Notifications for Australia (406 notifications)

This Proposal seeks to amend the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code to align certain maximum residue limits (MRLs) for various agricultural and veterinary chemicals so that they are consistent with other national regulations relating to the safe and effective use of agricultural and veterinary chemicals.

Draft pest risk analysis and the proposed measures to achieve Australia's appropriate level of protection for the import of fresh strawberry fruit from the Republic of Korea. The draft report includes: - Summary; - Introduction, including Australia's biosecurity policy framework and this pest risk analysis; - Method for pest risk analysis; - Korea's commercial production practices for fresh strawberries; - Pest risk assessments for quarantine pests; - Pest risk management; and - Pest categorisation.

The Australian Government is considering the implications of a range of proposed options for reform to the management of imported food. These reforms aim to better protect the health of Australian consumers by strengthening the ability to identify, respond to and manage food safety risks. The options are broadly similar to recent or planned reforms in Canada, New Zealand and the United States. Information about the proposed changes and the Consultation Regulation Impact Statement (Consultation RIS) can be found on the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources website: http://www.agriculture.gov.au/imported-food-reform. The Consultation RIS examines issues including the estimated benefits and costs of the proposed reform options on food importing businesses, consumers and the Australian Government. The reform options are consistent with the Codex Alimentarius Guidelines for Food Import Control Systems and address inconsistencies between Australia's imported and domestic food legislation. Imported food will continue to be required to meet the same food safety standards as food produced in Australia. Elements of the proposed reform options likely to be of most interest to trading partners include: Supply chain assurance (pages 36-40; 56-58 of the Consultation RIS) The proposed reforms will require importers to make a declaration that they have records that provide supply chain assurance for 'prescribed' foods, where border inspection alone would be insufficient to assure the safety of the food. These foods require preventative controls to be in place during their production to ensure safety as border testing alone is insufficient to provide this assurance. See Appendix B for an indicative list of prescribed foods. Australian importers will be able to demonstrate that the food safety hazards associated with higher risk foods have been subjected to preventative controls in a food safety management system by providing a: - recognised government certificate (page 37) or; - recognised non-government certificate, such as certification of a HACCP based food safety management scheme. Broader emergency powers (pages 22 and 58-59) The proposed reforms will extend the use of holding orders to restrict the importation of food if there are reasonable grounds to believe the food needs to be restricted to protect public health and safety. Recognise a foreign country's food safety regulatory system (pages 45-47; 60) The authority to recognise foreign country equivalence, exempting all imports from border intervention except where there is evidence of non-compliance or a food safety risk. Traceability (pages 47-53; 60) It is proposed that for each consignment of food imported, importers in Australia will need to have accessible records that show who they bought it from and who they sold it to. Australia welcomes feedback from trading partners, including answers to specific questions posed in Chapter 6: Trade Implications (pages 56-62). All page numbers refer to the Consultation RIS.

The web link provided in the original notification is incorrect. Please use this link to reach the web page associated with this notification: https://bicon.agriculture.gov.au/biconweb4.0

The department has released a draft review of the risk management of cooked turkey meat from the United States of America for a 60-day consultation period. The draft review recommends that: - cooking turkey meat to a minimum core temperature of 76.6 °C (170 °F) for at least 30 minutes, sourcing turkey meat from abattoirs and processing facilities approved by the USDA and importing muscle meat only (no whole birds), will reduce any biosecurity risks of turkey pathogens identified to a level that is consistent with Australia's ALOP. Submissions proposing equivalence measures for cooking time and temperature will be assessed on a case-by-case basis. The department intends to release a final review on the risk management of cooked turkey meat from the United States of America following assessment of submissions received in response to the draft review.

The requirement for an import permit will be removed. The goods will still have to meet Australia's import conditions to manage biosecurity risks associated with the goods to an acceptable level. The BICON import conditions for animal based retorted goods for human consumption will require the retorted (canned) goods be accompanied by a veterinary certificate issued by the Government Authority in the country of manufacture. This veterinary certification will need to certify to the import conditions described in the notified document. These import conditions are for all animal based retorted goods for human consumption, excluding retorted: goods from New Zealand; fish products; plant products; snails; and goods containing less than 5 % meat. Less restrictive conditions remain available for these goods. It is expected these changes will take effect later this year. The new import conditions for retorted goods for human consumption and all other commodities will continue to be available through the Department's Biosecurity Import Conditions system (BICON) at: http://www.bicon.agriculture.gov.au/biconweb4.0.

This Proposal seeks to amend the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code to align certain maximum residue limits (MRLs) for various agricultural and veterinary chemicals so that they are consistent with other national regulations relating to the safe and effective use of agricultural and veterinary chemicals.

The Australian Government Department of Agriculture and Water Resources has finalised its review of policy for the importation of Calla lily (Zantedeschia species) dormant tubers into Australia from all countries. This review was initiated in response to requests from Australian industry and the Ministry for Primary Industries New Zealand to improve import conditions for Zantedeschia dormant tubers. This final review of policy reviews the quarantine pests of Zantedeschia dormant tubers, evaluates the appropriateness of existing import conditions in addressing the identified risks and recommends changes to the existing policy where appropriate. This review also recommends alternative import conditions for Zantedeschia dormant tubers produced under a systems approach or certification scheme. The draft review of policy was published on the Australian Government Department of Agriculture and Water Resources' website on 29 July 2015 for a 30 day stakeholder consultation period and was published as an SPS notification with reference number G/SPS/N/AUS/368.

The Australian Government Department of Agriculture and Water Resources has completed this risk analysis in response to the market access request for table grapes from India into Australia. The final report recommends a combination of risk management measures and a system of operational procedures that will reduce the risk associated with the importation of table grapes from India to achieve Australias appropriate level of protection. The final report recommends that the importation of table grapes into Australia from India meets Australias biosecurity requirements subject to a range of risk management measures, including measures for fruit flies (two species), Kanzawa spider mite, leaf rolling moth, mealybugs (four species), thrips (two species), spotted wing drosophila, grapevine phylloxera, black rot, brown rot and grapevine leaf rust. The draft report for this risk analysis was published on the Australian Government Department of Agriculture and Water Resources website on 22 July 2015 for a 30 day stakeholder consultation period and was published as an SPS notification with reference number G/SPS/N/AUS/366 on 27 July 2015. The completed final report is available in English on the Australian Government Department of Agriculture and Water Resources website at http://www.agriculture.gov.au/biosecurity/risk-analysis/memos.

The Department of Agriculture and Water Resources has released a final review of the risk management of honey bee semen. The final review was completed following assessment of submissions from stakeholders. The final review concludes that: - Imports be permitted from those countries that are currently approved to export queen honey bees to Australia; - Risk management measures are required to prevent the introduction of the Africanised honey bee (Apis mellifera scutellata), an undesirable sub-type of the European honey bee; and - Restrictions on entry of honey bee semen to the state of Western Australia due to that state's differing honey bee health status. The report is available at: http://www.agriculture.gov.au/biosecurity/risk-analysis/animal/honey-bee-semen. The department released the final review on 20 June 2016 and the measures are in force from that date.

This Proposal seeks to amend the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code to align certain maximum residue limits (MRLs) for various agricultural and veterinary chemicals so that they are consistent with other national regulations relating to the safe and effective use of agricultural and veterinary chemicals.

The Australian Government, through the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources, is reminding industry stakeholders and clients that the Biosecurity Act 2015 commences today, 16 June 2016. The Australian Government, through the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources, advises that as of today, 16 June 2016, the Biosecurity Act replaces Quarantine Act, as the primary piece of commonwealth biosecurity legislation in Australia. The Biosecurity Act has been developed in consultation with industry, agricultural stakeholders, state and territory governments, environmental groups, health professionals, international trading partners and the general public. If you have any questions regarding how to operate under the Biosecurity Act, please contact the Biosecurity Implementation Branch at newbiosecuritylegislation@agriculture.gov.au or call 1800 040 629. The Biosecurity Act 2015 and supporting instruments can be viewed on the Federal Register of Legislation (formerly ComLaw) website at https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2015A00061. Importers, brokers, port operators and those involved in transport or supply chain logistics are advised to make sure they understand the legislation including changes that may affect your industry. In some defined areas, the legislation makes provision for a transition period to allow businesses time to become compliant with new requirements. For information on transitional arrangements, please refer to the department's website or the Biosecurity (Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Act 2015 at https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2015A00062. The department's website has dedicated information on the new legislation. You can find this information at http://www.agriculture.gov.au/biosecuritylegislation.

The Australian Government, through the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources, has released finalised legislative instruments under the Biosecurity Act 2015. Finalised legislative instruments under the Biosecurity Act 2015 are now publically available Federal Register of Legislation website. This includes instruments such as the: - Biosecurity (Prohibited and Conditionally Non-prohibited Goods) Determination 2016 - First Point of Entry Determinations - Biosecurity (Methods of Ballast Water Management) Approval 2016 - Biosecurity (Acceptable Ballast Water exchange Area) Declaration 2016 - Biosecurity (Reportable Biosecurity Incidents) Determination 2016 The new legislation was developed in consultation with a range of stakeholders including industry, state and territory governments, health professionals, environmental groups, trading partners and the general public. Industry stakeholders and clients are reminded that the Biosecurity Act 2015 will commence in less than two weeks, on 16 June 2016. Vessel, airline and aircraft operators and those exporting goods to Australia, are advised to make sure they understand the legislation including changes that may affect their industry after commencement. BICON remains the department's online source for import conditions and permit applications. In some defined areas, the legislation makes provision for a transition period to allow businesses time to become compliant with new requirements. For information on transitional arrangements please refer to the department's website or the Biosecurity (Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Act 2015 at https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2015A00062. The department's website has dedicated information on the new legislation to help you understand what has changed. You can find this information at www.agriculture.gov.au/biosecuritylegislation. For more information, or to make a submission, please visit: www.agriculture.gov.au/biosecuritylegislation or contact the Biosecurity Implementation Branch at newbiosecuritylegislation@agriculture.gov.au.

This Proposal seeks to amend the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code to align certain maximum residue limits (MRLs) for various agricultural and veterinary chemicals so that they are consistent with other national regulations relating to the safe and effective use of agricultural and veterinary chemicals.

On commencement of the new Biosecurity Act 2015 on 16 June 2016, there will be changes to import conditions and the requirement for import permits for some goods entering Australia. - An increased number of goods may not require an import permit if importers can meet the specified import conditions on the Australian Government's Biosecurity Import Conditions System (BICON). Goods affected include selected fresh produce, plant products, animal feed, peat, used machinery and tyres. - Import conditions will change for selected veterinary products. - Mined fertiliser in bags of 100kg or less will require an import permit. Details of the changes to import conditions and import permits for specific products are found in the Australian Government's Industry Advice Notice 37-2016 http://www.agriculture.gov.au/import/industry-advice/ian/16/37-2016. The import conditions for these goods will be updated on BICON on 16 June 2016. BICON will remain the primary source of information on Australia's import conditions. It will provide the import conditions and requirements including any official certification required from the exporting country's national plant protection organization that an importer must meet. Visit BICON via http://www.agriculture.gov.au/import/online-services/bicon For further information please see the IPPC notification at https://www.ippc.int/en/countries/australia/reportingobligation/2016/05/changes-to-import-conditions-for-selected-goods-entering-australia-from-16-june-2016/.

The Australian Government, through the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources, is reminding industry stakeholders and clients that the Biosecurity Act 2015 will commence in one month, on 16 June 2016. The new legislation was developed in consultation with a range of stakeholders including industry, state and territory governments, health professionals, environmental groups, trading partners and the general public. The final package of regulations consists of: - The Biosecurity Regulation 2016; - The Biosecurity Charges Imposition (General) Regulation 2016; - The Biosecurity Charges Imposition (Customs) Regulation 2016; - The Biosecurity (Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Regulation 2016; and - The Quarantine Repeal Proclamation 2016. You can view the regulations on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments (formerly ComLaw) website at https://www.legislation.gov.au/Search/biosecurity%20regulation. Importers, brokers, port operators and those involved in transport or supply chain logistics are advised to make sure they understand the legislation including changes that may affect their industry after commencement on 16 June 2016. Consultation on the following draft Determinations closes 17 May 2016: - Biosecurity (Prohibited and Conditionally Non-prohibited Goods) Determination 2016; and - Biosecurity (Reportable Biosecurity Incidents) Determination 2016. Other legislative instruments (declarations and determinations made by the Director of Biosecurity) will be made available on the department's website shortly. In some key areas, the legislation makes provision for a transition period to allow businesses time to become compliant with new requirements. For more information on transitional arrangements in the Biosecurity Act access the Biosecurity (Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Act 2015 at https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2015A00062. For more information including an interactive eLearning tool for industry on the new legislation, visit http://www.agriculture.gov.au/biosecurity/legislation/new-biosecurity-legislation. For more information, or to make a submission, please visit: http://www.agriculture.gov.au/biosecuritylegislation or contact the Biosecurity Implementation Branch at newbiosecuritylegislation@agriculture.gov.au.

This Proposal seeks to amend the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code to align certain maximum residue limits (MRLs) for various agricultural and veterinary chemicals so that they are consistent with other national regulations relating to the safe and effective use of agricultural and veterinary chemicals.

Australia is conducting science-based reviews on the risks associated with certain imported foods. As each review is completed, they are published on the Food Standards Australia New Zealand website. In response to the risk assessments on cheese, Australia recently amended its food safety legislation, the Imported Food Control Order 2001 related to the classification of cheese as a risk food. These changes are summarised as follows: 1. Cheese previously described as "soft, semi-soft and fresh cheese", will be described as "Cheese in which growth of Listeria monocytogenes can occur". Cheese with characteristics known to support the growth of this pathogen is classified as risk food and will be analysed for Listeria monocytogenes. Analysis for E. coli and Salmonella will no longer be conducted. More information is published on the following webpage Cheese in which growth of Listeria monocytogenes can occur. 2. Raw milk cheese is classified as a risk food and imports will be permitted under certain conditions. Countries wanting to export raw milk cheese to Australia can apply for assessment of whether their country's raw milk cheese production system is equivalent to the system in Australia. A government certification arrangement will be established to facilitate trade if the country meets Australia's biosecurity requirements, and demonstrates equivalence and compliance with applicable standards. Raw milk cheese must comply with the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code Standard 4.2.4 Primary production and processing standard for dairy products. When this standard was developed, Food Standards Australia New Zealand notified in July 2014 in G/SPS/N/AUS/343 and August 2014 in G/SPS/N/AUS/343/Add.1. These notified of updates to the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code Standard 4.2.4 Primary production and processing standard for dairy products to include the safe production of raw milk cheese. Australia accepted comments on the scientific justification of these amendments at that time, so Australia is not inviting comment a second time. Information on the eligibility of trading partners to export raw milk cheese to Australia is available at the following webpage Raw milk cheese: eligibility of countries to export to Australia.

In response to the requests received from stakeholders, it has been decided to amend the final date for comments.

This Proposal seeks to include all other foods MRLs or the alternate all other foods except animal commodities MRLs, for the presence in food commodities of inadvertent residues of agricultural and veterinary (agvet) chemicals currently listed in Schedule 20 in the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code. It addresses the long-standing problem of the zero tolerance approach to the presence of low level inadvertent agvet chemical residues in food commodities (domestically produced and imported) sold in Australia. The all other foods MRLs were proposed using a pilot methodology developed for an initial sub-set of twenty-one chemicals already listed in the Code, based on case-by-case risk assessment including dietary exposure assessment. The all other foods MRLs apply to foods other than the primary commodity, raw agricultural commodity or derived foods that have MRLs currently listed in the Code for the particular chemical.