Webinar: Food safety 2026 – What’s ahead

Regulatory Reckoning in Food Safety

Australia's food regulation system, led by Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ), is at an inflection point in 2026. The Health Star Rating (HSR) system—designed to help consumers identify healthier packaged foods—remains voluntary but has fallen far short of expectations. By late 2025, only 39% of eligible products carried the label, missing the 70% target set for November 2025. In response, Food Ministers in February 2026 agreed by majority to task FSANZ with developing a proposal to embed HSR in the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code, triggering public consultations and a pathway to mandatory implementation.

This shift follows years of incremental updates to the Food Standards Code, including approvals for novel ingredients, cell-cultured products, and compositional requirements for specialised foods. Parallel efforts address nutrition information panels, front-of-pack labelling, and emerging issues like digital labelling and e-commerce compliance. In New South Wales, the Food Regulation 2025 introduced a licensing regime for certain horticulture businesses, effective from February 12, 2026, to align with national primary production standards for high-risk fresh produce and reduce contamination risks such as Salmonella.

The real-world impact hits producers, manufacturers, importers, and retailers hardest. Non-compliance could trigger product recalls, fines, or market bans, while mandatory labelling demands system-wide changes to packaging, data systems, and marketing—costs that smaller operators may struggle to absorb. Larger firms face trade-offs between reformulating products to achieve higher HSR scores and preserving consumer appeal in competitive categories.

Non-obvious tensions include the balance between public health goals and industry innovation: stricter rules may slow adoption of novel foods or AI-driven product design, while consumer confusion persists amid contradictory messaging on ultra-processed foods, GMOs, and additives. Food fraud and allergen management remain persistent vulnerabilities, amplified by complex global supply chains. Inaction risks eroding trust, especially as diet-related illnesses burden healthcare systems.