healthy, sustainable, nutritious and culturally-appropriate diets;
food loss and waste;
reducing the adverse environmental effects of policies and measures linked to the agri-food system;
best practices approaches to the monitoring and measurement of environmental, social and economic sustainability outcomes; and
addressing agri-food fraud1 practices that mislead consumers or pose a risk to health of humans, animals or plants or a biosecurity risk to the environment.
Australian First Nations peoples and sustainable agri-food systems
Recognising the importance of participation and leadership of Australian First Nations
peoples in the sustainability of Australia’s agri-food systems, and that their knowledge and cultural practices can improve the sustainability, diversity and resilience of agri-food systems, the Parties shall endeavour to cooperate in accordance with Article 7.4 (Cooperation to improve the sustainability of agri-food systems) to:
integrate Australian First Nations peoples’ knowledge, cultural practices and stewardship approaches into agri-food systems, where appropriate, with a view to improving sustainability, diversity and resilience of agri-food systems; and
create new opportunities for Australian First Nations peoples to participate in agri-food trade, including with respect to native bushfoods and botanicals.
The Parties may consider the views and participation of Australian First Nations peoples in relevant cooperation activities under this Chapter.
1 For greater certainty, for the purposes of this Chapter, the term "agri-food fraud" does not include misrepresentation of geographical indications. This footnote is without prejudice to Chapter 17 (Intellectual property).
Animal welfare
The Parties recognise that animals are sentient beings and that there is a connection between improved animal welfare and sustainable agri-food production systems.
The Parties shall cooperate in international fora to promote the development of the best possible animal welfare practices for animals farmed for food production and support the implementation of such practices. In particular, the Parties shall cooperate on areas of mutual interest in support of international work on animal welfare standards with a focus on animals farmed for food production.
The Parties shall, where practicable and appropriate, exchange information, expertise and experiences in the field of animal welfare related to, in particular, the treatment on the farm, during transport and at slaughter of animals farmed for food production, with the aim of improving the understanding and implementation of their respective animal welfare standards, laws and regulations.
The Parties shall encourage cooperation on research in the area of animal welfare in particular related to the treatment on the farm, during transport and at slaughter of animals farmed for food production.
Cooperation in fighting antimicrobial resistance
The Parties recognise that antimicrobial resistance is a serious global threat to human health, animal health and the environment, and that the nature of the threat requires a transnational and One Health approach.
The Parties shall facilitate the exchange of information, expertise and experiences in the field of antimicrobial resistance and animal health and production and shall identify common views, interests, priorities and policies in that field.
Each Party shall promote:
strengthened surveillance and monitoring of antimicrobial resistance and antimicrobial use under the 'One Health' approach, and collection and analysis of data on the use of antimicrobial agents in animal production;
guidance and initiatives for veterinarians and animal producers:
on the prudent use of antimicrobial agents in animal production, good animal husbandry practices and biosecurity measures; and
explaining inter alia the societal costs and benefits of different strategies for combatting antimicrobial resistance; and
initiatives on the reduced need for and responsible use of antimicrobial agents in animal production and health, including the phasing out, in the absence of risk analysis, of the use of antimicrobial agents which are critically important for human medicine as growth promoters in animal production.
The Parties shall cooperate in relevant international organisations to further develop and support the implementation of agreed codes, guidelines, standards, recommendations, actions and other international initiatives with a view to promoting the reduced need for, and appropriate use of, antimicrobial agents which are critically important for human medicine including the phasing out, in the absence of risk analysis, of the use of such antimicrobial agents as growth promoters in animal production.
Right to regulate and independence of national and regional agencies
The cooperation activities under this Chapter shall be without prejudice to the independence
of each Party’s national or regional agencies.
Consistently with each Party's right to regulate, nothing in this Chapter shall be construed to oblige a Party to:
modify its import requirements;
deviate from its procedures for preparing and adopting regulatory measures;
take action that would undermine or impede the timely adoption of regulatory measures to achieve its public policy objectives; or
adopt any particular regulatory outcome.
Committee on Trade in Goods and Technical Barriers to Trade
The Committee on Trade in Goods and Technical Barriers to Trade is established pursuant to Article 22.5(1) (Specialised committees).
In addition to the functions specified in Article 22.6 (Functions of the specialised committees), with respect to this Chapter, the Committee on Trade in Goods and Technical Barriers to Trade shall have the following functions:
establish priorities for cooperation between the Parties and work to implement them; and
promote cooperation between the Parties in multilateral fora.
The Committee on Trade in Goods and Technical Barriers to Trade may establish working groups consisting of representatives of the Parties with expertise on matters covered by this Chapter.
The Committee on Trade in Goods and Technical Barriers to Trade shall meet within one year after the date of entry into force of this Agreement and thereafter as agreed by the co-chairs of the Committee on Trade in Goods and Technical Barriers to Trade.
Contact points
Within 90 days after the date of entry into force of this Agreement, each Party shall:
designate a contact point responsible for facilitating communication between the Parties on matters covered by this Chapter; and
promptly notify the other Party of the contact details of its contact point.
Each Party shall promptly notify the other Party of any changes to the contact details of its contact point.
Chapter 8. TECHNICAL BARRIERS TO TRADE
Article ARTICLE 8.1
Objectives
The objective of this Chapter is to facilitate trade in goods between the Parties including by preventing, identifying and minimising unnecessary technical barriers to trade, enhancing transparency, promoting cooperation and good regulatory practice.
Scope
This Chapter applies to the preparation, adoption and application of all standards, technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures which may affect trade in goods between the Parties.
Unless otherwise provided in this Chapter, each Party shall, in accordance with the TBT Agreement, take such reasonable measures as may be available to it to ensure compliance by local government and non-governmental bodies within their territories with the relevant provisions of this Chapter.
Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed as limiting the right of a Party to prepare, adopt or apply standards, technical regulations or conformity assessment procedures necessary to fulfil a legitimate objective, in accordance with its rights and obligations under the TBT Agreement. Such legitimate objectives include, inter alia, national security requirements, the prevention of deceptive practices, protection of human health or safety, animal or plant life or health, or the environment.
This Chapter does not apply to:
purchasing specifications prepared by governmental bodies for production or consumption requirements of such bodies; or
sanitary or phytosanitary measures as defined in Annex A of the SPS Agreement.
Definitions
For the purposes of this Chapter, the following definitions apply:
"economic operator" means a manufacturer, importer, exporter, authorised representative or distributor;
"ISO" means International Organization for Standardization;
"market surveillance" means activities conducted and measures taken by public authorities, including those taken in cooperation with economic operators, on the basis of procedures of a Party, to enable that Party to monitor or address safety of products or their compliance with the requirements set out in its laws and regulations; and
"supplier's declaration of conformity" means a declaration made by the manufacturer or, where applicable, importer, that the product supplied is compliant with the relevant technical
regulations. The manufacturer or importer is responsible for the supplier's declaration of conformity. Such declaration does not include mandatory third-party assessment.
Relation to the TBT Agreement
The Parties affirm their rights and obligations under the TBT Agreement.
The following provisions of the TBT Agreement are incorporated into and made part of this Agreement, mutatis mutandis:
Article Articles 2 to 9;
Annex 1; and
Annex 3.
Technical regulations
The Parties acknowledge that consideration of whether regulatory or non-regulatory measures may fulfil the Party's legitimate objectives, in accordance with Article 2.2 of the TBT Agreement, would normally be part of the process of developing technical regulations.
Each Party shall use relevant international standards as a basis for its technical regulations, except if such international standards would be an ineffective or inappropriate means for the fulfilment of the legitimate objectives pursued. Where a relevant international standard exists, if a Party did not use that international standard as a basis for a technical regulation which may have a significant effect on trade of the other Party, it shall, in accordance with Article 2 of the TBT
Agreement, on request of the other Party, justify that non-use. Such justification may include identifying the substantive deviation from the relevant international standard, explaining why the international standard was considered to be ineffective or inappropriate in that instance, and providing the supporting information on which this judgement was based.
When reviewing its technical regulations, each Party shall, subject to its laws and regulations, take into account, inter alia, any new developments in the relevant international standards and any changes in the circumstances that have resulted in divergences from any relevant international standard.
International standards
A standard developed by the ISO, the International Electrotechnical Commission, the International Telecommunication Union, or the Codex Alimentarius Commission shall be considered to be a relevant international standard within the meaning of Articles 2 and 5 of, and Annex 3 to, the TBT Agreement.
A Party may also consider a standard developed by another international organisation as a relevant international standard within the meaning of Articles 2 and 5 of, and Annex 3 to, the TBT Agreement, provided that it has been developed, at least, in accordance with the WTO TBT Committee Decision on Principles for the Development of International Standards, Guides and Recommendations with relation to Articles 2 and 5 of, and Annex 3 to, the TBT Agreement.
Standards and standardising bodies
With a view to harmonising standards on as wide a basis as possible, each Party shall encourage its standardising bodies, as well as the regional standardising bodies of which the Party or its standardising bodies are members, to:
cooperate, where practicable and appropriate, with relevant standardising bodies of the other Party bilaterally, regionally or internationally on areas of mutual interest; and
when reviewing national and regional standards that are not based on relevant international standards, take into account, inter alia, any new developments in relevant international standards and any changes in the circumstances that have resulted in a divergence from those international standards.
The Parties may exchange information on:
the use of standards in support of technical regulations; and
processes used for developing standards, and the extent to which the Parties have based their national standards on international standards or regional standards.
If national and regional standards are made mandatory through incorporation into or by reference in a draft technical regulation or conformity assessment procedure, the transparency obligations set out in Article 8.9 (Transparency), and in Articles 2 or 5 of the TBT Agreement shall apply.
Conformity assessment
The Parties acknowledge that consideration of whether regulatory or non-regulatory measures may fulfil the Party's legitimate objectives in accordance with Article 5.1.2 of the TBT Agreement is normally part of the process of developing conformity assessment procedures. Such consideration should include the type and appropriateness of conformity assessment procedure to be applied.
Each Party shall use relevant international standards, guides or recommendations issued by international standardising bodies, or the relevant parts of them, as a basis for its conformity assessment procedures, except if such international standards, guides or recommendations would be an ineffective or inappropriate means for fulfilling the Party's legitimate objectives. If a Party does not use an international standard as a basis for a technical regulation which may have a significant effect on trade of the other Party it shall, on request of the other Party and further to Article 5.4 of the TBT Agreement, justify the non-use.
When reviewing their conformity assessment procedures, each Party shall, subject to its laws and regulations, take into account, inter alia, any new developments in the relevant international standards, guides or recommendations, and any changes in the circumstances that have resulted in divergences from those relevant international standards, guides or recommendations.
If a Party requires conformity assessment as a positive assurance that a product conforms with a technical regulation, when selecting a conformity assessment procedure it shall:
take into account the risks that non-conformity would create, while ensuring, inter alia, that its conformity assessment procedures are not stricter or applied more strictly than is necessary to give that Party adequate confidence that products conform with the applicable technical regulations or standards;
consider a supplier's declaration of conformity as an option; and
upon request, provide information to the other Party on the reasons for selecting the conformity assessment procedures for specific products.
If a Party requires third-party conformity assessment as a positive assurance that a product conforms with a technical regulation, and it has not reserved that task to a governmental body as specified in paragraph 6, it shall:
use accreditation as the preferred means to qualify conformity assessment bodies;
use international standards for accreditation and conformity assessment1;
encourage accreditation bodies and conformity assessment bodies in its territory to join relevant international agreements or arrangements that facilitate acceptance of conformity assessment results;
ensure that its laws and regulations do not unnecessarily restrict choice amongst the conformity assessment bodies designated or authorised by its authorities for a particular product or set of products;
ensure that conformity assessment bodies operate independently from economic operators and that there are no conflicts of interest between accreditation bodies and conformity assessment bodies, or that potential conflicts are identified and managed;
allow conformity assessment bodies to use subcontractors to perform testing or inspections in relation to the conformity assessment, including subcontractors located in the territory of the other Party. Nothing in this point shall be construed as to prohibit a Party from requiring subcontractors to meet the same requirements that the conformity assessment body to which they are contracted would be required to meet in order to perform the contracted tests or inspection itself; and
endeavour to ensure that a list of the bodies that it has designated or authorised to perform such conformity assessment and the scope of each such body's designation or authorisation is published online.
Nothing in this Article shall preclude a Party from requiring a government authority of the Party to perform conformity assessment procedures in relation to specific products. In such cases, the Party shall:
limit the conformity assessment fees to the approximate cost of the services rendered; and
1 For greater certainty, point (b) of paragraph 5 does not imply that international standards are the sole basis regulators may use for accreditation and conformity assessment.
make information about the conformity assessment fees, including how they are set, publicly available.
Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 4, 5, and 6 of this Article, a Party shall, subject to its laws and regulations, accept supplier's declarations of conformity as proof of compliance with existing technical regulations for the fields covered by Annex 8-A (Conformity assessment). If Australia requires mandatory third-party conformity assessment as an assurance that a field covered by Annex 8-A (Conformity assessment) conforms with its requirements, it shall, in accordance with the modalities specified in that Annex and its laws and regulations, accept a conformity assessment report from an appropriately accredited conformity assessment body based in the Union.
The Parties acknowledge the trade facilitating role of the Agreement on mutual recognition in relation to conformity assessment, certificates and markings between the European Community and Australia, done at Canberra on 24 June 1998, and shall continue to cooperate on mutual recognition in relation to conformity assessment in accordance with that agreement. The Parties may also decide, through the Joint Committee established under Article 12 of that agreement, may decide to review and amend that agreement, as appropriate.
Transparency
Each Party shall allow a period of at least 60 days after the date of notification to the WTO Central Registry of Notifications of proposed technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures for the other Party to provide written comments except, inter alia, where urgent problems of safety, health, environmental protection or national security arise or threaten to arise. A Party shall give positive consideration to a reasonable request from the other Party to extend that comment period.
If a Party receives written comments on its proposed technical regulation or conformity assessment procedure from the other Party, it shall:
if requested by the other Party, discuss the written comments, where possible with the participation of its relevant regulatory authority, at a time when amendments can still be introduced and comments can be taken into account; and
reply in writing to the comments without undue delay.
Each Party shall, no later than the date of publication of a final technical regulation or conformity assessment procedure that may have a significant effect on trade, make publicly available, if feasible online, its responses to significant or substantive issues set out in the comments received on the notified proposal for the technical regulation or conformity assessment procedure.
Each Party shall, if requested by the other Party, provide information regarding the objectives of, and rationale for, a technical regulation or conformity assessment procedure that may have a significant effect on trade between the Parties, which the Party has adopted or is proposing to adopt.
Each Party shall ensure that its adopted technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures are publicly available on official websites free of charge.2
Each Party shall provide the date of the adoption and the date of entry into force of a technical regulation or conformity assessment procedure, and the adopted final text, through an addendum to the original notification to the WTO.
Each Party shall provide a reasonable interval between the publication of technical regulations and their entry into force to allow economic operators of the other Party to adapt to the requirements. For greater certainty, the term "reasonable interval" means a period of not less than six months, except when this would be ineffective in fulfilling the legitimate objectives pursued.
A Party shall consider a reasonable request from the other Party, received prior to the end of the comment period referred to in paragraph 1 following the notification to the WTO Central
2 This paragraph does not apply in respect of standards referenced in technical regulations or conformity assessment procedures.
Registry of Notifications, to extend the period of time between the adoption of the technical regulation and its entry into force, except where this would be ineffective in fulfilling the legitimate objectives pursued.
Marking and labelling
In respect of technical regulations that include or deal exclusively with marking or labelling requirements, each Party shall, in accordance with Article 2.2 of the TBT Agreement, ensure that such technical regulations are not prepared, adopted or applied with a view to, or with the effect of, creating unnecessary obstacles to international trade. For this purpose, such technical regulations shall not be more trade-restrictive than necessary to fulfil a legitimate objective, such as, inter alia, national security requirements, the prevention of deceptive practices, the protection of human health or safety, animal or plant life or health, or the environment.
If a Party requires mandatory marking or labelling of products, it shall:
endeavour to minimise the requirements for marking or labelling to information that is relevant to consumers or users of the product or that indicates the product's conformity with mandatory technical requirements;
if it requires the use of a unique identification number by economic operators, issue such a number to the economic operators of the other Party without undue delay and on a non-discriminatory basis;
if it requires prior approval, registration or certification of the labels or markings of products, or any fee disbursements for placing on its market products that otherwise comply with its mandatory technical requirements, grant such approval, registration or certification or process such fee disbursements, without undue delay and on a non-discriminatory basis; and
endeavour to accept:
non-permanent or detachable labels;
marking or labelling in the accompanying documentation instead of marking or labelling attached to the product;
as appropriate, electronic labelling, such as a QR code or similar, if the relevant link is to information on a website; and
corrections to labelling taking place in designated areas in the country of import, subject to the country of import's laws and regulations.
A Party may require that information on the markings or labels be in a specified language. If an international system of nomenclature, pictograms, symbols or graphics has been accepted by the Parties, such elements may be used. The simultaneous use of additional languages shall not be prohibited, provided that the information in the additional languages does not constitute a contradictory, confusing, misleading or deceptive statement regarding the product.
Cooperation
With a view to enhancing the mutual understanding of each other's regulatory and quality infrastructure systems and facilitating bilateral trade, the Parties shall, subject to available resources, explore opportunities to strengthen their cooperation on standards, technical regulations and conformity assessment. Such cooperation may include:
exchanging information regarding technical regulations, standards, conformity assessment procedures and good regulatory practices;
enhancing cooperation and dialogue on mutually agreed regulatory issues;
increasing coordination, as appropriate, in relevant regional and international bodies relating to the development and application of standards and conformity assessment procedures, and other relevant regional and international bodies; and
other areas as agreed by the Parties.
Cooperation on market surveillance, safety, and compliance of non-food products
The Parties recognise the importance of cooperation on market surveillance, safety, and compliance of non-food products for facilitating trade, and for the protection of consumers and other users. The Parties also recognise the importance of building mutual trust based on shared information.
The Parties shall ensure the independence and impartiality of market surveillance authorities in their control or supervision of economic operators.
The Parties may cooperate and exchange information on market surveillance, safety, and compliance of non-food products, in particular with respect to the following:
market surveillance and enforcement activities and measures;
risk assessment methods and product testing;
coordinated product recalls or other similar actions;