Dar seafood ppp standard

1.2 Australian food standards

The Code sets standards for chemical and microbiological safety, composition and labelling of food, approves new foods and foods using new technologies, and establishes food safety standards for the hygienic production and handling of food.

The existing food safety standards apply from processing and manufacturing through to the retail sector of the food chain. However, these food safety provisions do not apply to primary production.
In 2000, the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) agreed to major changes to the food regulatory system. As part of these changes, Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) received a mandate to address food safety across the entire food chain where appropriate⁴. This facilitates a preventive approach to significant food safety risks across the food supply chain.
FSANZ must adhere to specific legislative requirements and guidelines when developing food standards, and receives policy guidance from the Ministerial Council.
Further details about the policy and regulatory framework for the development of food standards is contained at Attachment 2.
In December 2003, the Ministerial Council developed Ministerial Policy Guidelines for Food Safety Management in Australia, whereby food safety programs were made mandatory for identified highest risk sectors where the benefit to cost ratio justified their implementation. These Ministerial Guidelines identify specific high-risk business sectors where food safety programs should be made a mandatory regulatory requirement in accordance with Standard 3.2.1 of Chapter 3 of the Code. These were:

• 
  food service in which potentially hazardous food is served to vulnerable populations (e.g. hospitals and nursing homes);
  
• 
  producing, harvesting, processing and distributing raw bivalve molluscs
  
• 
  catering operations serving food to the general public; and
  
• 
  producing manufactured and fermented meat.
  

The Ministerial Council noted in its Guidelines that in relation to raw bivalve molluscs, FSANZ would address this sector in the Draft Assessment process for the primary production and processing Standard for seafood.

It is within this context that FSANZ is developing the first primary production and processing Standard for the seafood sector in Australia. The principle purpose of FSANZ’s food standards is to protect public health and safety (and may also address consumer information needs) under the objectives for standard-setting under the FSANZ Act. In developing this Standard, FSANZ must follow its statutory standard-setting processes to implement the decision of the Ministerial Council in relation to bivalve molluscs.