Dairy and meat producers will be protected from the competition of plant-based products with accurate labelling.
A meeting with industry representatives to discuss accurate labelling of plant-based products was recently held by Federal Agriculture Minister David Littleproud.
Members of the plant-based, meat, dairy, egg, manufacturing and retail sectors attended the meeting.
Mr Littleproud said truthful food labelling was a Federal Government priority.
“I want all of our agricultural industries to grow and succeed and for this to happen we need a fair playing field on food labelling,” Mr Littleproud said.
“I am sympathetic to concerns from producers of genuine meat and dairy products who are forced to contend with highly creative, and sometimes misleading, advertising and labelling of plant-based foods and drinks.
“Seeking more truthful labelling and protecting the reputation of genuine meat and dairy products is not an attack on fake meat and milk.
“On the contrary, I am confident the massive demand for protein presents huge opportunities for all food producers, and I remain committed to giving our growers greater opportunities to be part of the globally thriving plant-based industry.”
Mr Littleproud said plant-based industries provide crucial jobs to many Australians living in rural communities, both on-farm and through the food manufacturing supply chain.
He said the meeting was a chance to bring industry participants together to work towards a common approach for improving the clarity of product labelling for consumers.
“More accurate and truthful labelling of plant-based products will prevent consumers from being misled and protect against the misuse of the meat and dairy sectors’ reputations,” he said.
“There is a place for both plant-based and genuine meat and dairy products in Australia’s agriculture system, but we need to set the divide so that one is not unfairly trading on the reputation of the other.”