Last Updated on: 25th June 2026, 03:52 pm
A new labelling rule has been implemented for all restaurants in Australia selling seafood. Not all restaurants will explain what the new labelling letters mean, so if you’re a tourist enjoying seafood in Australia, here is what you need to know.
From July 1, 2026, all restaurants, eateries, including food trucks and places selling pre-prepared food, must show the origin of all seafood on their menu and labels.
This is a big task and is being implemented all across Australia. While there are many other, more serious issues to tackle, the apparent reason for this trivial rule is to allow consumers to make informed decisions about what to buy. Raw fish sellers (eg fish mongers and seafood stores) are already required to show the country of origin of seafood, but up to now, restaurants are not. There is no particular reason why this rule only applies to seafood and not terrestrial meat and vegetables and fruit.
How does the new Australian seafood labelling system work?
The new Australian seafood labelling system is called the AIM system and works like this: each letter represents the origin of the product, and is to be displayed next to the item:
A – Australian
I – Imported
M – Mixed (some from Australia, some from other countries).
It is not compulsory to say what the country of origin is if the ingredient is imported or is a mix.
Are there any exemptions to the new Australian seafood labelling rule?
Catering services and sauces, pastes etc and non-seafood products do not have to use the AIM labelling system.
Real world implications of the seafood AIM labelling system – is it actually useful?
There is not a lot of real world implications for the new AIM seafood labeling system for the average buyer. Australian fishmongers and suppliers welcome the change since they argue without it, they compete with imported seafood, and consumers would not know where their seafood is coming from. For those who support Australian made/grown, this new labelling system can provide them with information to make decisions. For the average buyer especially those who choose based on price in a cost of living hardship period, it makes little difference. It is also hard to keep up since alternatives might be substituted if Australian source of an ingredient becomes suddenly unavailable due to unexpected demand, and imported sources have to be used. It is not practical to re-print multiple copies of the entire menu for a temporary shortage.
Why consumers should still be careful
This new labelling method might tell you where the ingredient came from, but it does not actually tell you anything about the quality or value for money of the product, and can instead be used as an excuse or mask to hide inflated prices.
It is not compulsory to actually name the exact variety of fish on the menu.
Often, a fancy name like “Blue Grenadier” is used instead of “Hoki”, which is an affordable white fish, even though they are the same. Then, if labelled as “Australian” (if it was caught or farmed in Australia), it can be used to justify higher price. Sometimes a name is not used at all.
For example, the fish used in fish and chips meals or cheap food court Asian fish dishes or fish cocktails are almost exclusively cheap basa fish. Taking the first menu above as an example, the larger Mixed Fish and Chips consists of two pieces of Blue Grenadier at 270g for $29 Australian Dollars (AUD), considerably cheaper than the smaller portion of Battered fish of 200g, and chips for $35 AUD, because the Blue Grenadier is imported from New Zealand while the unspecified but likely basa or similar white fish battered fish is from Australia. The irony is that if you were buying this in New Zealand, being from New Zealand, the Blue Grenadier would have bragging rights and probably be more expensive than the Australian battered fish, which would relatively become the imported one.
It also doesn’t tell you anything about whether it is fresh or frozen and Australian oysters are just as susceptible to food poisoning if not stored and handled correctly.
But for tourists, you can now actively choose to try specifically Australian seafood if that is what you want.
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