Food Archives - Page 5 of 14 - Consumers' Federation of Australia

20 May , 2022

CFA Seeks a Consumer Representative for the Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) Consumer and Public Health Dialogue (CPHD)

FSANZ is a statutory authority operating under the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Act 1991. FSANZ develops standards that regulate the use of ingredients, processing aids, colourings, additives, vitamins and minerals. The Food Standards Code also covers the composition of some foods, such as dairy, meat and beverages as well as foods developed by new…

16 May , 2022

Inadequate unit pricing risks higher grocery prices, says complaint to ACCC

The Consumers’ Federation of Australia (CFA) has complained to the ACCC about the inadequate display of grocery unit pricing in some supermarkets operated by Woolworths and by Harris Farm Markets. CFA’s CEO Gerard Brody says “it is essential that the unit prices of grocery products are displayed so that they are easy for all consumers…

25 March , 2022

Mandatory grocery unit pricing coming to India and New Zealand

The latest edition of the Queensland Consumers Association’s (QCA) newsletter Unit Pricing Global Update reports that: India will require display of the Maximum Retail Price (MRP) per standardised unit of measure (i.e. the unit price) on pre-packaged commodities sold by retailers after 31 March 2022. Currently only the MRP has to be displayed. In New…

25 March , 2022

CFA publishes submission to Domestic Organics Regulatory Impact Statement

CFA has made a submission to the consultation the on how the Australian Government can regulate organic products domestically. The consultation document examines the policy problem under consideration, as well as potential regulatory and non-regulatory options for reform. In its submission CFA states: Australian consumers should be protected from misleading and misrepresentation in relation to produce and…

14 March , 2022

Country of Origin Labelling for Food evaluation released

The Federal Government has released its evaluation of Country of Origin Labelling for Food reforms. The evaluation began 2 years after the reforms came into full effect in 2018 and took 12 months. The evaluation: found that the Country of Origin Labelling for Food reforms were well implemented, effective and met its objectives, and recommended…

20 December , 2021

FAO publishes reports on consumer organizations and the Right to Adequate Food

Prepared by CFA Executive Member Ian Jarratt, of Queensland Consumers Association. He can be reached at ijarratt@australiamail.com. Recently, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) published two reports, aimed to support, and showcase the work of Consumer Organizations around the globe on The Right to Adequate Food. The reports are: Consumer Organizations and the Right to…

25 October , 2021

Report finds many food retailers not complying with weights and measures laws

The National Measurement Institute’s (NMI) report on retailer compliance in 2020-21 reveals that 88% of fruit and vegetable retailers, 42% of meat, fish and poultry retailers, and 25% of supermarkets were not complying with their legal requirements when audited during a concentrated period during the year. Much of this post is taken from a media release by Queensland…

2 August , 2021

Federal government misses opportunity to help shoppers save at the checkout

The nation’s peak body for consumer organisations, the Consumers Federation of Australia (CFA) says shoppers will miss out on big savings possible when buying groceries, and other packaged products, as a result of federal government not improving the current Unit Pricing Code. The Code requires only large supermarkets and some online grocery retailers to provide…

2 July , 2021

CFA and member organisations call for changes to proposed new federal Unit Pricing Code

CFA has made a submission to the federal government on its draft new Grocery Unit Pricing Industry Code of Conduct. The submission disagrees strongly with the conclusions of the review of the current Code and with the proposed new Code’s provisions (which are identical to those of the current Code). It also argues that implementation…

30 April , 2021

Feedback given on the draft National Preventative Health Strategy

The Queensland Consumers Association (a member of CFA) has made a written submission on the Draft National Preventative Heath Strategy. The draft Strategy was released recently for comment and was developed following responses to a 2020 Consultation Paper, on which CFA made a submission. The Vision is: To improve the health of all Australians at…

14 December , 2020

More opportunities to participate in the review of the food regulation system

Consultations are currently occurring on two more phases of the major review of the food regulation system that operates in Australia and New Zealand. Stakeholder views are being sought on consultation papers prepared by consultants on: Consistency of food regulatory approaches (responses due by 18 December) Aspirations for the food regulatory system (responses due by…

21 October , 2020

Scoping Paper on the Review of the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Act 1991 released for public consultation

This is an important consultation because this Act is one of the main pieces of legislation and agreements that that make up the joint food regulatory system that operates in Australia and New Zealand. It mainly empowers Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) to set and amend food standards and undertake other core functions. It…