NSW Food Authority | |
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Abbreviation | NSWFA |
Agency overview | |
Formed | 5 April 2004 |
Jurisdictional structure | |
Operations jurisdiction | New South Wales, Australia |
Legal jurisdiction | As per operations jurisdiction |
Operational structure | |
Headquarters | Newington, NSW 33°50′01″S151°03′18″E / 33.83363°S 151.055022°E |
Agency executive |
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Units | List
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Website | |
www.foodauthority.nsw.gov.au twitter.com/NSWFoodAuth |
New South Wales Food Authority (NSW Food Authority) is a statutory authority of Government of New South Wales, responsible for food safety and food labelling regulations in the state as well as consumer food safety promotion. It is part of the DPI Biosecurity and Food Safety Branch within the Department for Primary Industries, which is a part of the Department of Regional NSW.
The authority was established in April 2004 with the amalgamation of SafeFood Production NSW and the food inspection activities of the Department of Health (being the former Food Branch and the food inspection staff of the Area Health Services). SafeFood Production NSW was itself the product of a series of amalgamations of industry-specific organisations. NSW is the first Australian state to consolidate such a wide range of food safety and food labelling functions into a single, central government agency.
The authority enforces the Food Act 2003 (NSW) and associated regulations within New South Wales in respect of all food for sale. The act brings the bi-national Food Standards Code maintained by Food Standards Australia New Zealand into force within the state. The authority designs and monitors food safety schemes under the Food Regulation 2015 for higher risk industry sectors in the state, licenses food businesses under those schemes, receives notifications for non-retail food businesses, investigates food hygiene and labelling complaints for businesses it monitors, coordinates recalls of food products by companies in the state, coordinates the state's input to national food standards policy and implementation, and advises the NSW Minister for Primary Industries on food standards.
Completing the end-to-end remit of the agency, the Food Act also gives the authority a legislative responsibility 'to provide advice, information, community education and assistance in relation to matters connected with food safety or other interests of consumers in food'. [1]
The authority is Australia's first completely integrated or 'through-chain' state food regulation agency, responsible for food safety and food labelling across the food industry, from point of harvest or manufacture through processing, transport, storage and wholesale to point-of-sale and, arguably, point of consumption (see Remit, below). Both policy and enforcement activities are evidence-led.
Before the authority was established, responsibility for food regulation in NSW was divided across a number of state agencies, some with scope limited to specific food sectors such as meat, dairy or seafood or to horizontal parts of the food chain such as retail outlets. Various degrees of segmentation remain in other Australian State and territory jurisdictions. Evolution in the food, transport and trade industries was creating greater complexity in market structures, business reach and government regulation. The establishment of the authority was designed to create a more streamlined, consistent and efficient approach to food regulation in NSW and a single point of contact for both the food industry and public.
Some overlap of government agency remits regulating the sale of food remain, however, with NSW Fair Trading empowered to enforce the Fair Trading Act 1987 (NSW) and, at the federal level, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission enforcing the Trade Practices Act 1974 (Cwlth) and National Measurement Institute, Australia enforcing the Trade Measurement Act 1989 (NSW). Furthermore, local government is also empowered to enforce food standards under the Food Act, mostly at the level of retail food outlets. The authority works with local councils to minimise overlap and duplication at the retail level and enhance consistency of enforcement activities and skills across the state. In July 2008, amendments to the Food Act formalised and mandated the (previously optional) food safety enforcement functions of local government. The amendments enabled the authority to appoint, after consultation, each local council to one of three predefined categories setting out each's food safety enforcement powers and responsibilities.
The Scores on Doors program publishes the hygiene and food safety inspection result achieved by NSW retail food premises. The program rates participating food business’ point-in-time compliance with NSW food safety legislation at time of unannounced inspection by government officers with an emphasis on the food handling practices linked to foodborne illness. When displayed prominently consumers can use this score to help them decide where to eat or buy food. The score can also be published on websites. Scores on Doors has equivalent programs in other jurisdictions designed to reward well-performing businesses, drive food safety culture and ultimately reduce foodborne illness. The NSW program is open to retail food businesses which process and sell food in NSW that is: ready-to-eat, potentially hazardous (i.e. requires temperature control), and for immediate consumption. Examples include restaurants, take away shops, pub bistros, hotels, cafes, bakeries and clubs. Scores are either Good (3 stars), Very Good (4 stars) or Excellent (5 stars); premises found with critical lapses in food safety standards or currently listed on the Name and Shame registers of on-the-spot fines or court fines are not awarded any display certificate.
The program was piloted in 2010, expanded to a trial in participating local government areas in 2011, and in late 2013 was enhanced to encourage further take-up. Participation in the NSW program is voluntary and currently expanding across local governments across the State.
In July 2008 the NSW government passed laws amending existing provisions which allowed the authority to publish details of successful food business prosecutions on its website. The new laws added, for the first time in Australia, provisions allowing for publication of details of penalty notices—akin to 'on-the-spot' fines—issued by enforcement staff for alleged breaches of food safety standards. Known colloquially as 'naming and shaming' food outlets, the initiative was a response to growing public demand for access to food business performance information, freedom of information advocates and the media.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is a large regulatory agency of the United States Department of Labor that originally had federal visitorial powers to inspect and examine workplaces. The United States Congress established the agency under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, which President Richard M. Nixon signed into law on December 29, 1970. OSHA's mission is to "assure safe and healthy working conditions for working men and women by setting and enforcing standards and by providing training, outreach, education, and assistance." The agency is also charged with enforcing a variety of whistleblower statutes and regulations. OSHA's workplace safety inspections have been shown to reduce injury rates and injury costs without adverse effects on employment, sales, credit ratings, or firm survival.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is the chief competition regulator of the Government of Australia, located within the Department of the Treasury. It was established in 1995 with the amalgamation of the Australian Trade Practices Commission and the Prices Surveillance Authority to administer the Trade Practices Act 1974, which was renamed the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 on 1 January 2011. The ACCC's mandate is to protect consumer rights and business rights and obligations, to perform industry regulation and price monitoring, and to prevent illegal anti-competitive behaviour.
In general, compliance means conforming to a rule, such as a specification, policy, standard or law. Compliance has traditionally been explained by reference to the deterrence theory, according to which punishing a behavior will decrease the violations both by the wrongdoer and by others. This view has been supported by economic theory, which has framed punishment in terms of costs and has explained compliance in terms of a cost-benefit equilibrium. However, psychological research on motivation provides an alternative view: granting rewards or imposing fines for a certain behavior is a form of extrinsic motivation that weakens intrinsic motivation and ultimately undermines compliance.
Trading Standards are the local authority departments with the United Kingdom, formerly known as Weights and Measures, that enforce consumer protection legislation.
Law enforcement in Malaysia is performed by numerous law enforcement agencies and primarily the responsibility of the Royal Malaysia Police. Like many federal nations, the nature of the Constitution of Malaysia mandates law and order as a subject of a state, which means that local government bodies also have a role to play in law enforcement, therefore the bulk of the policing lies with the respective states and territories of Malaysia. Below are some of the law enforcement bodies and agencies of Malaysia.
Food policy is the area of public policy concerning how food is produced, processed, distributed, purchased, or provided. Food policies are designed to influence the operation of the food and agriculture system balanced with ensuring human health needs. This often includes decision-making around production and processing techniques, marketing, availability, utilization, and consumption of food, in the interest of meeting or furthering social objectives. Food policy can be promulgated on any level, from local to global, and by a government agency, business, or organization. Food policymakers engage in activities such as regulation of food-related industries, establishing eligibility standards for food assistance programs for the poor, ensuring safety of the food supply, food labeling, and even the qualifications of a product to be considered organic.
A food safety agency or food administration or Food Safety Authority is a government agency responsible for ensuring the safety, quality, and proper labeling of food products within a country or region. These agencies play a crucial role in protecting public health by establishing and enforcing regulations and standards to ensure that food produced, imported, processed, distributed, and sold is safe for consumption.
Standards of identity for food are mandatory requirements that are set by a governing body to determine what a food product must contain to be marketed under a certain name in allowable commerce. Mandatory standards, which differ from voluntary grades and standards applied to agricultural commodities, protect the consumer by ensuring a label accurately reflects what is inside.
Food safety is used as a scientific method/discipline describing handling, preparation, and storage of food in ways that prevent food-borne illness. The occurrence of two or more cases of a similar illness resulting from the ingestion of a common food is known as a food-borne disease outbreak. This includes a number of routines that should be followed to avoid potential health hazards. In this way, food safety often overlaps with food defense to prevent harm to consumers. The tracks within this line of thought are safety between industry and the market and then between the market and the consumer. In considering industry to market practices, food safety considerations include the origins of food including the practices relating to food labeling, food hygiene, food additives and pesticide residues, as well as policies on biotechnology and food and guidelines for the management of governmental import and export inspection and certification systems for foods. In considering market to consumer practices, the usual thought is that food ought to be safe in the market and the concern is safe delivery and preparation of the food for the consumer. Food safety, nutrition and food security are closely related. Unhealthy food creates a cycle of disease and malnutrition that affects infants and adults as well.
Food safety in China is a concern relating to agriculture in the world's most populated country. China's principal crops are rice, corn, wheat, soybeans, and cotton in addition to apples and other fruits and vegetables. China's principal livestock products include pork, beef, dairy, and eggs. The Chinese government oversees agricultural production as well as the manufacture of food packaging, containers, chemical additives, drug production, and business regulation. In recent years, the Chinese government attempted to consolidate food safety regulation with the creation of the State Food and Drug Administration of China in 2003; officials have also been under increasing public and international pressure to solve food safety problems. Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang said, "Food is essential, and safety should be a top priority. Food safety is closely related to people's lives and health and economic development and social harmony," at a State Council meeting in Beijing.
The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) is a cabinet-level agency in the government of California. Established in 1919 by the California State Legislature and signed into law by Governor William Stephens, the Department of Food and Agriculture is responsible for ensuring the state's food safety, the protection of the state's agriculture from invasive species, and promoting the California agricultural industry.
Consumer protection is the practice of safeguarding buyers of goods and services, and the public, against unfair practices in the marketplace. Consumer protection measures are often established by law. Such laws are intended to prevent businesses from engaging in fraud or specified unfair practices in order to gain an advantage over competitors or to mislead consumers. They may also provide additional protection for the general public which may be impacted by a product even when they are not the direct purchaser or consumer of that product. For example, government regulations may require businesses to disclose detailed information about their products—particularly in areas where public health or safety is an issue, such as with food or automobiles.
The Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) is the agency charged with licensing and regulating more than 1.6 million businesses and professionals in the State of Florida, such as alcohol, beverage & tobacco, barbers/cosmetologists, condominiums, spas, hotels and restaurants, real estate agents and appraisers, and veterinarians, among many other industries. On the Department's website, consumers and licensees can verify licenses, file a complaint against licensed or unlicensed individuals, apply for or renew licenses, search food and lodging inspections, search for or request public records and read about recent department initiatives.
Michael R. Taylor is an American lawyer who has played leadership roles on public health and food safety in government, academia, and the private sector, with a major focus on modernizing the U.S. food safety system to prevent foodborne illness. From 2010 to 2016, he was the Deputy Commissioner for Foods and Veterinary Medicine at the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and currently co-chairs the board of STOP Foodborne Illness, a non-profit that supports victims of serious illness and their families in efforts to strengthen food safety culture and practices in government and industry.
The Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) was signed into law by President Barack Obama on January 4, 2011. The FSMA has given the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) new authority to regulate the way foods are grown, harvested and processed. The law grants the FDA a number of new powers, including mandatory recall authority, which the agency has sought for many years. The FSMA requires the FDA to undertake more than a dozen rulemakings and issue at least 10 guidance documents, as well as a host of reports, plans, strategies, standards, notices, and other tasks.
The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), is the public health regulatory agency responsible for ensuring that United States' commercial supply of meat, poultry, and egg products is safe, wholesome, and correctly labeled and packaged. The FSIS draws its authority from the Federal Meat Inspection Act of 1906, the Poultry Products Inspection Act of 1957 and the Egg Products Inspection Act of 1970. The FSIS also acts as a national health department and is responsible for the safety of public food-related establishments as well as business investigation.
Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is a statutory body established under the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India. The FSSAI has been established under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, which is a consolidating statue related to food safety and regulation in India. FSSAI is responsible for protecting and promoting public health through the regulation and supervision of food safety.
Food safety in Australia concerns the production, distribution, preparation, and storage of food in Australia to prevent foodborne illness, also known as food safety. Food Standards Australia New Zealand is responsible for developing food standards for Australia and New Zealand.
Made in Canada and Product of Canada are certification marks designating a claim that Canada is the country of origin of a good. A product label for that good may use these marks, or a qualified version, to present that claim to consumers. The certification marks are voluntary within Canada but may be required on exported goods, to comply with the laws of the country of export.