8 May 2002
Draft Assessment Report
Full Report [ pdf 251kb ]
Executive Summary
Problem
As part of the incorporation of the Food Safety regulations into State food legislation, the NSW Government made a variation to clause 4 of Standard 3.2.2 - Food Safety Practices and General Requirements to exempt fundraising events. Subsequently, an application was made to ANZFA by the NSW Department of Health on 27 June 2001 requesting an amendment to Clause 4 of Standard 3.2.2 so that it would be consistent with NSW legislation. It is a requirement under the Food Regulation Agreement that where a State or Territory varies a food standard, it must make an immediate application to ANZFA.
Applications made under the Food Regulation Agreement should be considered within 6 months. This provision is used for matters, which have an urgent public health and safety significance. As A444 does not fulfil this requirement it has been progressed within ANZFA' s normal statutory time frame.
The basis for the amendment requested in Application A444 is to alleviate a burden (including a possible financial impost) on charities and community organizations, which hold fundraising events, as well as an administrative burden on government agencies, without effecting food safety.
Objective
The Food Safety Standards are designed to ensure that food businesses in Australia produce food that is safe to eat. The notification requirement supports this by ensuring that enforcement agencies know of the existence of all food businesses within their jurisdiction (whether commercial, fundraising, temporary or mobile) such that appropriate food safety information can be provided and the requirements of the Food Safety Standards can be enforced.
Options
Only two options were raised by this application - to maintain the status quo and not approve the amendment (Option 1) or to amend Standard 3.2.2 as requested in the application (Option 2).
Impacts
Charities and community groups holding fundraising events will need to comply with all other requirements in Standard 3.2.2, except the skills and knowledge requirement, regardless of the notification requirement. Notification provides a mechanism whereby appropriate food safety information can be communicated to charities and community groups, which will assist with compliance with the Food Safety Standards. The proposed notification system is designed to seek minimal information so as not to be burdensome and may be further simplified for not-for-profit organisations. The charging of a fee for notification is a matter for each State and Territory to determine, though it has been recommended that any fees should be waived for voluntary and charitable organisations.
The impact assessment has determined that there is an overall public health and safety benefit in requiring fundraising events to notify.
Consultation
Six submissions were received in response to ANZFA' s public invitation for comment on Application A444. These submissions came from Government (State and Commonwealth), small business, a voluntary organization, which conducts fundraising events and a technical association. Only one submission (from the technical association) showed any support for an amendment to the notification requirement in Standard 3.2.2 to exempt fundraising events Option 1 was preferred.
Conclusion and Statement of Reasons
Application A444 is not justified on public health and safety grounds. ANZFA recommends that Application A444 should be rejected for the following reasons:
· the notification requirement does not pose a significant burden on community and charitable organisations;
· notification of fundraising events should not significantly increase the administrative burden on enforcement agencies;
· fundraising events have been implicated in outbreaks of food-borne illness and pose no less of a food safety risk than commercial operations;
· the notification requirement can be an important mechanism whereby food safety and hygiene information can be communicated to not-for-profit organisations; and
the notification requirement can provide enforcement agencies with important knowledge on the nature of food businesses in their jurisdiction and assist in enforcing the requirements of the Food Safety Standards.
Full Report [ pdf 251kb ]