Explanatory Statement
1. Authority
Section 13 of the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Act 1991 (the FSANZ Act) provides that the functions of Food Standards Australia New Zealand (the Authority) include the development of standards and variations of standards for inclusion in the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code (the Code).
Division 2 of Part 3 of the FSANZ Act specifies that the Authority may prepare a proposal for the development or variation of food regulatory measures, including standards. This Division also stipulates the procedure for considering a proposal for the development or variation of food regulatory measures.
FSANZ prepared Proposal P1020 to permit the use of ethyl lauroyl arginate (ELA) as a preservative food additive for sausage and sausage meat containing raw, unprocessed meat. The Authority considered the Proposal in accordance with Division 2 of Part 3 and has approved a draft variation to the Standards.
Following consideration by the COAG Legislative and Governance Forum on Food Regulation[1], section 92 of the FSANZ Act stipulates that the Authority must publish a notice about the standard or draft variation of a standard.
Section 94 of the FSANZ Act specifies that a standard, or a variation of a standard, in relation to which a notice is published under section 92 is a legislative instrument, but is not subject to parliamentary disallowance or sunsetting under the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.
2. Purpose and operation
The Authority has approved the use of ELA as a preservative food additive to treat sausage and sausage meat containing raw, unprocessed meat. Currently, the permission to treat the food category 8.3 – Processed comminuted meat, poultry and game products with ELA does not include the subcategory sausage and sausage meat containing raw, unprocessed meat.
3. Documents incorporated by reference
The variations to food regulatory measures do not incorporate any documents by reference.
4. Consultation
In accordance with the procedure in Division 2 of Part 3 of the FSANZ Act, the Authority’s consideration of Proposal P1020 has included one round of public consultation following an assessment and the preparation of a draft variation and associated report. Submissions were called for on 24 April 2012 for a three-week consultation period.
A Regulation Impact Statement was not required because the proposed variation to Standard 1.3.1 is likely to have a minor impact on business and individuals.
5. Statement of compatibility with human rights
This instrument is exempt from the requirements for a statement of compatibility with human rights as it is a non-disallowable instrument under section 94 of the FSANZ Act.
6. Variation
The variation amends Schedule 1 of Standard 1.3.1 to allow the preservative food additive ELA to be added to sausage and sausage meat containing raw, unprocessed meat. The maximum level of ELA that can be added to this food type subcategory is 315 mg/km. This is the same maximum permitted level of ELA as for the main category of processed comminuted meat, poultry and game products.
[1] Previously known as the Australia and New Zealand Food Regulation Ministerial Council