What it does
The Meat Industry Act 1993 (Vic) is the primary regulatory statute for the production, processing, sale and transport of meat for human consumption and for pet food in Victoria. Its purposes, set out in section 1, are to set standards for meat production, establish a licensing and inspection system, create a mechanism for adopting and implementing quality assurance programs, enable the regulation of meat transport vehicles, and establish the Victorian Meat Authority (now called PrimeSafe) to operate the licensing and inspection system and arrange for quality assurance programs. The Act also empowers PrimeSafe to perform functions under the Seafood Safety Act 2003. The Act operates by requiring any person who operates a meat processing facility to hold a licence under Part 4. A meat processing facility is broadly defined in section 3(1) to include abattoirs, general meat processing facilities (where the predominant activity is processing unmixed meat or manufactured meat), butcher shops, pet food processing facilities (including knackeries), and any place or vehicle used for sale, handling, storage or transportation of meat for human consumption (with certain exclusions). The Act also provides for the licensing of meat transport vehicles through regulations made under section 78(1)(h). Section 5 sets out important exemptions: the Act does not apply to meat in a dwelling, dried meat for sale online (added by amendment in 2024), slaughter on a farm for consumption on that farm provided it is not for sale and not removed from the farm, and meat branded under the Commonwealth Export Control Act 2020. The Minister may also exempt a class of licensee or class of meat processing facility by notice in the Government Gazette (section 5(2)). The Act establishes PrimeSafe (section 43) as a body corporate with functions including controlling and reviewing standards of meat, poultry meat and game meat, licensing facilities, approving quality assurance programs, and charging fees. The Act provides for approved inspection services (Part 2) which can be contracted to perform inspections. Quality assurance programs (Part 3) can be approved by PrimeSafe and, if adopted, can exempt a licensee from compliance with certain Act or regulation requirements (section 11(3)). Codes of Practice (Part 3A) can be made by PrimeSafe with Ministerial approval and are binding on licensees (section 13E). The Act contains extensive offences in Part 5, including bans on selling certain meat for human consumption unless it has been processed at a licensed facility and inspected (section 34), bans on selling meat from knackeries for human consumption (section 36), and offences for operating unlicensed facilities (section 40). Enforcement is handled by inspectors appointed by PrimeSafe (section 70) who have broad powers of entry, search, seizure and condemnation (section 72). The chief executive officer has additional powers to issue notices prohibiting use of facilities or vehicles (section 74) and may seek enforcement orders from the Supreme Court (section 74A). Penalties range from 20 penalty units for obstruction to 500 penalty units or 24 months imprisonment for subsequent offences involving sale of unfit meat.