Don

As of July 1^st, the Australian Governments Country of Origin labelling legislation will come in effect. The purpose of this new legislation is to clearly inform consumers about the food they purchase; whether the product is made in Australia and to what extent the food is made from Australian ingredients.

You can therefore expect all our smallgoods retail products to feature the new Country of Origin labelling; this mark has the following elements:

• A kangaroo in a triangle logo to help identify that this product is Australian in origin easily
• A clear bar chart with accompanying text to identify the percentage of Australian content within the product

Deli products are treated slightly differently. As these products are often sliced and then displayed behind the deli counter, they still require Country of Origin to be visible. The retailer should create Deli tags which feature Country of Origin information and will then be placed alongside the product on view. This is to ensure that this information is easily accessible at point of sale.

Goods can still be produced and packed up until the 30^th of June without the Country of Origin labelling. Therefore this change will continue to gradually happen across all of our products in store as new stock post July 1^st heads into stores.

To learn more about Country of Origin labelling please head over to https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/groceries/country-of-origin for more information.

We source high quality pork from government and independently approved suppliers from Australia, EU, USA, and Canada.

Ensuring the safety of consumers is of the utmost importance to DON^®. The following allergenic ingredients are used in our manufacturing facility and may be present in our products: soy, milk, cereals containing gluten. Any allergens that may be present in our products are clearly labelled. We recommend that you refer to the ingredient list of the individual product to determine whether it is suitable for you.

Allergens are usually a substance or protein that can cause a reaction if consumed or if come into contact with. Common foods that may cause a food allergy include: cereals containing gluten (eg. wheat, barley, rye, oats and spelt), peanuts, tree nuts (e.g. cashews, almonds, walnuts), shellfish, fish, milk, eggs, sesame seeds, soybeans and their related products.  DON^® packaging features a separate allergen listing in a statement at the end of the ingredient listing.

In Australia, smallgoods is a term typically used to describe deli styled products such as, dried, cooked, fermented, cured and/or otherwise processed meats and meat products such as salami, kransky, frankfurts, sausages, ham and bacon.

We have worked with Food Standards Australia and New Zealand over a number of years to reduce the levels of salt in our products. As part of our commitment to reduce dietary salt intake, we have voluntarily reduced the salt content of our products gradually over the last 10 years. The sodium/salt content levels are found on our nutritional panel on our packaging.

Salt is added to smallgoods for a variety of purposes. It is primarily added to help extract the natural proteins found in meat and allows the meat pieces to bind together.  Salt plays a part in preservation, reducing the ability of spoilage organisms to grow and keeps the food safe to eat for longer.  In some products, salt forms part of the delicious flavour we associate with ham, bacon, smallgoods and salami.

There are multiple products within the DON^® range that are gluten free.  These products can be easily identified by the ‘gluten free’ statement located on our packaging.

“Bone in ham” styled products should be stored in accordance to instructions provided on product packaging. We recommend all other products should be stored in an air tight container at the temperature specified on packaging. All our products must be consumed prior to or on the use by date.

Our products can be frozen for up to 6 months unless otherwise stated on packaging. Once frozen, our product must only be thawed when ready for immediate consumption. If you choose to freeze our product, it must be frozen before the use by date. The use by date is only effective if the product remains in the refrigerator.

DON^® recognises that animal welfare is an important responsibility – we are committed to ensuring the safe and humane treatment of livestock within our care and that of livestock supplied to our business.

The pork used in our fresh and manufactured products comes from our own piggeries as well as being sourced from various approved external suppliers. Since November 2010, piggeries owned by DON^®, are sow stall free and sows are group housed through gestation. Additionally, our piggeries are certified by APIQ to comply with the Model Code of Practice to the Welfare of Animals: Pigs, as well as meeting our customer’s strict guidelines. Our Australian external fresh pork suppliers also maintain APIQ accreditation and our international pork suppliers successfully meet the current Australian standards.

We remain fully committed to animal welfare and continue to work alongside our suppliers to ensure these high standards are constantly met.

The advantage of purchasing from the Dairy case is that the packaging allows you to store the product in your fridge for a longer period of time before needing to use it.  Also, the product information, including the nutritional information and ingredients list are printed on the packaging for your reference.