G/SPS/N/AUS/424  
 
31 May 2017  
(17-2912) Page: 1/2 
Committee on Sanitary and Ph ytosanitary Measures  Original: English  
 
  NOTIFICATION  
1. Notifying Member: AUSTRALIA  
If applicable, name of local government involved:  
2. Agency responsible: Australian Government Department of Agriculture and Water 
Resources  
3. Products covered (provide tariff item  number(s) as specified in national 
schedules deposited with the WTO; ICS numbers should be provided in 
addition, where applicable): Coconut, seafood (bivalve molluscs, cooked crustacea, 
finfish), cheese, meat, spices, seaweed, peanuts and pistachios and t heir products, 
sesame seeds and sesame seed products, specified plants and fungi.  
4. Regions or countries likely to be affected, to the extent relevant or practicable : 
[X] All trading partners  
[ ] Specific regions or countries:  
5. Title of the notified  document: Proposals for Changes to the Inspection and Analysis 
of Imported Foods – May 2017.  Language(s): English . Number of pages: 22 
6. Description of content: Australia has prepared science -based risk statements on the 
risks associated with certain im ported foods and these are published on the Food 
Standards Australia New Zealand website . 
In response to these risk statements, Australia is pro posing legislative changes that 
would result in changes to the inspection and analysis of some imported foods.  
Specific detail on the changes to the inspection and analysis of foods is available at 
www.agriculture.gov.au/import/goods/food/notices/ifn -09-17. 
The proposed changes include the following:  
Bivalve molluscs and foods containing bivalve molluscs (bivalve mollusc products) would 
require negotiated government certificat ion to be imported into Australia.  Bivalve 
mollusc products would be classified as a risk food so they could be inspected and 
analysed for biotoxins and microorganisms; Foods containing cooked prawns that are 
ready -to-eat would be classified as a risk food  so they could be inspected and analysed 
for Vibrio Cholerae ; Dried coconut and cooked crustaceans (other than cooked prawns) 
would be reclassified so that they are no longer risk foods and therefore subject to a 
lower rate of inspection and analysis Foods ; specified in Schedule 23  of the Australia 
New Zealand Food Standards Code (prohibited plants and fungi) would be classified as 
risk food so these could be more efficiently targetted for i nspection. Other legislative 
changes are also proposed to align the imported food legislation with the food that is 
considered to pose a medium or high risk to public health as described in risk 
statements published by FSANZ. These proposed changes would r elate to finfish, 
seaweed, cheese, meat, spices, sesame seeds and sesame seed products and foods 
containing peanuts or pistachios.  Subject to consideration of issues raised on the 
proposed changes, it would be expected that these changes would take effect in 
September or October 2017.  G/SPS/N/AUS/424  
 
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  7. Objective and rationale: [X]  food safety, [  ] animal health, [  ] plant protection, 
[ ] protect humans from animal/plant pest or disease, [  ] protect territory from 
other damage from pests.  
8. Is there a relevant internat ional standard? If so, identify the standard:  
[X] Codex Alimentarius Commission (e.g.  title or serial number of Codex 
standard or related text) : 
- Code of practice for fish and fishery products CAC/RCP 52 -2003, 
- Code of Hygienic Production of Milk and Mil k Products CAC/RCP 57 -2004, 
- Guidelines on the Application of General Principles of Food Hygiene to the 
Control of Listeria monocytogenes in Foods CAC/GL 61 -2007, 
- Codex Standard for Live and Raw Bivalve Molluscs CODEX STAN 292 -2008. 
[ ] World Organizati on for Animal Health (OIE) (e.g.  Terrestrial or Aquatic 
Animal Health Code, chapter number) :  
[ ] International Plant Protection Convention (e.g.  ISPM number) :  
[ ] None  
Does this proposed regulation conform to the relevant international standard?   
[ ] Yes   [X] No  
If no, describe, whenever possible, how and why it deviates from the 
international standard: Seaweed is currently inspected and analysed for iodine and 
must contain no more than 1000 mg/kg of iodine on a dry weight basis. As part of the 
proposed  legislative changes and changes to the inspection and analysis of seaweed, 
this limit would not change but the legislation would be amended to clarify the particular 
kinds of seaweed to which this limit applies (seaweed of the Phaeophyceae class).  
9. Other relevant documents and language(s) in which these are available: Not 
applicable.   
10. Proposed date of adoption (dd/mm/yy) : August or September 2017  
Proposed date of publication (dd/mm/yy) : May 2017  
11. Proposed date of entry into force: [  ] Six month s from date of publication , 
and/or  (dd/mm/yy) : September/October 2017 with certification of bivalve molluscs 
and bivalve mollusc products 12 months later.  
[ ] Trade facilitating measure  
12. Final date for comments: [  ] Sixty days from the date of circula tion of the 
notification and/or (dd/mm/yy) : 31 July 2017 (5 pm Australian Eastern Standard 
Time)  
Agency or authority designated to handle comments: [X]  National Notification 
Authority, [X]  National Enquiry Point. Address, fax number and e -mail address 
(if available) of other body:  
The Australian SPS Notification Point  
GPO Box 858  
Canberra ACT 2601  
Australia  
Fax: +(61 2) 6272 3678  
E-mail: sps.contact@agriculture.gov.au  
13. Text(s)  available from: [X]  National Notification Authority, [X]  National Enquiry 
Point. Address, fax number and e -mail address (if available) of other body:   
Specific detail is available at: 
http://www.agriculture.gov.au/import/goods/food/notices/ifn -09-17.