Victorian Consolidated Legislation

Food Act 1984 - SECT 4

Definitions

4. Definitions



(1) In this Act-

advertisement means-

   (a)  any words, whether written or spoken; or

   (b)  any pictorial representation or design; or

   (c)  any other representation by any means at all- used or apparently used
        to promote, directly or indirectly, the sale of food;

analysis includes any examination or testing of food or any other thing;

analyst means a person authorized under section 30 to carry out analyses for
the purposes of this Act;

animal includes an amphibian, bird, crustacean, fish, mollusc or reptile;

approved food safety auditor means a person holding a current certificate
issued under section 19P;

article means-

   (a)  any food; or

   (b)  any equipment; or

   (c)  a package; or

   (d)  any labelling or advertising material used or capable of being used in
        or in connection with the sale of any food;

authorized officer means-

   (a)  a person who is authorized by the Secretary under section 20(1) for
        the purposes of this Act; or

   (b)  a medical officer of health or an environmental health officer
        appointed under Division 3 of Part II of the Health Act 1958; or

   (c)  for the purposes of enforcing the provisions of this Act in relation
        to any dairy premises, milk or dairy food within the meaning of the
        Dairy Act 2000, a person who is an authorised officer appointed under
        section 43 of the Dairy Act 2000; or

   (d)  a person who, under the Meat Industry Act 1993, is appointed as, or
        has the powers of, an inspector or is a person authorised to be an
        inspector by an inspection service approved under section 7 of that
        Act; or

   (e)  in relation to a food premises-

   (i)  operated by or on behalf of the Crown; or

   (ii) on land that is not part of a municipal district- the Secretary; or

   (f)  a person to whom, under section 8A of the Health Act 1958, the
        Secretary delegates any of the functions or powers of an authorized
        officer under this Act;

books includes any register or other record of information and accounts or
financial records (within the meaning of the Corporations Act), however
compiled, recorded or stored, and also includes any document;

corresponding law means a law of another State or a Territory which the
Governor in Council by Order declares to be a law that makes provision
substantially similar to a provision of this Act;

council has the same meaning as in the Local Government Act 1989, and the
council means the council of the municipal district to which the provision in
which the term is used applies;

declared premises means a food premises that is of a class that has been
declared under section 19C;

Department means the Department of Human Services;

equipment means the whole or part of-

   (a)  any utensil, machinery, instrument, device, apparatus or appliance
        that is used, or that is designed or intended for use, in or in
        connection with the handling of food; or

   (b)  any substance, utensil, machinery, instrument, device, apparatus or
        appliance that is used, or that is designed or intended for use, in
        cleaning anything referred to in paragraph (a);

examine includes weigh, count, test and measure;

food has the meaning given by section 4A;

food business has the meaning given by section 4B;

food premises means any premises at, on or from which food is sold, or handled
with the intention that it be sold, but does not include-

   (a)  any premises used solely for the purposes of a primary food production
        business, enterprise or activity; or

   (b)  any premises or other place declared by an Order made under section
        5(3) not to be a food premises;

Food Safety Council means the Food Safety Council established under section
60;

food safety program has the meaning given by section 19D;

food safety program audit has the meaning given by section 19J;

food safety program template has the meaning given by section 19DA;

Food Safety Standards means the standards contained in Chapter 3 of the Food
Standards Code;

food safety supervisor has the meaning given by section 19G;

Food Standards Code means the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code as
defined in the Australia New Zealand Food Authority Act 1991 of the
Commonwealth;

food transport vehicle means a vehicle used for the transport of food for
sale;

food vending machine means a machine or mechanical device used or capable of
being used for selling food without any intervention or attention by or on
behalf of the seller at the time of the sale;

handling, in relation to food, includes the making, manufacturing, producing,
collecting, extracting, processing, storing, transporting, delivering,
preparing, treating, preserving, packing, cooking, thawing, serving or
displaying of food;

hazard means a biological, chemical, radiological or physical agent or factor
that may adversely affect the health of any person;

label includes any tag, brand, mark or statement in writing or any
representation or design or other descriptive matter on or attached to or used
or displayed in connection with or accompanying any food or package;

package includes any container or wrapper in or by which food intended for
sale is wholly or partly encased, covered, enclosed, contained or packed and,
in the case of food carried or sold or intended to be carried or sold in more
than one package, includes every such package;

person includes a body or association (corporate or unincorporate) and a
partnership;

premises includes-

   (a)  land (whether or not vacant); and

   (b)  the whole or any part of a building, tent, stall or other structure
        (whether of a permanent or temporary nature); and

   (c)  a pontoon; and

   (d)  a vehicle (other than a food transport vehicle while it is engaged in
        the transport of food);

prepare includes manufacture, process and treat;

prescribed means prescribed by this Act, the regulations or a prescribed food
standard;

prescribed food standard has the meaning given by section 63A;

primary food production has the meaning given by section 4C;

proprietor of a food business means-

   (a)  the person carrying on the food business; or

   (b)  if that person cannot be identified, the person in charge of the food
        business;

public statutory body means any body created by, or under the authority of, an
Act of the Commonwealth or of a State or Territory for a public purpose;

recall order means an order under Part VII requiring the recall or disposal,
or both, of any food;

registered medical practitioner means a medical practitioner registered under
the Health Professions Registration Act 2005;

registration authority means the relevant registration authority, as
determined under sections 35 and 36;

sample includes part of a sample;

Secretary means the Secretary to the Department of Human Services;

sell includes-

   (a)  barter, offer or attempt to sell; and

   (b)  receive for sale; and

   (c)  have in possession for sale; and

   (d)  display for sale; and

   (e)  cause or permit to be sold or offered for sale; and

   (f)  send, forward or deliver for sale; and

   (g)  dispose of by any method for valuable consideration; and

   (h)  dispose of to an agent for sale on consignment; and

   (i)  provide under a contract of service; and

   (j)  supply food as a meal or part of a meal to an employee in accordance
        with a term of an award governing the employment of the employee or a
        term of the employee's contract of service, for consumption by the
        employee at the employee's place of work; and

   (k)  dispose of by way of raffle, lottery or other game of chance; and

   (l)  offer as a prize or reward; and

   (m)  give away for the purpose of advertisement or in furtherance of trade
        or business; and

   (n)  supply food under a contract (whether or not the contract is made with
        the consumer of the food), together with accommodation, service or
        entertainment, in consideration of an inclusive charge for the food
        supplied and the accommodation, service or entertainment; and

   (o)  supply food (whether or not for consideration) in the course of
        providing services to patients in hospitals or prisoners in prisons;
        and

   (p)  sell for the purpose of resale;

service, in relation to a food vending machine, means stock or replenish that
machine with food;

standard food safety program has the meaning given by section 19DC;

substance includes a mixture or compound;

therapeutic good has the same meaning as it has in the
Therapeutic Goods Act 1989 of the Commonwealth;

this Act includes the regulations;

unsafe has the meaning given by section 4D;

unsuitable has the meaning given by section 4E;

vehicle means any means of transport, whether self-propelled or not, and
whether used on land or sea or in the air.

(1A) If under the Public Administration Act 2004 the name of the Department of
Human Services is changed, a reference in the definition of Department in
subsection (1) to that Department must, from the date when the name is
changed, be treated as a reference to the Department by its new name.



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(3) For the purposes of this Act-

   (a)  food or equipment that is displayed for the purpose of being offered
        as a prize or reward or given away for the purpose of advertisement or
        in the furtherance of trade or business is taken to have been
        displayed for sale by the owner of the food or equipment;

   (b)  food that is donated to a person who distributes food for a charitable
        or benevolent purpose is not to be taken to be food that was given
        away for the purpose of advertisement or in furtherance of trade or
        business;

   (c)  food which is exposed or deposited in any premises for the purpose of
        being so offered as a prize or reward or given away is taken to have
        been exposed for sale by the occupier of the premises.

(4) Where a word or phrase is given a particular meaning in this Act, other
parts of speech and grammatical forms of that word or phrase have, unless the
contrary intention appears, corresponding meanings.

(5) Where a provision of this Act is with respect to a particular
subject-matter inconsistent with a provision of any other Act, the provision
of this Act shall prevail and the provision of that other Act is, to the
extent of the inconsistency, of no force or effect.

(6) Where a provision of a regulation made under this Act is with respect to a
particular subject-matter inconsistent with a provision of a regulation, rule
or by-law made under any other Act, the provision of the regulation made under
this Act shall prevail and that other provision is, to the extent of the
inconsistency, of no force or effect.