REVEALED: How the only local ingredient in some ‘Australian made’ bacon and ham is WATER – with the meat being shipped in from overseas
- Some ‘Australian made’ meat is made with just 10 per cent of local ingredients
- Many pre-packaged meat were imported from countries like Canada and US
- A farming lobby group has encouraged shoppers to read the fine print on meat
Customers are unaware the only local ingredient in some ‘Australian made’ bacon and ham is water.
Farming lobby group, Australian Pork, said consumers may read the Country of Origin [COO] labelling, but are missing key details in the fine print.
Some meat, which have the COO labels include a disclaimer stating the product is made from as little as 10 per cent of Australian ingredients.
Many pre-packaged bacon and ham sold at supermarkets were imported from countries such as Canada, Denmark and the United States.
Some meat, which have the COO labels include a disclaimer stating the product is made from as little as 10 per cent of Australian ingredients (stock image)
‘Most of the Australian content is water to give the texture and moisture in the meat that the consumer wants,’ Australian Pork general manager of marketing Peter Haydon told The Courier Mail.
‘We have country of origin laws that allows a consumer to know how much were Australian ingredients but nobody knows they exist or how to read them.’
The COO labelling laws came into effect in July 2018, which must show a bar chart and text outlining the percentage of Australian ingredients.
More than $700 million worth of pork is imported into Australia each year.
Australian Pork is planning to start an awareness campaign in 2020 to encourage customers to purchase meat with a higher amount of local ingredients.
Many pre-packaged bacon and ham sold at supermarkets were imported from countries such as Canada, Denmark and the United States (stock image)
Mr Haydon said local butchers usually sold bacon and sausages which were 100 per cent Australian.
‘All fresh pork is Australian and that’s why we focus on fresh pork and every ham you buy with a bone in it is also Australian,’ he said.
Federal MP Bob Katter said the government should have never allowed imported meat from Canada and Europe into the country.
‘The European countries take none of our live beef so we should just say we don’t take their prok until they take our beef,’ he said.