Australian Food Safety Week 2023 will be held from 11 to 18 November 2023
We will chose the theme for Australian Food Safety Week at our Planning Day in April 2023 – become a member and get involved find out more
See what happened during Australian Food Safety Week 12 – 19 November 2022.
The theme was ‘Food safety – raw and risky’ covering the risk of food poisoning from raw or minimally cooked meat, poultry, fish, eggs and vegetables as well as possible parasite infections. We also celebrated our 25th anniversary of educating the Australian community in food safety.
Our community package for AFSW2022 containing social media tiles, posters, sample media release, a quiz and event registration is available below and subscribe to our newsletter to keep up to date.
Register your Australian Food Safety Week 12-19 November 2022 event for the chance to win a $50 Bunnings gift card
Proudly sponsored by Fit for Food an initiative of our member ACCORD Australasia.
Thanks also to our member SA Health for sponsoring our consumer research
Promote your local event by using our sample media release
Share our Raw and Risky quiz
Download our social media tiles and posters and use the hashtag #AFSW25years
Please contact us for jpeg versions info@foodsafety.asn.au
Food Safety – Week 2022download pdf
Food Safety – Week 2022 Social Media Tiles_1080px x 1080px – download pdf
Food Safety – Week 2022 Social Media Tiles_650px x 150px -download pdf
Watch our TV community service announcement
Listen to our radio community service announcement
Listen to our First Nations radio community service announcement
Safe home cooking temperatures poster
Safe home cooking temperatures download here
How to use a meat thermometer
FSC – Using-Meat-Thermometer Poster
Events
AIFST presented a webinar with an expert panel
Environmental Health Australia presented a Live Chat with FSIC Board members Prof Shokoofeh Shamsi and Lydia Buchtmannn watch it here
Woolworths hosted an Australian Food Safety Week event for staff and suppliers in Sydney yesterday (and to our Board member Andrew Mathieson for running our display)
Check out some of our media coverage:
Southern Downs regional Council
See what happened in Australian Food Safety Week 2021
Australian Food Safety Week 2021 was held from 13 – 20 November 2021.The theme was ‘Food safety – be prepared’ and aimed at building resilience in the community especially after disasters by setting up a basic food safety toolbox and encouraging public engagement with food safety courses.
Our major activity is Australian Food Safety Week each November followed by a Summer campaign. In 2021 our ‘Food Safety – be prepared’ campaign reached:
- A print media audience 1,064,099
- A radio and TV audience 1,388,800
- 1,549,573 unique visitors on online media
Advertising sales rate value of this media if purchased was $1,655,463 giving a return on investment of 331:1.
Our radio spots were played nationally 5,441 times on 288 stations and our TV spots were played 1596 times on metropolitan stations and 1700 times on regional stations. Our video was also played in medical practices and pharmacies in December and January reaching an audience of over 20 million. A First Nations campaign, designed by an elder, played on indigenous radio nationally.
Our community package of info for AFSW2021 included:
- a sample media release to publicise your event
- the Australian Food Safety Week 2021 social media poster to use on social media with the hashtag #AFSW21
- our FSC-ToolboxPoster-2021
- our online quiz
- register your event
- our Be prepared qr code to use on your publications and link to more information about the food safety toolbox here
Proudly supported by our member First for Training
Download the Australian Food Safety Week 2021 social media poster
Download the Australian Food Safety Week 2021 A4 poster
Download our Food Safety Toolbox poster
Watch our TV Community Service Announcement
Listen to our Indigenous campaign with Jonzy
Listen to our radio community service announcement
What’s on during AFSW21
Check out some of our coverage
Fresh Produce Safety Centre newsletter
Woollahra Municipal Council NSW
Environmental Health Australia Live Chat 15 November
The theme for Food Safety Week this year is “Food Safety – Be Prepared” and to celebrate, EHA hosted a LiveChat event with food safety specialist presenters.
FOOD SAFETY WEEK 2021 – FOOD SAFETY – BE PREPARED – PANEL Q&A MONDAY !5 NOVEMBER 12.30pm
To celebrate the week, the Australian Institute of Food Science and Technology (AIFST) presented an interactive conversation between panelists to address the theme of being prepared, followed by questions from the audience.
Speakers
Moderator: Deon Mahoney
Panel:
Gary Kennedy
Cathy Moir
Hugh Dircks
Associate Professor Julian Cox – Director and Scientific Committee Chair, FSIC
AIFST members Free Other $25
“Food Microbiology – Be Prepared” Wednesday November 10th, 2021, 4:30 – 5:30pm (AEDT)
As part of Food Safety Week 2021, the Food Safety Information Council (FSIC), in conjunction with the Australian Institute of Food Science and Technology (AIFST) and the Australian Science Teachers Association (ASTA), presented a webinar for secondary science teachers.
The theme of Food Safety Week this year is “Food Safety – Be Prepared”. The webinar, “Food Microbiology – Be Prepared” will help prepare teachers, with an introduction to food microbiology, as well as discussing how microbes can impact food preparation in positive and negative ways. We need everyone to be prepared…
This webinar provided the viewer with content around:
- The incredible diversity of microorganisms associated with foods
- The roles microbes play in foods and their significance to humans – the good, the bad, and the ugly
- The preservation of selected foods and the positive and negative impacts of microorganisms in those foods – the fermentation of an amazing array of foods, well and less known, and what goes wrong when we don’t follow the rules of food preservation
See what happened during AFSW20
Australian Food Safety Week 2020 was held from 14 to 21 November 2020 and thanks to everyone who made it such a success. Its theme was ‘Food Safety – it’s in your hands’. We also launched our Summer campaign of TV and radio community service announcements which will run until the end of January 2021. Australian Food Safety Week 2021 will be held from 13 to 20 November 2021.
In particular we wanted to help young people better understand about food safety for both their health and for helping their future employment opportunities see our media release Aussies urged to learn about food safety- Australian Food Safety Week 14 – 21 November 2020 – food safety it’s in your hands
We would particularly like to thank our Gold Sponsors First for Training for making AFSW20 possible by funding our TV and radio announcements, videos, posters, artwork and consumer research. Also thanks to Australian Pasteurised Eggs who have made a major contribution to our indigenous campaign.
Subscribe here to our newsletter to keep up to date.
Watch our TV community service announcement running until the end of January 2021
Listen to our Indigenous campaign by Jonzy
See some of the AFSW20 media coverage
Bayside Council AFSW20
Food processing NSW Food Authority AFSW20
Bombala Times AFSW20
ABC Behind the News Food safety for kids
Fresh Produce Safety Centre AFSW20 Webinar
Whitsunday Council AFSW20
Mirage News AFSW20 Rockhampton Council
Good Food AFSW20
Food Standards News AFSW20
Environmental Health Australia AFSW20 Live chat
Channel 7 Morning Show Julian Cox (about 20 mins in) on AFSW20 food safety tips
We recognised that Australian Food Safety Week events was more of a challenge this year with possible restrictions on community events and social distancing requirements. There was still a lot the community, schools and local councils could do to publicise Australian Food Safety Week by putting up a poster in your local library, setting up a stall at your local farmers’ market (often free for community events) or sharing information in newsletters or social media #AFSW20
Our community package of info for AFSW2020 was available to download
- use this sample media release to publicise your event
- download the Food Safety Week poster and social media poster
- advertise Food Safety Week using this Food Safety Week 2020 email banner
- share our online quiz
- let us know what you are doing around Food Safety Week and we can publicize it, register your event
To get the community interested in learning more about food safety we have partnered with our member Highfield e-learning to make online food safety basic training courses affordable and available as well as meeting our long term aim of getting course material into schools. Highfield e-learning will be making a charitable donation of 10% of course sales to the Food Safety Information Council to help us keep our important work going. Find out more about their courses and enter our competition for the chance to win one of ten $50 Bunnings vouchers click here for more information.
Download AFSW2020 social media poster
Download the Food Safety Week poster
Download the Food Safety Week 2020 email banner
Food Safety Week Events
Gold Coast Public Health Unit, Gold Coast Health were at Westfield Coomera 103 Foxwell Rd, Coomera Qld 4209 during Food Safety Week, 17-20 November 2020
Environmental Health Australia had a Live chat for members on Friday 13 November featuring Lydia Buchtmann and Andrew Mathieson from our Board find out more
The Australian Institute of Food Science and Technology held a webinar on 17 November 2020 with our Board member Julian Cox speaking find out more
The National GS1 Traceability Advisory Group and Food Standards Australia New Zealand held a the live online briefing for Asia Pacific with U.S. FDA Deputy Commissioner for Food Policy & Response, Frank Yiannas. Join the conversation on the FDA’s New Era of Smarter Food Safety, the Proposed Food Traceability rule and the implications for fresh foods including seafood. Date: Friday 20 November 2020 reserve your place here
They also will be holding a free online recall bootcamp on Thursday 19 November reserve your place here
What happened during AFSW2019
Australian Food Safety Week 2019 was held from 9 to 16 November 2019 and the theme was ‘Excellent eggs – handle them safely’.
Many thanks to Australian Pasteurised Eggs our Gold Sponsors for this 2019.
During AFSW19 we released our latest consumer research which found 1 in 4 Australians eat raw eggs and 12% are doing it regularly read more …
Our new TV and radio community service announcements ran from 10 November until the end of January 2020. Our radio spots were played nationally 27,571 times on 324 markets/stations with a value of $188,320 if purchased. Our TV spots were played 412 times on metropolitan stations, 1300 in regional and 339 on Sky Racing with a value of $162,334 if purchased
Our media releases were issued through the Australian Science Media Centre:
Media coverage by Isentia:
- 382 radio items reached an audience of 1,524,700*
- 11 press items reached an audience of 170,247
- 45 TV items reached an audience of 392,000
- 23 online items reached an audience of 376,700
- Total media audience 2,110,847
- Value if purchased $702,895
*Note these numbers are under-reported as most ABC stations do not record audience ratings.
See some of the media coverage at this link
Tonic Health media video
- Our TV community service announcement was shown hourly from 9 December 2019 through 30 January 2020 in 1,747 Medical Centres where 6,988 GPs work
- Played by Tonic Health Media at no charge
- Reaching an audience of 10.8 million a month creating $59,420 media value if purchased
Post campaign evaluation by Omnipoll
- 24% Australian adults recall hearing egg safety messages over the Summer = approx. 5 million Australians
TV CSA
Radio CSA
Listen to our Indigenous CSA (thanks to Food Standards Australia NZ)
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Here are some of the events that happened:
City Of Wodonga Vic – Wodonga Waste transfer station BBQ Breakfast 8am Friday 15 November
Hawkesbury Council NSW has free handwashing stickers to hand out – pick up from their council chambers
Gold Coast Public Health Unit will have be at Robina Town Centre on Wed 13 November handing out information, fridge thermometers. Environmental Health Officers will be on site to provide food safety advice.
Georges River Council NSW “Food Fight” – 12-13 November 2019 find out more
Bayside City Council Victoria Sandringham Village Festival 2019 27 October
Nambucca Vocational College NSW are holding Food Safety Courses 16 November 2019
Burdekin Council Queensland ‘Excellent eggs – handle them safely’ 14 November 2019
Use our Sample media release to let the local media know about AFSW19 and to promote your event
Take our Egg Safety quiz and share with your friends
Print out our Excellent eggs fact sheet
Download and share our posters:
Food-Safety-2019-Excellent-Eggs-General-Egg-Safety
Food-Safety-2019-Excellent-Eggs-At-Risk-People-Egg-Safety
Food-Safety-2019-Excellent-Eggs-At-Home-Chickens-Egg-Safety
If you have any questions or need a high resolution .jpeg contact us info@foodsafety.asn.au
Watch and share our videos
Excellent eggs food safety tips
Excellent eggs – home grown eggs
Pasteurised eggs
Find out more about how eggs are pasteurised from our member Australian Pasteurised Eggs our AFSW19 Gold Sponsors
Watch their video about how eggs are pasteurised
Download the pasteurised eggs poster
Thanks to our AFSW sponsors and supporters
Australian Pasteurised Eggs our Gold Sponsors for this year.
Australian Science Media Centre
Food Standards Australia New Zealand
What happened during AFSW18
Thanks to everyone who took part in AFSW18. The theme for Australian Food Safety Week,10 to 17 November 2018, was ‘Food Poisoning – take it seriously!’ One in three Australian Households at risk of potentially deadly Listeria infection read aobut our research (supported by SA Health) in this media release
Our 2018-19 Australian Food Safety Week and summer campaign ‘Food poisoning- take it seriously) was highly successful:
- Our TV and radio ad distribution was worth $1,026,939 had they been purchased
- Our videos were shown in 5,300 GP surgeries during December and January reaching an audience of 15 million a month
- We reached an audience of over 2 million with our media interviews.
Our member Choice has reviewed meat thermometers – read the results for free during AFSW18 Meat thermometer tests
What happened during AFSW17?
Australian Food Safety Week was held from 11 to 18 November 2017 and its theme was ‘Is it done yet? Use a thermometer for great food, cooked safely every time’
70% of Australians surveyed don’t know that 75°C is the safe cooking temperature for high-risk foods such as hamburgers, sausages and poultry. 75% of Australians surveyed also reported that there wasn’t a meat thermometer in their household and only 44% of those with a thermometer reported using is over the previous month.
The 2017 Australian Food Safety Week ‘Is it done yet? Use a thermometer for great food, cooked safely every time’ was highly successful:
- We produced a TV community service announcement that was screened 366 times and 3 radio announcements were aired 4,100 times, including to specific indigenous audiences.
- Our YouTube video was shown in 49,000 GP surgeries reaching an audience of 14 million a month.
- The media coverage reached a known audience of 1,186,076.
- 1650 posters, 3300 brochures and 682 fridge thermometers were distributed to community events around the country.
- A pre and post campaign survey found a 1% increase in safe cooking temperature knowledge and that cooking temperature knowledge was higher among people who owned thermometers.
See more about AFSW2017
Find out more about what happened during AFSW2018 here
What happened during Food Safety Week 2016
The theme for the 20th Australian Food Safety Week, held from 6 to 12 November 2016, was ‘Raw and risky’ foods following major food poisoning outbreaks in recent years linked to risky raw foods such as unpasteurized milk, raw eggs, bean/seed sprouts, frozen berries and lettuce.
Thanks to our major sponsors and supporters Elanco Animal Health (Australia), Catercare, Tonic Health Media and MediaHeads who enabled Food Safety Week to go ahead this year.
Check out our media release and raw egg consumption research for Food Safety Week and our raw and risky food fact sheet
Here is some of the coverage for Food Safety Week 2016:
- Media coverage from Nov 2016 to January 2017 generated 38 print media articles, 67 TV news items, and 69 radio items reaching a total audience 5,112,659 (3,189,559 print and 1,923,100 radio and TV)
- The TV community service announcement was shown 851 times in mainland capital cities on Channels 7, 9 and 10 reaching a value of $2,502,698 if the ads purchased. It was also shown on regional stations: Network Ten, Southern Cross Austereo Television (SCA), Imparja, Channel Seven, Prime7, WIN, ABC TV, Sky Racing Direct and ICTV – Indigenous Community Television reaching multiple Indigenous communities nationwide
- Through a partnership with Tonic Health Media the TV ad was played to an audience of 3,278,954 December 2016 to January 2017 at 910 sites where 4,000 GPs work where there is an average of 2,372,840 patients who wait an average of 34 minutes. The value of this if purchased would have been $75,342
- Over 4,000 How you cook posters and 20,000 brochures mailed out to events in all states and territories, many held by local government authorities
See some of our media coverage:
Australian Science Media Centre
Community events
Each year many events are held around Australia during Food Safety Week.This is some of what happened in the community:
Rockhampton Council held a shopping centre event
Bega Council offered egg separators as a prize
Mackay Hospital and Health Services got media coverage
Kiama Council was in the news
WA Health put out a media release
The Australian Chicken Meat Council had some great tips
Dairy Safe Victoria had some dairy advice
Radio and TV ads
Our TV community service announcement ran from 6 November and running through to the end of January 2017.
Listen to our radio public information messages here contact us at info@foodsafety.asn.au if you’d like copies to download
Mail out
Thanks to everyone who has ordered or posters, brochures and fridge thermometers – we’ve mailed out 4,000 posters, 16,000 brochures and over 500 fridge thermometers to events around the country. The Food Safety Week mail out has now closed but let us know if you would like boxes of posters/brochures for the cost of postage or fridge thermometers for $3.30 each + postage for other events.
We are concerned that this year’s activities will be severely curtailed as we still haven’t had our long term Federal Government restored after it was suddenly withdrawn 2 years ago. Help us make sure that the 20th Australian Food Safety Week won’t be the last by sponsoring our important work, particularly to fund our research, radio and TV announcements and media release distribution – see our Sponsorship guide. You can contact us on 0407 626 688 or emailing info@foodsafety.asn.au
Join us to help reduce the amount of food poisoning in Australia – find out about how to become a member.
We are a health promotion charity solely funded by donations and need your help – find out how!
What happened during Australian Food Safety Week 2015
2015 ‘Did you know?’ – busting the food safety myths
The 2015 Food Safety Week, with a budget of less than $20,000, was one of the most successful ever:
- 90 organisations, including local government, schools, aged care facilities and workplaces registered events with us
- our media release generated 56 news items that reached 12,098,793 unique viewers
- more than 6,000 people completed our online food safety quiz
- our radio messages were played 6,903 times on 78 stations (20 metropolitan and 58 rural, regional and remote)
- our TV community service announcement was broadcast 329 times nationally
- an Omnipoll national survey we held in late January 2016 found that total recall of a food safety message in the media was 31% – 23% recalled messages on TV, 9% in newspapers, 6% on radio and 9% on the internet.
Previous Australian Food Safety Weeks
Previous Australian Food Safety Week themes