The Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) looks likely reconvene a meeting of its Industry Advisory Group (IAG) in late April, hoping to obtain a good response from the industry.
Gavin Williams, chief executive officer of the Packaging Council of Australia, the aim of the IAG is to “provide advice and factual information on the Australian and New Zealand food and packaging industry, including, but not limited to, packaging manufacturing processes, product development, substances of concern, emerging technologies and information on quality assurance and quality control processes.”
He says that, for the IAG meeting, some of the immediate issues on the agenda include: undertaking a risk assessment and resurrecting the questionnaire put out in 2012 seeking information about quality assurance and control practices, adherence to EU/US legislation and developing packaging trends.
He says, “We need to know: does a problem exist with the current Australian regulations and approach concerning food contact packaging and the impact of that packaging on food safety issues? The response from companies to the 2012 questionnaire was minimal. FSANZ requires this information to determine whether a problem exists and whether packaging regulation needs to be re-examined. Another issue is what might be required to overcome any deficiencies identified and what broader issues would need to be considered?”
Industry members wanting to express an opinion on these issues should contact the PCA, or visit www.pca.org.au
