An Australian vegetable and potato grower group is worried about the China Food and Drug Administration's latest description of food safety as "grim" in the East Asian country.

Vegetable market in Chongqing. Photo: Bert van Dijk, via Flickr Creative Commons.

In a release, Ausveg said the finding was particularly important given China was the third-largest vegetable exporter to Australia after New Zealand and Italy, and the fact Aussies were becoming more concerned about the country of origin of their purchases following food health scares overseas.

"The current situation in China with regards to food safety is weak at best, with insufficient regulation and monitoring systems that have been rocked by major scandals recently, including alleged tainted meat and baby food incidents," said Ausveg spokesperson Andrew White.

"We welcome the announcement by China’s food and drug regulator that they are looking into increasing ‘active’ regulation, but it is still worrying to us that these major lapses continue as China is one of Australia’s top vegetable importers."

Ausveg has long been an advocate for clearer Country of Origin Labelling (CoOL) laws.

"Australian consumers are being robbed of the ability to knowingly purchase locally grown vegetables because of lax Country of Origin Labelling laws that allow the misrepresentation of some products," White said.

"Australian consumers now need to be as aware as possible of the origin of the product that they are feeding to their families."

The association highlighted a Parliamentary Inquiry by the Federal Government into CoOL laws, looking at whether the current system is satisfactory, where improvements can be made, current compliance rates, and whether laws are being sidestepped by importers through third party countries as alleged in the past with New Zealand.

"In its submission to the Inquiry, AUSVEG suggested that country of origin labelling text be made larger was adopted into a recommendation by the Committee, and we see this as a step in the right direction," White said.

"If Australian consumers are to gain benefits from a reformed labelling system, claims must be simplified and unambiguous, with consumers able to tell at a glance the source of a product based on its ingredients."

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