Please have your say in comments section below!

Australia’s horticulture industry is facing growing uncertainty with the disjointed roll-out of new national food safety Primary Production and Processing (PPP) standards for Berries, Leafy Vegetables, and Melons. Freshcare, Australia’s leading food safety and quality assurance program, alongside vegetable industry peak body AUSVEG, is urging state and territory governments to ensure fair, practical and consistent implementation of the standards, to avoid duplication and major additional costs on industry.

For the past five years, Freshcare has worked closely with FSANZ, the national implementation group and industry stakeholders to ensure that producers already participating in globally recognised food safety programs are acknowledged under the new framework. The goal was clear – to identify and regulate producers who currently lack any formal food safety program while recognising those already adhering to best-practice standards. However, the regulatory roll-out risks missing this mark.

As of February 12, 2025, these national regulations are set to be implemented independently by each state and territory. This has resulted in different regulatory responses, with some authorities further progressed towards implementation than others.

Unfair Financial Burdens on Certified Growers

Despite being compliant with FSANZ requirements, Freshcare-certified producers in some jurisdictions are now facing excessive licensing fees, vehicle fees, and additional inspections and reporting requirements — which fail to recognise growers and processors who currently operate under food safety schemes.

Lack of National Consistency

The inconsistent application of regulations across jurisdictions presents further challenges, particularly for growers operating across multiple states. Instead of encouraging non-compliant producers to implement food safety programs, the current approach risks disproportionately impacting those already meeting the highest standards.

A Threat to Consumer Confidence and Industry Integrity

Australian consumers are lucky to have access to some of the most trusted horticultural produce in the world, due to the stringent food safety requirements in place in this country.

Freshcare and AUSVEG are calling on all state and territory governments to work to implement a nationally consistent regulatory framework that truly enhances food safety without penalising those already meeting best-practice standards.

Read Freshcare’s response to NSW Food Authority on the Proposed Food Regulation 2025 HERE

Comments from Industry – Have your say in the comments section below!

Freshcare CEO, Jane Siebum :

“We have actively engaged with state jurisdictions and regulators to ensure Freshcare certification meets the national PPP food safety requirements. Our participants are already exceeding these standards, yet instead of recognition and support, they are being penalised with unnecessary costs and red tape.

These regulations were intended to strengthen food safety across all levels of production and the supply chain, and the rollout needs to stay focussed on that outcome, rather than slugging growers and processors with additional regulatory and cost burden,” she said.

AUSVEG CEO Michael Coote:

“The full impacts of the measures being proposed and implemented need to be carefully reviewed to ensure businesses that already have compliant, recognised GFSI schemes in place are not penalised with duplication and additional costs, at a time when many growers are already struggling with a cost-of-production crisis and compliance overload. ?

There needs to be a consistent approach to ensure that non-GFSI compliant businesses are supported to be brought up to standard, while businesses with recognised schemes already in place are not weighed down by further unnecessary cost and compliance burden,” he said.

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