G/TBT/N/AUS/112  
8 October 2019  
(19-6477) Page: 1/2 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade  Original:  English  
 
  
NOTIFICATION  
The following notification is being circulated in accordance with Article 10.6  
 
1. Notifying Member:  AUSTRALIA   
If applicable, name of local government involved (Article 3.2 and 7.2):   
2. Agency responsible:  Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ)  
Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers , email and website 
addresses, if available) of agency or authority designated to handle comments 
regarding the notification shall be indicated if different from above:   
Department of For eign Affairs and Trade  
tbt.enquiry@dfat.gov.au  
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [X], 2.10.1 [   ], 5.6.2 [   ], 5.7.1 [   ], other :  
4. Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicable, otherwise national tariff 
heading. ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where applicable):  Imported 
and domestically produced packaged alcoholic beverages required to bear a label for sale 
in Australia and New Zealand.; - Other wine; grape must with fermentation prevente d or 
arrested by the addition of alcohol: (HS 22042); Other fermented beverages (for 
example, cider, perry, mead); mixtures of fermented beverages and mixtures of 
fermented beverages and non -alcoholic beverages, not elsewhere specified or included 
(HS 2206 ); Undenatured ethyl alcohol of an alcoholic strength by volume of 80% vol or 
higher; ethyl alcohol and other spirits, denatured, of any strength (HS 2207); 
Undenatured ethyl alcohol of an alcoholic strength by volume of less than 80% vol; spirits, 
liqueur s and other spirituous beverages (HS 2208)  
5. Title, number of pages and language(s) of the notified document:  Proposal P1050 
Pregnancy warning labels on alcoholic beverages: Assessment Report (93 page(s), in 
English)  
6. Description of content:  The proposal considers changing the Australia New Zealand 
Food Standards Code (the Code) to require mandatory pregnancy warning labels on 
packaged alcoholic beverages sold in Australia and New Zealand.  
FSANZ undertook an assessment and developed a proposed variation to the Code. 
Standards affected are:  
(a) Standard 1.1.2 Definitions used throughout the Code;  
(b) Standard  1.2.1 Requirements to have labels or otherwise provide information, and;  
(c) 2.7.1 Labelling of alcoholic beverages and food containing alcohol.  
The proposed variation requires a pregnancy warning label on most packaged alcoholic 
beverages with more than  1.15% alcohol by volume with prescribed legibility and format 
for the label. The pregnancy warning label includes a specified pictogram, signal words 
Health Warning  and statement Any amount of alcohol can harm your baby . The location 
of the warning label is not prescribed. A 2 year transition period is provided, with an 
exemption for alcoholic beverages packaged and labelled before the end of the transition 
period from having to carry the pregnancy warning label.  G/TBT/N/AUS/112  
 
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  7. Objective and rationale, including the nature of urgent problems where 
applicable:  Drinking alcohol during pregnancy can be associated with various types of 
harm to the unborn child. These harms may include physical, cognitive, behavioural and 
neurodevelopmental disabilities with possible life -long implications. Fetal Alcohol 
Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is an umbrella term used to describe the range of possible 
harms. FASD is preventable by avoiding alcohol consumption during pregnancy. The 
objective of the pregnancy warning label is to provide a clear and easy to understand 
prompt to remind pregnant women at both the point of sale and the potential point of 
consumption, not to drink any alcohol. The ultimate objective is to protect human health 
and safety and enhance consumer informat ion and labelling. ; Consumer information, 
labelling; Protection of human health or safety  
8. Relevant documents:   
Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code (English)  
Available at http://www.foodstandards.gov.au/code/Pages/default.aspx  
9. Proposed date of adoption:  31 March 2020  
Proposed date of entry into force:  31 March 2022  
10. Final date for comments:  24 November 2019  
11. Texts available from:  National enquiry point [X] or address, telephone and fax 
numbers and email and website addresses, if available , of other body:   
http://www.foodstandards.gov.au/code/proposals/Pages/P1050Pregnancywarninglabels
onalcoholicbeverages.aspx