ACCC says free range egg standard unnecessary

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is writing to egg suppliers to encourage them to review the words and images used on their free-range egg cartons and in advertising claims.

However, ACCC chairman Rod Sims said at the Australian Farm Institute Conference in Melbourne that there is no need for a government standard on what constitutes free range.

In September, the Federal Court handed down a $300,000 penalty against Pirovic after finding, by consent, that its 'free range' egg representations were false or misleading.

“Some have expressed concern that there is no government standard that producers need to meet to be a free range producer. We see no need for any standard,” Sims said.

“In the Pirovic case the court ruled that free range means the birds can and do go outside on most days. It is up to producers to determine how to meet this common sense definition.

“Any prescriptive standard beyond this would likely have requirements that are not relevant to what consumers understand free range to mean.”