Transition Period for Food Import Labelling Requirements Ends 30 June 2018
Wednesday, June 13, 2018After a two year transition period, all labelling for imported food now needs to comply with the ‘Country of Origin Food Labelling Standard 2016’ (the Information Standard). The ‘Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code’ will expire as of 30 June 2018.
All food packaged from 1 July 2018 needs to comply with the new regulations. If the labelling is not compliant, products may be re-labelled, exported or destroyed.
All food that was packaged and labelled before 1 July 2018 and where the labelling complied with the outdated Food Standard Code, will then have to supply compliance documentation to the food inspection officer when the food is being inspected. Generally, these products can still be sold without the new label.
The Information Standard applies to:
- Imported food for retail sale in Australia (e.g. food sold to the public in stores or markets, or from vending machines)
- Packaged imported foods sold by wholesalers
- Many unpackaged imported foods
The Information Standard does not affect the tariff heading.
For more details, please see the following pages:
https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/F2017C00920
https://www.business.gov.au/info/run/goods-and-services/selling-goods-and-services/selling-goods/country-of-origin-food-labelling/labelling-for-imported-food
https://www.business.gov.au/Info/Run/Goods-and-services/Selling-goods-and-services/Selling-goods/Country-of-origin-food-labelling
https://www.accc.gov.au/publications/country-of-origin-food-labelling
https://www.accc.gov.au/system/files/1181_Country%20of%20Origin%20Labelling_FA_WEB.PDF