Jalna Dairy Foods, which supplies Australia’s biggest supermarket chains, Coles, Woolworths, Costco and IGA, has backed calls for clearer labelling in the organic sector and agrees with Australian Organic Limited’s (AOL) stance certification logos should be mandatory on products.
Lachlan McLaren, who is third generation in the family-owned and run business, said the veracity of Jalna’s certified organic status was communicated clearly to their customers by ensuring their goods were labelled with The Bud logo.
The Bud is recognised by more than 62% of Australians and proves Jalna’s organic products have met the Australian Certified Organic Standard (ACOS).
“Having access to The Bud demonstrates to our customers they can trust where the product has come from and that it is truly organic,” Mr McLaren said.
“When a customer sees The Bud on dairy products, they can be confident they have been organically certified from the cow to the supermarket shelf.”
AOL’s call for unity around labelling has become more imperative as research brought to light in the Australian Organic Market Report 2021 highlighted consumers were demanding ‘trust marks’ before making a purchase.
AOL Chief Executive Officer, Niki Ford, said the report found 59% of buyers were looking for proof of certification when shopping.
“Clear labelling and ensuring all certified organic products are marked with a logo signposts what is authentic to our customers, which has never been more important,” Ms Ford said.
The Market Report also indicated 31% of organic buyers believe they have previously been misled by a product’s claim
“This is totally unacceptable and given the surge in growth for organic goods in 2020, with more than nine million Australian households purchasing an organic product, now is the time for our industry to build trust with our growing consumer base,” she said.
Mr McLaren agreed the onus was on industry to provide consumers with certainty on which products were certified organic, and that this needed to be supported by appropriate regulation.
“There is a lot of misleading packaging around organic products, so it is important to have a recognised logo to make it easier for consumers to identify what is legitimate,” Mr McLaren said.
For more than two decades, Jalna Dairy Foods has owned and managed its own integrated organic dairy farming operation at Koyuga, Victoria, producing 2.5 million litres of organic milk.
Mr McLaren said Jalna’s organic customer base had been built from the authenticity of its product, which was free from synthetic chemicals and produced under sustainable farming practices.
“Our whole process to make our organic products is certified, so we get cleaner, better-tasting milk,” he said.
“The Bud ensures our customers know we have been held to high and rigorous standards to gain our organic certification.
“That’s The Bud guarantee. It’s a clear symbol of authenticity our customers can look for and trust.”
