FoodLegal

Foreword

By Joe Lederman (FoodLegal Co-Principal) and John Thisgaard (FoodLegal Senior Associate)

Welcome to the March 2019 edition of FoodLegal Bulletin!

1.    There are still some places left for FoodLegal’s Brisbane workshops on Wednesday 3 April 2019. To register for our #Trending Claims workshop, or our Food Labelling 101 workshop, or both, click here.

2.    In this March 2019 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 second article “Tips for food start-ups Part 1: How do I start my food business?” is the first in a series of articles addressing common issues that impact food start-ups in bringing new products to market. This article considers the key issues and regulatory considerations to keep in mind when starting a food business.

What does ‘natural’ mean when it is paired with a product name or key ingredient? Our article “What do consumers expect of a ‘natural’ product? The Heilala decision considered” analyses a recent case by the Ad Standards Industry Jury involving when a product labelled as ‘Natural Vanilla’ might be considered misleading or deceptive and provides guidance on the types of considerations that food companies should have in mind if using ‘natural’ in advertising.

Would the way you classify your product influence the Country of Origin claim that you can make on behalf of it? Our article “When re-categorisation of a food-like product as a non-food product may permit a stronger Country of Origin claim to be made” sets out the differences between Country of Origin Labelling requirements for foods and other products.

Our article “When can caffeine be added to a New Zealand supplemented food?” examines the differences in caffeine regulation between the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code and the New Zealand Supplemented Food Standard.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has announced that it will be focusing on franchise agreements in the foodservice sector. We address the key compliance risks facing food industry franchisors in light of recent Australian Federal Court guidance on the requirements of the mandatory Franchising Code of Conduct in our article “ACCC crackdown on food industry franchisors”.

We hope you enjoy this March 2019 edition of FoodLegal Bulletin!

Joe Lederman and John Thisgaard

Editors