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Response to Scoping Paper on the Review of the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Act 1991 November 2020

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Response to Scoping Paper on the Review of the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Act 1991 November 2020 Response to Scoping Paper on the Review of the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Act 1991 November 2020 Dietitians Australia is the national association of the dietetic profession with over 7500 members, and branches in each state and territory. Dietitians Australia is the leading voice in nutrition and dietetics and advocates for food and nutrition for healthier people and healthier communities. Dietitians Australia appreciates the opportunity to provide feedback to FSANZ regarding the Scoping Paper on the Review of the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Act 1991 (Cth). Contact Person: Elizabeth World Position: Policy Officer Organisation: Dietitians Australia Address: 1/8 Phipps Close, Deakin ACT 2600 Telephone: 02 6189 1200 Email: [email protected] A 1/8 Phipps Close, Deakin ACT 2600 | T 02 6189 1200 E [email protected] W dietitiansaustralia.org.au | ABN 34 008 521 480 Dietitians Australia and the associated logo is a trademark of the Dietitians Association of Australia. Dietitians Australia interest in this consultation As the leading organisation of nutrition and dietetic professionals in Australia, Dietitians Australia (DA) supports reforms to the food regulation system via the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Act 1991 (Cth) (the Act). The Accredited Practising Dietitian (APD) program provides an assurance of safety and quality and is the foundation of self-regulation of the dietetic profession in Australia. Accredited Practising Dietitians have an important role in the food system to support consumers in making healthy food choices and companies with product formulation, marketing, consumer education and compliance. This submission was prepared by the Dietitians Australia Food Regulatory and Policy Committee following the Conflict of Interest Management Policy and process approved by the Board of Dietitians Australia. This policy can be viewed on the Dietitians Australia website. The committee’s membership is comprised of Dietitians Australia members with wide ranging expertise in areas including public health, food systems, food industry and academia. Recommendations 1. Add additional considerations to which the Authority must have regard to: a. The environmental sustainability and minimising the environmental impact of the food supply. b. Support to protect and improve the healthiness of the food supply. 2. Incorporate activities regarding coordination of critical food safety incident investigations as a core statutory function in the Act. 3. Maintaining current function of providing assistance to industry intending to make applications to create or vary food regulatory measures, to support long-term nutrition and health, and to enable an agile ‘future-proofed’ food regulatory system. 4. FSANZ should not take on the responsibility of pursuing and/or coordinating food crime investigations as this function suitably sits currently with expert bodies such as the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and relevant Government agencies. 5. The Act be amended to specifically provide for scheduled and orderly review of the standards to ensure they are still relevant and fit for purpose. 6. The criteria for decisions on timeframes for applications must be clear, and outcomes transparently communicated. 7. When making decisions on applications, their impact, including public health significance, should be a key criterion. 8. FSANZ should play a central role in evaluating food-health claims prior to businesses being permitted to use the claim in market 9. The FSANZ Board have a quota for members with expertise in different subject areas. 10. The FSANZ Board adopts an appointment cycle whereby half the Board change at a set time point, preserving balance between corporate knowledge and fresh perspectives. Response to Scoping Paper on the Review of the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Act 1991 2 Discussion Objectives 1a. Is there still a case for food regulation? Yes. Food regulation is essential to ensure the production, supply and sale of safe and healthy food. Food regulation must extend beyond food safety and ensure the food supply promotes long-term health of Australians. This includes: • Consistent, accurate accessible evidence-based information to enhance consumer capacity and confidence to make informed choices to support positive health outcomes • Consumer assurance that potentially injurious products will be restricted • Incentive for industry to develop, produce and market healthy products Well-designed regulation builds and supports the integrity, efficiency and innovation in Australian and New Zealand food industries, which in turn supports global competitiveness. As the prevalence and social and economic burden of non-communicable food related illnesses continue to increase there are long-term global opportunities in ensuring our food is safe and supports good health. 1b. What market failure(s) should governments seek to address through regulation of food? Regulation of food should not seek to only address market failures but protect public health through and reducing diet-related chronic disease and promoting healthy eating behaviours. Without effective regulation, market failures are inevitable because of the inevitable variation between consumer and industry goals and knowledge. Without the requirements to ensure safe food production and provide independent, evidence-based product information, consumers cannot be confident that their food is safe. Regulation is also required to ensure consumers can access adequate accurate information on ingredients and nutritional composition of their food to enable informed food choice. Key market failures the government should seek to address through food regulation include existing and market incentives for manufacturers to introduce new unhealthy products, and limited or misleading information that constrains consumer capacity to make informed choices. Examples include lack of added sugar labelling and lack of energy labelling on alcohol. 2. Are there other significant focus areas that should be considered as part of the Review? The Review should have a significant focus on ensuring that food regulation is as much about long- term public health and wellbeing as it is about food safety. Dietitians Australia considers it is a false and unhelpful dichotomy to position the debate as consumers versus industry. The position is analogous to effective share market regulation to build market integrity and investment. If Australian and New Zealand food regulation supports the integrity and reputation of our food industry for safety and health, this will enhance the global market for our products, especially as the health and economic global burden of non-communicable food-related illness increases. 3. To what degree are the current legislated objectives an issue for the system? What are the types of problems that different stakeholder groups face as a consequence? FSANZ has achieved the Object of the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Act 1991 (Cth) (the Act) as it was written 30 years ago. Now is a good opportunity to review the Objectives to ensure the purpose of the Act fits with the changing health and food environments in Australia and New Zealand. The following points must be considered. Response to Scoping Paper on the Review of the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Act 1991 3 Chronic disease prevention – Chronic disease risk is a significant health problem in Australia1 that can be moderated by reorienting the food supply to facilitate increased consumption of healthy foods and reduced intake of unhealthy foods, and providing consumers with sufficient, accurate, accessible information to make an informed choice. Although the current objective of the Act makes general reference to public health protection, the four associated goals do not explicitly refer to reduction of diet-related chronic disease or facilitating national dietary intakes consistent with other key government recommendations such as the Dietary Guidelines. As such the current objectives do not provide a clear mandate to prioritise nutritional considerations in risk assessments and standard setting. Food supply in remote communities – Australians living in rural and remote areas experience different food supply issues to Australians living in metropolitan areas. Often, Australians living in rural and remote areas have a greater reliance on canned and dried products for their fruit and vegetable intake.2, 3 These products are high in sugar and salt to ensure food safety but are not conducive to good long-term health. It is important that FSANZ is cognisant of remote communities’ reliance on processed foods when making food regulation decisions, and ensures that this vulnerable section of Australians have access to as healthy foods as possible. Environmental and social costs of food production and food choice - Focus on sustainable production of a secure and safe food supply to meet the challenges of a changing climate. 4a. What would be the impact of implementing "Reform idea 1 – Define ‘public health’ and ‘safety’ in legislation to affirm the inclusion of long-term health and nutrition as a core objective", and how could the outcome best be achieved? Reform idea 1 would have a net positive impact. Dietitians Australia recommends both suggested changes ‘protecting public health and safety’ and (Option 1) and aligning wording (Option 2) should be adopted. Short and long-term health impacts can compete, for example increased sugar and salt content
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