Businesses trading in Australia are expected to be aware of their obligations under the ACL. It’s not a defence, or an excuse, to claim that you ‘didn’t know’ you were doing something wrong.
It is your responsibility to ensure that you have a reasonable basis for any and all claims you make about your products. If you make a country of origin claim or otherwise represent that your products originated from a particular country, you should be able to substantiate it. Failure to do so could result in the ACCC issuing you with a fine, or taking court action against you.
Businesses are encouraged to put in place administrative and recordkeeping procedures to ensure that they keep the necessary documents to be able to substantiate their claims.
Records may include:
- information about ingredient or component sources
- traceability information
- contact details of your suppliers or who you supplied products to
- transaction dates
- batch or lot identification
- volume or quantity of products
- relevant production records.
Publications
Country of origin claims for non-food products
Country of origin claims for food products