This week Down Under
Courts gag campaigner after ‘toxic’ Capilano honey remarks
Simon Mulvany, who runs the Save the Bees advocacy group, had made a number of accusations against Capilano regarding its alleged approach country-of-origin labelling. He also collected nearly 30,000 signatures for a petition calling for changes to the way honey products are labelled.
He claims that Capilano imports honey from countries including China, which it then sells as an Australian product. He is also urging consumers to buy honey only when it is clear where the product came from.
In response, Capilano called Mulvany’s action a “smear campaign” and applied for a gag order to prevent him from making any further allegations. The company is also suing Mulvany for damages and costs
Capilano’s managing director, Ben McKee, said in a statement to the Australian Daily Mail: “We are aware of recent allegations by activists including Mr Simon Mulvany of Save the Bees Australia that we are selling 'toxic and poisonous honey' to consumers.”
“Capilano can confirm that these claims are completely untrue and without foundation. All Capilano honey is comprehensively tested and undergoes rigorous quality assurance testing to ensure it meets the strict standards set in place by Food Standards Australia and New Zealand.
“Capilano has been committed to maintaining the highest quality standards for the past 60 years and has never failed this stringent testing.”
Despite the legal action, McKee said he is hopeful that a mediated solution can be reached.
The honey manufacturer believes that Mulvany’s allegations have interfered with its reputation in overseas markets, especially after Save the Bees raised its concerns in the China Daily News that Capilano’s exports to China had actually been blended with Chinese honey, though labelled as 100% Australian.
“We’ve got a reputation for producing quality products and it’s very upsetting for our beekeepers and employees to have anything suggested otherwise,” a spokesman said.
The New South Wales Supreme Court has ordered Mulvany to take down postings regarding Capilano until its reaches a judgement on the company’s legal action.
Despite the gag order, he has continued to post about Capilano on Save the Bees social media sites.
More stories from Down Under…
Survey reveals the extent of sub-par Australian diets
Australia's largest ever diet survey has confirmed that the vast majority of Australians have poor eating habits.
The 2016 Csiro Healthy Diet Score report canvassed the dietary habits of more than 86,500 adults across the country over a 12 month period.
An early snapshot of the survey results released in August 2015 awarded the nation's diet a score of 61 on a 100-point scale.
With almost 47,000 additional surveys completed since then, that figure now stands at just 59 out of 100, confirming that Australian diets are worse than first thought.
"We have an image of being fit and healthy, but with a collective diet score of 59/100 that image could be very different unless we act now," said Csiro research director Manny Noakes.
According to the 2016 Healthy Diet Score, 80% of respondents received an individual score below 70, the benchmark figure.
"If we can raise our collective score by just over 10 points, we help Australia mitigate against the growing rates of obesity and lifestyle diseases such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes and a third of all cancers," said Prof. Noakes.
"All people need to do is halve the bad and double the good. In other words, halve the amount of discretionary food you eat and double your vegetable intake."
People across Australia, in all occupations and age groups, were invited to participate in the online survey between May 2015 and June 2016.
Csiro researchers then used this information to create a detailed picture of the country's eating habits.
The closest Australians got to meeting official dietary guidelines was in the “fruit” food group where 49% of respondents said they met the recommended intake—though that means over half the population still have room to improve.
Of greater concern is dietary performance in regard to discretionary, or junk foods.
Just 1% of Australians are abstaining from junk food, while more than a third admitted to eating more than the recommended maximum allowance.
"We find that there is often a tendency to under-report on certain types of food, so in all likelihood that figure is even higher," Prof. Noakes said.
The report showed that women have slightly better nutritional levels than men.
Construction workers were among those with the poorest diets, while public servants, estate agents and health industry workers reported some of the healthiest eating patterns.
The report also tracked food avoidance in diets for the first time, and found that approximately one in three Australian adults avoid one or more foods such as gluten, dairy or meat.
"It is never too late to eat better and increase your score, and the nation's," Prof Noakes added.
New processing enzyme put on the regulator’s anvil
The antipodean food regulator has sought public consultation on an application to allow the use of a new enzyme as a processing aid.
Steve McCutcheon, chief executive of Fsanz, said that Amano Enzyme had submitted the application to allow an enzyme, known as Oryzin, to be added to the Food Standards Code as an approved processing aid.
The enzyme is derived from A. melleus, which has a long history of safe use overseas as the production organism for a number of processing aids.
“Oryzin is intended for use in baking and aids in the processing of dairy, egg, meat and fish products. It can also be used for processing yeast and proteins and may result in improved flavour and digestive properties” McCutcheon said.
"After reviewing the available data, Fsanz has determined that there are no public health or safety issues associated with the use of Oryzin and that its use is technologically justified.”
Any decision by Fsanz on an application referred to public consultation is notified to Australian and New Zealand ministers responsible for food regulation, who can then decide to ask for a review or agree that the standard should become law.
Submissions must be received by Fsanz by November 2 for consideration.
