New Seafood Labelling Laws: Know Where Your Fish Comes From

Wondering where the fish on your plate actually comes from? New seafood labelling laws are making it easier for Australians to find out.

For many Australians, ordering fish and chips or choosing seafood at a restaurant has traditionally involved a simple question: What kind of fish is this?

But there has often been another question that wasn't quite as easy to answer:

Where did it actually come from?

That is changing.

From 1 July 2026, new national seafood labelling requirements mean restaurants, cafés, pubs and takeaway businesses must tell customers whether the seafood they serve is Australian, imported or a combination of both.

What do the new seafood labels mean?

The new system uses three simple letters:

• A – Australian: the seafood is Australian.
• I – Imported: the seafood comes from overseas.
• M – Mixed: the seafood includes a combination of Australian and imported seafood.

So, the next time you order seafood, you may notice one of these letters displayed on the menu, at the point of sale or with your takeaway order.

The idea is simple: give customers more information about the seafood they are buying.

Why does seafood origin matter?

Australia has a strong seafood culture, with consumers enjoying everything from prawns and oysters to salmon, barramundi, tuna and fish and chips.

However, not all seafood sold in Australia is caught or farmed locally.

Imported seafood plays an important role in Australia's seafood supply, meaning the fish or seafood on your plate may have travelled a considerable distance before reaching the restaurant or takeaway shop.

The new labelling system gives customers a clearer choice.

If supporting Australian seafood is important to you, you can look for the A label when ordering.

If you're happy to eat imported seafood, the I label provides that information too.

And if the dish contains both Australian and imported seafood, the M label makes that clear.

Taking the guesswork out of ordering

One of the biggest advantages of the new system is transparency.

Previously, customers could ask where their seafood came from, but the answer wasn't always immediately obvious from a menu.

Now, the information is intended to be much easier to see.

The federal government says the changes are designed to provide greater transparency for consumers while supporting Australia's approximately $3 billion seafood industry.

For tourists and visitors in particular, the labelling could also make it easier to identify Australian seafood while travelling around the country.

What does this mean for Australian seafood?

For Australian fishers, farmers and seafood producers, the new rules could provide another opportunity to highlight locally produced seafood.

Australian seafood can be an important part of regional economies and coastal communities. Being able to clearly identify Australian seafood gives consumers the opportunity to make purchasing decisions based on origin.

For businesses, it also creates a more consistent system.

Some seafood businesses have already been providing origin information voluntarily. Hobart's Mures, for example, has reportedly been using seafood origin labelling for years and says the new rules create a more level playing field for restaurants.

What should seafood lovers look for?

The next time you're ordering seafood, keep an eye out for the three-letter system:

A = Australian
I = Imported
M = Mixed

It's a small change, but it can make a big difference to the information available to consumers.

If buying Australian seafood is important to you, the new labelling system makes it easier to identify Australian options without having to guess.

A more transparent future for seafood

Knowing where our food comes from is becoming increasingly important to Australian consumers.

The new seafood labelling requirements won't necessarily change what is available on the menu, but they give customers more information when making their choice.

So next time you're standing at the fish and chip shop, browsing a restaurant menu or ordering seafood for takeaway, take a moment to look for the label.

A, I or M could tell you more about your seafood than you might expect.

For seafood lovers, that's a welcome change: less guessing, more transparency and a clearer connection between the seafood on your plate and where it came from.