ON JULY 1, SPC had its moment in the spotlight when new Country of Origin Labelling (CoOL) regulations came into play.
When the mandatory date for the updated origin labelling requirements for food sold in Australia was announced on July 1, 2016, the Australian Government gave businesses two years to change food labels to comply with the new law. The compulsory changes now require companies to state on their products’ labels exactly where the goods are produced, grown, made or packed – as well as to communicate what percentage of the ingredients come from Australia.
SPC general manager marketing and innovation, Simone Coté said, “As an Australian company producing home-grown fruit and vegetables from Victoria’s Goulburn Valley, SPC welcomes the regulation changes.
“As well as making it easier for consumers to reach for Australian produce, these new changes signify a levelling of the playing field for Australian producers as well as provide additional support for farmers, local production and jobs.
“SPC supports the transparency these regulations bring, with Australians often mislead by the impression that certain packaged products are Australian, when in fact they’re not. We encourage people to look for this new barcoding system which signifies the percentage of Australian ingredients in their products, helping them make informed decisions when shopping for themselves and their families,” Ms Coté said.
