New Pet Food Labeling Standards: What's New? Specialized News Column for Environmentalists and Environmentally Concerned Citizens On April 30, 2025, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (MOFA) issued a notice of partial amendment to the ‘Standards and Specifications of Feed, etc.’, establishing separate labeling standards for pet food (dog and cat). This is an important change for consumers' right to know and fair competition in the industry, as the legal distinction between pet food and livestock food is not clear. The revision strengthens the responsibility of manufacturers and salespeople to prove each statement on the packaging of pet food. In particular, it requires the type of food (complete food/other food) to be labeled, the content to be labeled when emphasizing specific ingredients and functions, the product name to be strengthened, the responsibility of specialized retail salespeople to be expanded, and the labeling conditions to be subdivided into ‘...
Four critical energy and climate must-do’s in Labor’s second term
The returned Albanese government can create real momentum on the critical issues of climate change and the energy transition in ways that could engage every corner of the Australian economy. There is more than enough ambition in the positions developed in the lead-up to and during the election campaign. The platform for success was created during Labor’s first term, and the second term should be one of relentless delivery.
Australia has made huge progress, but there is still much to be done. Nationally, emissions are about 30 per cent below 2005 levels, although reductions have stalled since 2021. Electricity emissions are far lower than a decade ago, but prices have risen. False causative links are easy to suggest, but simplistic.
This was never going to be cheap and easy, but it does not have to be too hard or too expensive. We are at a fork in the road – what gets set up now needs to drive the transformation and be seen to be successful enough to weather any future change of government.
The platform for success was created during Labor’s first term. The second term should be one of relentless delivery. Alex Ellinghausen
A nuclear future in the way envisaged by Peter Dutton’s model is dead. The political debate should no longer be about the objective and direction, but about policies and market choices, such as the balance between the roles of government and industry.
Four critical issues define the government’s agenda.
Climate change policy
The first is comprehensive climate change policy. By September, the government will set Australia’s 2035 emissions reduction target – analytically tricky, but it should now be politically easy. A range of 65 per cent to 75 per cent below the 2005 level would provide acceptable ambition, with the flexibility to respond as the decade’s developments unfold. That’s the easy bit.
The government should move to complete its work on a credible plan to get to net zero by 2050; a plan that addresses the challenges of technology development (making green iron) and practical barriers (addressing emissions from cattle and sheep).
This means policies to drive emissions reduction across multiple sectors within a dauntingly tight timeframe. Good examples are the revised Safeguard Mechanism for heavy industry, and the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard for transport.
Modern industry policy
The second critical issue is modern industry policy. The Future Made in Australia framework rightly focuses on the nation’s strategic opportunities, built on comparative advantages in minerals and renewable energy resources.
Done well, such a policy could replace the jobs and economic wealth derived from carbon-intensive industries across the country. The fraying of techno-economic progress on green hydrogen illustrates how challenging it will be to strike the right balance.
Transforming the electricity market
The third issue is the transformation of the electricity market. Building the transmission and storage infrastructure to support an electricity system that delivers 82 per cent renewables and beyond is already a major challenge, although there are promising signs that investment is picking up.
This is just so important if reliability is to be maintained, as the ageing coal generator fleet retires, and costs are to be contained.
Delivering investment through the new term of government and well beyond will depend on the recommendations for market reforms that emerge from the current review of the national electricity market, and their adoption by all governments.
The role of gas
Fourth is the role of natural gas through the transition. Australia has more than enough gas for our domestic and export ambitions. Unfortunately, it is increasingly more expensive to produce and deliver, and its combustion is inconsistent with the emissions-reduction imperative.
The Future Gas Strategy must be overhauled because it fails to address the role expected of gas over the next 25 years, how that gas should be secured and delivered as traditional sources run out, and how to transition from current gas usage to alternatives.
Delivery on these issues will require whole-of-cabinet co-ordination. The governance structure of the electricity and gas markets requires the federal energy minister to secure and maintain the support of the state and territory ministers, who have their own agendas.
Political leaders must provide a clear narrative for consumers and voters, and credible, predictable policy for businesses.
Tackling climate change and driving the energy transition may not have been top of mind for voters at the election, but these issues will define how this government is judged in the decades ahead.
We should be in no doubt, this is a truly ambitious agenda.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is correct on two fronts. First, his government’s agenda sets the right balance between ambition and practical delivery. Second, his mandate is to deliver on what Labor took to the electorate, no more and no less.
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