Contents
Part 1—Preliminary 1
1............ Short title............................................................................................ 1
2............ Commencement.................................................................................. 2
3............ Purpose............................................................................................... 2
4............ Administration of Act........................................................................ 2
5............ Interpretation...................................................................................... 2
6............ Principles relevant to the purposes of the Act................................... 3
7............ Application and operation of Act...................................................... 3
8............ State laws may operate concurrently................................................. 5
9............ Act to bind the Crown........................................................................ 5
Part 2—GM food and animal feed 6
10.......... Packaged foods................................................................................... 6
11.......... Unpackaged foods.............................................................................. 6
12.......... Exemptions......................................................................................... 6
13.......... Animal feed......................................................................................... 7
14.......... Accidental contamination................................................................... 7
15.......... Traceability......................................................................................... 7
Part 3—Country of origin labelling 9
16.......... Commonwealth responsible for implementation measures................ 9
17.......... Packaged produce labelled.................................................................. 9
18.......... Unpackaged produce labelled............................................................. 9
19.......... Exemptions......................................................................................... 9
Part 4—Residue information 10
20.......... Data on residues and contaminants.................................................. 10
21.......... Regulations....................................................................................... 10
A Bill for an Act to enable consumers to know the country of origin, the extent of genetic manipulation and the chemical residues in food, and for related purposes
The Parliament of Australia enacts:
This Act may be cited as the Truth in Food Labelling Act 2003.
This Act commences on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.
The purpose of this Act is:
(a) to require the Commonwealth to ensure that consumers can exercise their right to know the country of origin, the extent of genetic manipulation and the chemical residues in food; and
(b) to protect the health and safety of consumers; and
(c) to provide for truth in labelling of food; and
(d) to ensure that requirements that effect the provisions of this Act are incorporated into the appropriate regulations, codes, and policies; and
(e) to complement the Trade Practices Act 1974; and
(f) to complement the Gene Technology Act 2000.
The Minister responsible for food safety and, in relation to sections 10 to 13, the Minister responsible for consumer affairs, are responsible for the implementation of the provisions of this Act.
In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires:
Code means the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code as defined in the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Act 1991.
country of origin means the country in which the produce is grown or, in the case of processed food, the country in which the most significant ingredients, by quantity and food description, are grown.
genetic modification, or GM means using recombinant DNA techniques that alter the heritable genetic material of living cells or organisms, and genetically modified has a correspondent meaning.
genetically modified food, or GM food means food and food ingredients, including additives and flavourings, produced using genetic modification technology.
genetically modified feed, or GM feed means animal feed, compounded feedstuffs and feed additives, produced using genetic modification technology.
operator means a person who places a product on the market and also a person who receives a product that has been placed on the market at any stage of the production and distribution chain, but does not include the ultimate consumer.
traceability means the ability to trace food, animal feed, and ingredients of food and animal feed that are produced using genetic modification technology throughout the production and distribution chains.
For the purposes of this Act, the following principles apply to every decision made or action undertaken:
(a) right to know—every person has the right to be provided with relevant information on a food product so as to be able to make an informed purchasing and consuming decision;
(b) truth in labelling—the consumer information on a food product must be accurate, accessible at the point of sale, complete and comprehensible in form, allowing for the free and unhindered exercise of the right to know the contents of the food product by the consumer.
(1) This Act only applies to things done as mentioned in this section.
(2) This Act applies to things done:
(a) in a Territory;
(b) between a State and a Territory or between two Territories.
(3) This Act applies:
(a) to things done, or omitted to be done, by constitutional corporations;
(b) to things done, or omitted to be done, in the course of constitutional trade or commerce;
(c) to things done, or omitted to be done, by a person that relate to quarantine;
(d) for purposes connected with fixing standards in relation to activities undertaken by corporations in respect of food before, or in connection with, its sale, where, in the case of trading corporations, those activities are undertaken for the purpose of the trading activities of the corporations;
(e) for purposes connected with the labelling of food in the Territories;
(f) for purposes connected with controlling the labelling of food supplied to the Commonwealth, its authorities and its instrumentalities;
(g) to the Commonwealth and Commonwealth authorities;
(h) to things authorised by the legislative power of the Commonwealth under paragraph 51(xxxix) of the Constitution, so far as it relates to the matters mentioned in paragraphs (a) to (g).
(4) The provisions of this Act apply to the extent that those provisions:
(a) give effect to a prescribed treaty or international agreement; or
(b) relate to matters external to Australia; or
(c) relate to matters of international concern.
(5) In this section:
constitutional corporation means a trading, foreign or financial corporation within the meaning of paragraph 51(xx) of the Constitution.
constitutional trade or commerce means trade or commerce:
(a) between Australia and places outside Australia; or
(b) among the States; or
(c) by way of the supply of services to the Commonwealth or to a Commonwealth authority.
(1) This Act is not intended to exclude the operation of any State law, to the extent that the State law is capable of operating concurrently with this Act, other than a State law prescribed by the regulations for the purposes of this section.
(2) The Governor-General may prescribe a State law under subsection (1) only if either:
(a) the State law relates specifically to dealings with GMOs; or
(b) for the purposes of a decision under the State law as to whether or not a licence, authority or approval (however described) is granted under the State law, the State law distinguishes between dealings with GMOs and dealings with other things.
(1) This Act binds the Crown in all its capacities.
(2) Nothing in this Act renders the Crown liable to be prosecuted for an offence.
(1) All packaged food derived from genetic modification, or containing an ingredient derived from genetic modification, must be labelled as such regardless of whether or not it contains DNA or protein resulting from that genetic modification.
(2) The label required by subsection (1) must contain the words “derived from genetic modification” in conjunction with the name of the food or in association with any specific ingredients derived from genetic modification, or “genetically modified (name of food)” or “contains genetically modified (name of ingredient)”.
All unpackaged food, including bulk foods, derived from genetic modification, or containing an ingredient derived from genetic modification regardless of whether or not it contains DNA or protein resulting from that genetic modification, must have displayed in association with the food the words “derived from genetic modification” in conjunction with the name of the food or in association with any specific ingredients derived from genetic modification, or “genetically modified (name of food)” or “contains genetically modified (name of ingredient)”.
The following foods are exempted from the provisions of sections 10 and 11:
(a) all meat, milk, eggs obtained from animals treated with GM veterinary products, or fed GM food;
(b) food produced with the help of GM enzymes;
(c) takeaway foods and restaurant meals.
(1) All genetically modified animal feed, or animal feed containing an ingredient derived from genetic modification, must be labelled as such regardless of whether or not it contains DNA or protein resulting from that genetic modification.
(2) The label required by subsection (1) must contain the words “derived from genetic modification” in conjunction with the name of the food, or in association with any specific ingredients derived from genetic modification, or “genetically modified (name of feed)” or contains “genetically modified (name of ingredient)”.
(1) Food or animal feed which is contaminated by less than 0.5 % of the product by adventitious GM DNA or protein, that is approved by Food Safety Australia New Zealand, is exempt from labelling, so long as operators can demonstrate that they have used all appropriate steps to avoid the presence of accidental contamination.
(2) Food or animal feed which is contaminated by detectable levels of GM DNA or protein that is not approved by Food Safety Australia New Zealand must be labelled as containing GM material.
(1) The Governor-General must make regulations prescribing a comprehensive traceability system for all foods and animal feeds containing GM material or derived from GM processes that ensures the ability to trace the food or animal feed throughout the production and distribution system.
(2) The regulations made under subsection (1) must include, but are not limited to requirements that:
(a) operators must ensure that information identifying GM material or GM-derived material in food and animal feed is transmitted with that material;
(b) operators must have in place systems and procedures to allow the identification of the person or persons from whom and to whom the products referred to in subsection 14(2) have been made available;
(c) operators must retain the information specified in paragraph (b) for a period of 5 years from each transaction, and make it available to competent authorities on demand.
(3) Operators delivering food to the ultimate consumer are exempted from paragraphs (2)(b) and (c).
(4) For the purposes of paragraph (2)(c), competent authorities means a department or other public organisation appointed by the Minister responsible for food safety for the purposes of this Act.
(5) The Minister responsible for food safety must implement a monitoring plan in order to trace and identify any direct or indirect, immediate, delayed or unforeseen effects on human health or the environment of GM food or animal feed or both after it has been placed on the market.
The Commonwealth must ensure that if, after all available legal mechanisms to modify the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code to provide for the compulsory country of origin labelling of food products have been attempted, and the Commonwealth has not succeeded in ensuring that the labelling is compulsory under the Code, the Commonwealth makes all reasonable efforts to inform consumers of the country of origin of products being sold in Australia by either:
(a) recommending to the Governor-General regulations prescribing a Consumer Information Standard of Country of Origin Labelling (Food), within the existing legal framework; or
(b) by making this information available on a government website or in printed form.
All packaged meat, fish, fruit and vegetables placed on the market in Australia must have labelling identifying its country of origin.
All unpackaged meat, fish, fruit and vegetables, including bulk foods, placed on the market in Australia must have the country of origin identified at the point of display for sale.
Meat, fish, fruits, and vegetables which constitute less than 20% of a product are exempt from country of origin labelling.
(1) All information collected by any department or agency, or required to be collected, on residues or contaminants in food of pesticides, heavy metals, industrial chemicals or by-products, veterinary medicines or products, or any other contaminant, must be made available to members of the public, on a relevant government website.
(2) The information described in subsection (1) must be made available on request and must be published within 12 months of its being collected.
The Governor-General may make regulations prescribing matters:
(a) required or permitted to be prescribed by this Act; or
(b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.