New labelling laws for EVOO sold in Australia

From July 1, all extra virgin olive oil produced or sold in Australia must comply with new country of origin labelling laws.

The new laws will make more clear that any non-Australian added ingredients are included by the use of the graphical bar showing the percentage of Australian ingredients and the use of the ‘made in’ claim instead of the ‘product of’ claim.

 –  David Valmorbida, Australian Olive Oil Association

The new labelling laws say that all extra virgin olive oils imported to Australia must display their country of origin in a text statement on the labels. Exporters to Australia also have the option of including a shaded bar chart on labels indicating the percentage of Australian grown or produced ingredients in their product.

These laws have been introduced as a result of consumer pressure following a hepatitis A outbreak in Australia in February 2015 that was linked to contaminated Australian-packaged frozen berries imported from Canada and China.

New AMAG food label
Example of the new AMAG food label

Under the new laws, the green-and-gold Australian Made, Australian Grown (AMAG) triangle kangaroo logo is mandatory on Australian grown, produced or made EVOO labels. However, from July 1 it cannot be used as a standalone logo on EVOO labels. It must now be incorporated into a panel on the new country of origin labels.

The Australian Made Campaign will no longer be able to license food products to use the logo as a country-of-origin certification trade mark. This means that Australian producers of extra virgin olive oil will not have to pay for a license to use the logo.

Independent research carried out by Roy Morgan in 2012 showed that almost all Australian consumers (98.8%) recognise the logo, and it is the logo which gives the vast majority (88.6%) of Australian consumers strong confidence that a product is Australian.

Information about the new mandatory country-of-origin information panel can be found at www.foodlabels.industry.gov.au.

A previously published article about the new laws in the Olive Oil Times quoted South Australian EVOO producer, Elisi Grove owner Leon Bettio: “Knowing these laws were coming in since last year, and having undergone a rebrand including designing new labels, we simply had the new country of origin logos incorporated into the labels since last year. It appears that more Australian consumers are interested in supporting local EVOOs that they consider to be good quality, so being able to clearly see it on the label should make it easier for them to do so.”

Asked whether it has been simple for Australian EVOO producers to comply with the new labelling laws, The President of the Australian Olive Oil Association, David Valmorbida said: “Admittedly, there is the important task and cost of updating packaging and labelling to comply with the new laws.”

It is important to note that the new labelling requirements are not mandatory for exported olive oil. Businesses wishing to use the AMAG logo on exported food can choose to use the new labels or continue to use the standard logo under a licence with the Australian Made campaign..