leemhuis recently joined more than 20 national and international food authority leaders at the sixth International Heads of Food Agencies Forum in Santiago, Chile.

The theme for this year’s forum was Innovation, Technology and Digital Transformation in Food Safety.

Energy labelling on packaged alcoholic beverages was approved to be mandated under a change to the Food Standards Code by the FSANZ Board.

If agreed by food ministers, the new standard will require energy content information to be presented on alcohol labels in a prescribed format, known as an energy statement.

The new requirements are designed to help consumers better manage their energy intake from alcohol and make informed choices in line with dietary guidelines.

Nutrition labelling is vital to supporting consumers to make informed food and dietary choices. 

FSANZ is excited to be progressing work looking at front- and back-of-pack food labelling through parallel projects covering the Health Star Rating (HSR) system and the nutrition information panel (NIP). 

Cell-cultured quail is one step closer to being on restaurant menus following its approval by the Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) Board. 

The Australia and New Zealand-first approval would allow the sale of cell-cultured quail and establish new standards in the Food Standards Code to provide a clear regulatory framework for future cell-cultured food applications.

A number of food retailers are recalling spinach and mixed salad products from stores in multiple states following detection of shiga-toxin producing E. coli (STEC) in 2 spinach products.

This time last year Plain English Allergen Labelling (PEAL) requirements became mandatory across Australia and New Zealand. These changes, developed under Proposal P1044, transformed how allergens are declared on food labels, making them easier to identify and understand for millions of consumers.

Did you know food recalls can do more than just remove unsafe food from shelves?

In response to conducting a recall of their product, most businesses take proactive steps to prevent food safety issues from recurring.
As part of food recall reporting requirements, food businesses are required to identify corrective actions they have taken.