Labelling and your products

If your business supplies products, you must make sure that they have labels with certain information for consumers. Make sure your product labels meet:

• mandatory information standards including the Country of Origin Food Labelling Information Standard 2016
• industry specific requirements , such as the Food Standards Code
• labelling requirements for imported and exported products

When you design a label, make sure it complies with the Competition and Consumer Act 2010. You must not give false, deceptive or misleading information to customers.

If you make an origin claim, such as ‘made in Australia’ about your products, you should, be aware of your obligations under the Australian Consumer Law. False or misleading origin claims can lead to penalties, so it's important to get it right.

Label designs for pre-packaged goods must comply with national trade measurement laws. These include requirements for the:

• position, size and format of measurement information
• name and address of the packer for articles packed in Australia

If your business sells or manufactures cosmetic products, you must comply with the mandatory standard for cosmetics ingredients labelling.

This standard requires cosmetics to be supplied with a list of ingredients. This is important for consumers who have sensitive skin or suffer from allergic reactions to know what is in the product.

The Australian Border Force (ABF) may seize items that are incorrectly labelled when you import or export products. To ensure that your products are delivered safely, make sure you comply with labelling requirements.