- Mandatory Country of Origin food labeling standards to come into effect on July 1, 2018
- Labelling system shows percentage of locally-produced content in food
- An online tool and support services to assist business with the transition
Aussies will soon be able to choose more Aussie grown food once the Coalition Government’s Country of Origin Labelling standards become compulsory on July 1.
Federal Member for Forde Bert van Manen MP said the new scheme would see farmers in Queensland selling more of their products in Australia.
“Aussie consumers want to support Aussie farmers, and Country of Origin labelling lets them do that,” Mr van Manen said.
“Aussies want to buy clean green Aussie produce and we want to make it easy for them. This will give shoppers the information they want to make informed choices.”
Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources David Littleproud said the new labels meant customers could easily see how much of a product came from Australia through use of a bar chart.
“Aussies always want to know they’re getting the real deal and the new food labels will let them know if they are,” Minster Littleproud said.
“This new system makes it clear exactly how much of a product’s ingredients are locally grown. But time is running out for businesses to adapt to the new system which will be mandatory from July 1.
“Four months might seem like a long time but redesigning packages can’t be done overnight. We have supported business to make the changes including online tools.”
More information for businesses can be found at www.business.gov.au/foodlabels or by calling 13 28 46.
