Citrus Australia has applauded the introduction of new country of origin labelling laws within Australia, with the peak industry body calling for further steps to be taken to better inform consumers.
The Australian Coalition Government approved a new food labelling system late last month, which will show consumers where products are made, grown or packaged.Foods processed locally will have a new label, which includes the Australian Made Campaign’s familiar green and gold kangaroo and triangle icon. A bar chart showing what proportion of each product’s ingredients is from Australia will also be mandatory.
Citrus Australia CEO Judith Damiani said her organisation had long called for an effective country-of-origin system and was pleased with the new version, however, she believed it did not go far enough.
““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,” Damiani explained. “However, 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. Consumers have a right to know where their food comes from so I can only encourage everyone to continue to demand this information.”
The new country of origin food labels will begin to appear on supermarket shelves later this year.Under the new scheme, if a product is imported into Australia and then re-packed, the label will identify where the item came from.
“It is important to ensure consumers have the information they need to make informed choices about the products they buy,’” according to a joint press release from Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Minister for Agriculture Barnaby Joyce. “Australians have made it clear they want better country of origin labelling and the Government is determined to deliver it.”
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