The Australia New Zealand Food Authority advises progress on the following matters relating to food standards. You can get further information on this matter (including advice
on the authority's policy regarding submissions, where applicable) from the ANZFA website www.anzfa.govt.nz
or from:
The Information Officer
Australia New Zealand Food Authority
P.O. Box 10-559
The Terrace
Wellington
Telephone: (04) 473 9942
Facsimile: (04) 473 9855
Email: nz.reception@anzfa.gov.au
Call for Submissions-Proposals
The authority has completed its full assessment of the following proposal, prepared draft variations to the Australian Food Standards Code and will now conduct an inquiry to consider the draft variations. You are invited to present written submissions to the authority, including the potential regulatory impact on consumers, industry and government, by Wednesday, 12 April 2000:
o Labelling of Foods Containing Alcohol (P219)-A proposal to require foods containing more than 1.15% alcohol concentration and, for foods containing significant amounts of alcohol (other than alcoholic beverages), a statement advising that the food should be kept out of reach of children. With respect to this proposal, the authority decided to omit to invite public submissions prior to making its full assessment. The authority considers that the proposal raises issues of public health and safety concern, and to omit to invite public submissions prior to making a full assessment would not have a significant adverse effect on the interests of any person or body. The authority therefore did not invite public submissions prior to making its full assessment, but does so now in order to undertake an inquiry.
Matters Before Council
The authority has completed inquiries into the variations to standards prepared at full assessment of the following applications and has made recommendations to the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Council that the variations be adopted into the Food Standards Code:
o Maximum Residue Limits (Applications A369, A370, AA374 and A392)-Applications received from the National Registration authority to amend Australian Maximum Residue Limits (MRL's) for a number of agricultural chemicals as currently prescribed in the Australian Food Standard Code. In accordance with the transitional arrangements for food standards between Australia and New Zealand, individual country MRL's for agricultural and veterinary chemicals continue to apply for these standards and these applications propose changes for MRL's for food sold in Australia, whether imported or domestically produced. Food sold in New Zealand which is either domestically produced
or imported (other than from Australia) must comply with the MRL provisions in the New Zealand Food Regulations 1984. Food imported from Australia must comply with either the New Zealand MRL's or the Australian MRL's. With respect to these applications, the authority is satisfied that they raise issues of minor significance and complexity and that to omit and invite public submissions prior to completing its inquiries would not have a significant adverse effect on the interests of any person or body. The authority therefore did not invite public submissions prior to completing its inquiries.
Release of the Proposed Draft Joint Australia
New Zealand Food Standards Code
ANZFA has substantially completed its review of food standards in New Zealand and Australia has developed a Draft Joint Code.
The Draft Code will be published on the ANZFA website on Wednesday, 15 March 2000 to enable persons and organisations to provide comment on its overall effectiveness.
Comments are requested by Wednesday, 17 May 2000.