These events have now concluded. Thank you to everyone who attended the workshops and information sessions. Presentations from the sessions are available. Please follow the links to download the presentations.

DOWNLOAD THE PRESENTATIONS

Invitation To Attend

The economic impact of allergies on the Australian community is calculated in the Access Economic Report "The economic impact of allerigic disease in Australia : not to be sneezed at" is valued at
$7.8 billion.

The National Measurement Institute will be conducting 2 day workshops in Sydney and Melbourne, and 3 evening information sessions in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth aimed at increasing awareness of allergen detection issues and to discuss associated technical measurement issues.

"It is estimated that some 20% of the population suffer some ill effect from food, ranging from vague symptoms to medically-supported diagnosed allergies and even death. Public health policy attempts to address the diagnosis and treatment. However, there remains a substantial financial and emotional impact on family and community that support high risk individuals.

Accurate and consistent food labelling is a major public health tool for the community both nationally and internationally. Correct labelling provides the community with safe food options and incorrect labelling has a significant public health impact. Management of the process to ensure correct labelling is complex and is currently left in the hands of food manufacturers and the retail industry.

In 2002 the Australian Food Code required the food industry to declare the presence of certain common food components on the labels of products irrespective of the amount. Difficulty with compliance with this regulation led to a rapid escalation in the number of recalls associated with allergen labelling. The average cost of a supermarket recall is $2M and it is worth noting that there were 63 recalls in 2006.

While leading food industry players are implementing a range of allergen management and risk measures developed by the AFGC and the Allergen Bureau it has been a difficult challenge to reach and inform SMEs.

The Australian food manufacturing industry includes a significant number of small organisations. As an example there are 800 food manufacturers in Western Australia of which 80% have less than 10 employees.

Attendance at these information sessions will help bridge the gap of information for SMEs.

OBJECTIVES OF THE WORKSHOPS & INFORMATION SESSIONS

To raise awareness to small and medium food manufacturers on the issues and requirements involved in developing products for the food sensitive individual and their support network in Australia and with our trading partners especially APEC economies.
To improve the quality of food borne allergen testing in industry, government and commercial laboratories. The National Measurement Institute has been working with Australian allergen detection kit manufacturers, the Australian food industry, FSANZ and national and international experts to scope a major new activity in establishing specialised allergen measurement laboratory facilities.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND & WHAT IS THE COST

The 2 Day Workshops are aimed at:
Food Testing Laboratories across all sectors, including Government, Private and Industry.
The cost to attend is $199 per person, and includes 2 day Masterclass Workshop, day catering and workshop dinner.

Information Evenings
Small to medium sized enterprises who are considering expanding into broader markets, including export and domestic.
There is no charge to attend the information sessions; however you are required to register if you would like to attend.

Online registration is now open.

We look forward to welcoming you to one of the workshops or evening sessions in a city close to you.

James Roberts
General Manager
Analytical Services Branch
National Measurement Institute

Last updated:
Friday 20 Nov 2009

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