Page 1775 - Week 07 - Tuesday, 18 August 1992
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It is my intention - I know that the Assembly shares my views on this matter - to ensure that the public of Canberra receive the benefit of the National Food Standards Code in the form of new food laws. The National Food Standards Code, which is very detailed and complex, has been developed and adopted nationally to give maximum health and consumer protection. The code covers every aspect of food standards, from labelling to the level of preservative permitted in foods.
For many years, Madam Speaker, it has not been possible for environmental health officers in the ACT to take any action against manufacturers who cheat the public by adding excessive preservative to products to make them last longer, or who use excessive fat in the making of food such as sausages. These new standards, adopted in the ACT by this legislation, will redress that situation. Foods will have to meet the national food standards, or an offence will have been committed. If I buy a loaf of wholemeal bread, how much wholemeal flour should be in the bread? At the moment ACT legislation is satisfied if there is some wholemeal flour in the bread. Under the new standard, a specified minimum of 18 grams per kilogram of crude fibre must be available in the finished product. Mixtures of any other flours will no longer do. All wholemeal bread made or available for sale in the ACT must meet this national standard.
When consumers purchase food, they should be provided with adequate information to allow them to make an informed choice. This Bill will ensure that the consumer has this information. The weight of the product, as well as all the ingredients, will be clearly detailed on the packaging in a non-misleading manner. When persons with specific dietary requirements purchase food, they need to know that the food labelling is accurate - for example, that food labelled as being gluten-free is actually free of gluten, and that a low-salt label does mean that the food is low in salt. The national code that we are adopting with this legislation requires that products comply with prescribed standards in relation to labelling, and provide consumer information to protect the health and interests of the consumer.
This brings me, Madam Speaker, to the subject of use-by dates, which is an issue of some concern to the Canberra public. As stated in my presentation speech, the Government is concerned about the whole issue of the sale of food which has passed its use-by date, and we will be raising this matter with the National Food Authority. However, as has been discussed by other members in this debate, use-by dates would more properly describe their intention if they were called best-before dates or had some other description.
Many people outside the food industry do not appreciate that use-by dates are placed on food by the manufacturers themselves. Use-by dates are an indication by the manufacturer that, given correct transport and storage conditions, the food as manufactured will be at its optimum quality until that date. It does not mean that food suddenly deteriorates after that date; nor does it mean that food still within its use-by date is necessarily wholesome and safe to eat. Many of us would have had in the fridge something that was past its use-by date and would have found it quite wholesome. The use-by date is not a clear indication of the state of the food. A use-by date does not offer magical protection to the contents of the package. Perishable food that has been poorly handled or stored may have deteriorated long before the use-by date. However, with or without use-by dates, it is an offence to sell such food.
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