Country of Origin Labelling in foodservice
In July 2018, it became mandatory for food sold in retail to be labelled with its country of origin, which improved the level of communication and trust between a retailer and their customers, and allowed consumers to make informed purchasing decisions. However, the food service sector was exempt from this legislation. We know consumers want to support our Australian seafood producers, but people can’t buy Australian seafood if they can’t tell where it’s from.
Seafood Industry Australia has appealed to the government time and time again to make origin labelling mandatory for Australian seafood sold in the food service sector, just like it is in the retail sector. Now, there is the opportunity to make this happen as the Government embarks on an evaluation of the retail legislation which came into effect two years ago.
The first element of the review was an online evaluation survey in which we appealed to industry and the community to express their support for CoOL labelling expansion. The survey closed in early September 2020, and the results are intended to facilitate discussion on the CoOL reforms, and to frame the discussion of issues that are expected to be of particular interest to consumers, food and beverage producers and retailers. In addition to public submissions and surveys, the evaluation process intends to gather information from the community and industry through other mechanisms, including interviews and focus groups.
The evaluation seeks to answer the overarching question: Have the Country of Origin Labelling reforms improved consumer access to information about the origin of food, and clarified the origin claims businesses can make about their products, without imposing excessive costs on those businesses? The review is expected to be complete by mid-2021.
A copy of SIA’s media release regarding the evaluation is available here.
Share the message on social media
SAMPLE SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS – please copy and use
- Support Australia’s seafood producers and #MakeFoodServiceCoOL find out more at bit.ly/MakeFoodServiceCoOL
- Want to support Australian fishers but don’t know where to start? Find out more at bit.ly/MakeFoodServiceCoOL #MakeFoodServiceCoOL
- Australia’s seafood industry needs your help! Support the expansion of Country of Origin Labelling to seafood sold in food service, and help safeguard the future of industry. Find out more at bit.ly/MakeFoodServiceCoOL #MakeFoodServiceCoOL
- Do you want to know where the seafood in your fish and chips, burger or curry comes from? Now’s the chance, find out how to #MakeFoodServiceCoOL at bit.ly/MakeFoodServiceCoOL
- Support the expansion of Country of Origin Labelling to Australian seafood sold in food service. Find out more at bit.ly/MakeFoodServiceCoOL #MakeFoodServiceCoOL
- Expand Country of Origin Labelling to Australian seafood sold in food service. Find out more at bit.ly/MakeFoodServiceCoOL #MakeFoodServiceCoOL
- I’ve committed to supporting Australia’s seafood producers. Share if you’re in! #MakeFoodServiceCoOL Find out more at bit.ly/MakeFoodServiceCoOL
- Want to buy Australian seafood, and support Australian jobs? First, you need to be able to find it #MakeFoodServiceCoOL . Find out more at bit.ly/MakeFoodServiceCoOL
- #MakeFoodServiceCoOL and safeguard the future of the Australian seafood industry. Find out more at bit.ly/MakeFoodServiceCoOL
- Show your support for the Australian seafood industry by supporting the #MakeFoodServiceCoOL campaign and labelling Australian seafood sold in food service. Find out more at bit.ly/MakeFoodServiceCoOL
- Join me and support the clear labelling of Australian seafood in food service #MakeFoodServiceCoOL . Can I count you in? Find out more at bit.ly/MakeFoodServiceCoOL
- Close to 70% of seafood eaten in Australia is imported, the majority of this is in foodservice. Do you want to know if the seafood you’re eating at a cafe or restaurant is Australian? Now’s the chance, find out how to #MakeFoodServiceCoOL at http://bit.ly/MakeFoodServiceCoOL
- More than 86,000 consumers have signed petitions asking for it, and two Senate inquiries have called for it. Now, for a fourth and hopefully last time, we need as many people as possible to support a Country of Origin Labelling expansion to cover seafood sold in food service. #MakeFoodServiceCoOL . Find out more at bit.ly/MakeFoodServiceCoOL
- CoOL provides clear information on where food has come from and allows consumers to make informed purchases. Find out more at bit.ly/MakeFoodServiceCoOL #MakeFoodServiceCoOL
