Labelling Laws

Walking down the aisle of the average supermarket, the local shopper is bombarded with labels claiming a whole range of virtues including the Australian-ness of their product.

“Manufactured in Australia”, “Made in Australia from local and imported ingredients” and “Australian Owned” are just some of the catchcries that food manufactures use to get our attention and convince us to buy their product. This is an effective marketing tool, evidenced by explosions of claims on labels that line our supermarket shelves. But as always the devil is in the detail. Or - when it comes to food labelling - the devil is in the definition.

Australian consumers want to buy Australian-grown food not only to support Australian farmers but also because they have confidence in the standard and quality of food products grown and packaged in their own backyard. Often the Australian-ness catchcries touted on food labels are not clear and can be extremely misleading, making it difficult for the consumer to determine which part, if any, of the product was indeed grown in Australia.

Continue reading "“Made in Australia” should mean made in Australia" »

Every Australian is passionate and parochial about our “Australian Made” label. We all identify with the iconic green and gold kangaroo logo proudly representing products – food, clothing or materials – manufactured in Australia which helps customers recognise and buy Aussie goods.

But how far do you go in determining whether a product is wholly made in Australia and deserves to wear the famous label? Independent Senator Nick Xenophon wants the Government to urgently change the law to make it illegal for products made with foreign produce to be labeled “Australian Made”.

While Xeonphon’s suggestion is laudable in theory, it’s, at best, overly simplistic and probably just populist.

Continue reading "How much Aussie does it take to be Australian Made" »