SA Food Centre
Your first stop for Food labelling

The lowdown on labelling

The South Australian Food Centre can assist SA food businesses with their labelling requirements.

Labelling is not only an important marketing tool, it is now by law a requirement for most food businesses.

A label performs several functions. Identifying the product through name and brand, positioning the product in the consumer’s mind, describing the product and promoting the product if it is eye catching enough.
 
There is a specified selection of information that must be included on food labels. This includes the:

• name of the food
• premises where the food was packed or prepared
• lot (or batch) number
• name of the business
• business address
• mandatory warning and advisory information
• ingredient labelling
• date mark (best before)
• health and safety advice
• nutritional information panel
• percentage characterising ingredient/s
• country of origin
• net weight

The SA Food Centre’s Senior Food Technologist, Stewart Eddie said when designing your label, it is important to take into account all the information you are required by law to have, balanced with making the label eye catching, easy to read and informative.

"For example, did you realise that the net weight statement must be on the front panel of your pack?’ He said some people had the net weight on the back of the label, but it actually needed to be within 60 degrees from the front face of the pack.

Stewart said the SA Food Centre could be very helpful to food businesses in the area of food labelling.

"The SA Food Centre is an ideal first port of call. If you have any queries at all about food labelling, we can direct you to the relevant authority or relevant section of the Food Standards Code.”

Stewart said the services of a lawyer could also prove very useful in the area of food labelling - for example when making complex product claims.

"It might be wise to have a lawyer review labelling to ensure that it complies with local and international legislation. It is much easier and less expensive to change the labelling before rather than after production.”

Food businesses considering selling their product through any kind of retail outlet that uses scanning will also require a bar code. Bar codes (or EAN Numbers) are issued by EAN Australia.

In SA the Department of Health provides assistance with food labelling including a comprehensive guide with what does and does not require labelling, and what must be included on the labels.

Want labelling help?

Contact
Stewart Eddie
SA Food Centre
p +61 8 8348 2483
e stewart.eddie@sa.gov.au

Is your labelling compliant?

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has released a new food labelling guide.

A new food labelling guide to help businesses in the food and beverage industry comply with labelling, packaging and advertising regulations under the Trade Practices Act 1974 has been released.

Developed by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), the Food Labelling Guide aims to educate food and grocery manufacturers about the laws as well as the correct guidelines for making claims or representations on food or beverage labels, packages and advertisements.

The easy to follow guide seeks to assist businesses apply the law in everyday business practices and provides practical examples of the types of claims and representations when developing food and beverage labelling, packaging
and advertising.
 
In particular it explains:

• percentage labelling
• distinguishing ingredients
• from components
• words, images and overall impressions
• target audiences
• and qualifying claims, the fine print and disclaimers.

It also explains the roles of the two key agencies regulating the food and beverage industry - Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) and the ACCC and provides a useful checklist to help businesses avoid breaching the Act.

Compliant checklist

If you are looking at whether your labelling, packaging or promotion may mislead consumers, consider the following:

• What will consumers think the  predominant ingredients of the  product are and does this  impression match the true facts?
• Do any aspects of the  labelling or packaging need stronger emphasis?
• How will consumers interpret the words and the images used?
• What is the overall impression created by these words and images?
• What is the likely conclusion consumers will draw from that impression?
• What could consumers possibly miss or fail to appreciate?
• If you have used a disclaimer or qualification, is it sufficiently prominent and clear to overcome any misleading impressions?
• How will susceptible members of the target audience react?

Want more information?

Contact
ACCC (Adelaide Office)
p +61 8 8213 3444
w  www.accc.gov.au