FoodLegal

Foreword

By Joe Lederman (Managing Principal, FoodLegal)

Welcome to the April 2018 edition of FoodLegal Bulletin

In this edition of FoodLegal Bulletin

Our FREE article “Current developments in food law and policy in Australia and elsewhere” provides this month’s update on many new regulatory developments for food producers and suppliers, beginning with Australia, but also internationally.

Our FREE article “Federal Department of Industry to apply Country of Origin requirements to New Zealand products” sets out our commentary on the response by the Department of Industry to our March 2018 article discussing New Zealand food supply opportunities to sidestep the extra bureaucratic burdens imposed on Australian food suppliers.

This edition also reports on how the “Federal Court rules a high sugar food was not compatible with a ‘healthy’ claim”. We examine the outcome of the recent ACCC case against Heinz. The article looks at the implications of the case for other situations where the Australian Consumer Law may be enforced against a food claim that is fully compliant with the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code. The article explains risk mitigation strategies when marketing a 'healthy' message when the product might not be sufficiently 'healthy'.

FoodLegal Principal Charles Fisher explores an interesting issue concerning a substance which might previously have been considered a “nutritive substance” but is no longer regarded as such. So what is it, and must it always be considered to be a sugar? The article “Can products that contain GOS claim to have ‘no added sugar’?” illustrates how alternative ways to create a food compositional substance can impact on the regulatory rules governing the usage and marketing claims for the end product.

Our article “Country of origin labelling for food in assisted service display cabinets” discusses another inconsistency between the new Country of Origin laws versus the laws set out in the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code.

FoodLegal Scientist Rozita Vaskoska’s article “Magnesium: Australian food regulations and dietary guidelines, and latest research and trends” looks at the growing significance of magnesium in foods and the regulatory framework in Australia for adding magnesium into foods.

In “The Laws of Honey”, we give an overview of the regulatory framework for honey in Australia and New Zealand, the importance of legal definitions, and new traceability systems for preventing honey substitution.

We hope you enjoy this April 2018 edition of FoodLegal Bulletin!

Joe Lederman

Editor