Darron CharlesworthFood Labels Need Improving
April 14th 2010 23:39
Category: No Category
Food labelling is being raised as an issue in Australia for a variety of reasons. There are products which contain misleading information or make claims which are unsubstantiated in testing. What I find concerning is the poor quality of information regarding the ingredients contained in the goods. My concern here is on multiple levels, the major objection being on health and safety for those eating foods without actually knowing where what they are eating has come from or the standards to which it was subjected.
In Australia we have rigorous standards on how our food is grown and how it is handled during transport, harvest, storage and preparation for sale. Due to this we are also subjected to higher compliance costs as business obviously needs to re-coupe the cost of ensuring that the proper procedures are in place. Not every country can make the same claim. It is therefore of interest to every Australian where the food we are eating comes from and what standards those providing the resource adhere to.
On a typical product a food label may read – Made from local and imported ingredients. This leaves several questions unanswered: which of the goods are imported and which are local? From where are the imported ingredients purchased? As consumers we have a right to know this information otherwise how can we make an informed decision about what we eat. I know that I do not want to eat any GM foods, any foods from Western Europe particularly the southern part, or any food from China. This is my choice and I am entitled to make it. But I do have good reason for these choices.
This is not the place to generate an in-depth discussion on why I have made these kinds of choices regarding the food that my family and I consume. The choices came from my own research and reading over time. The desire here is not to create a debate regarding the reasons for my own individual choice. What is important is that consumers should be able to make an informed choice because the labelling on the goods provides the right information and does not contain ambiguities relating to content, source or quality.
Every consumer is entitled to make a decision about what foods they eat and where there food comes from. This is at present impossible because the labelling laws do not insist that the manufacturer divulge the source of their goods. Even just wanting to buy Australian is impossible because the goods can say Australian Made if they were simply packaged in this country but made from imported ingredients. It is up to the writers of legislation to ensure that this loop hole is closed so that all goods clearly state what ingredients are in the product and from where they came.
In Australia we have rigorous standards on how our food is grown and how it is handled during transport, harvest, storage and preparation for sale. Due to this we are also subjected to higher compliance costs as business obviously needs to re-coupe the cost of ensuring that the proper procedures are in place. Not every country can make the same claim. It is therefore of interest to every Australian where the food we are eating comes from and what standards those providing the resource adhere to.
This is not the place to generate an in-depth discussion on why I have made these kinds of choices regarding the food that my family and I consume. The choices came from my own research and reading over time. The desire here is not to create a debate regarding the reasons for my own individual choice. What is important is that consumers should be able to make an informed choice because the labelling on the goods provides the right information and does not contain ambiguities relating to content, source or quality.
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