FOOD ACT 1983

LAWS OF MALAYSIA ONLINE VERSION OF UPDATED TEXT OF REPRINT Act 281 FOOD ACT 1983 As at 1 October 2024 This text is ONLY AN UPDATED TEXT of the Food Act 1983 by the Attorney General’s Chambers. Unless and until reprinted pursuant to the powers of the Commissioner of Law Revision under subsection 14(1) of the Revision of Laws Act 1968 [Act 1], this text is NOT AN AUTHENTIC TEXT. 2 FOOD ACT 1983 … … … … 9 March 1983 Date of publication in the Gazette … … … … 10 March 1983 Latest amendment made by Act A1702 which came into operation on … … … … 1 October 2024 Date of Royal Assent PREVIOUS REPRINTS First Reprint … … … … … 2001 Second Reprint … … … … … 2005 Third Reprint … … … … … 2006 3 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 281 FOOD ACT 1983 ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS PART I PRELIMINARY Section 1. Short title, application and commencement 2. Interpretation PART II ADMINISTRATION AND ENFORCEMENT 3. Appointment of analysts and authorized officers 3A. Approved laboratories 4. Powers of authorized officers 5. Power to take sample 6. Procedure for taking sample 7. Certificate of analyst 8. Power to call for information 9. Power of the Director General to obtain particulars of certain food ingredients 10. Director may order food premises or appliances to be put into hygienic and sanitary condition 11. Closure of insanitary premises 12. Conviction published in newspapers 4 Laws of Malaysia ACT 281 PART III OFFENCES AND EVIDENCE Section 12A. Meaning of “owner of the rights of the manufacturer or packer” 13. Food containing substances injurious to health 13A. Food unfit for human consumption 13B. Adulterated food 13C. Removal of food from food premises 14. Prohibition against the sale of food not of the nature, substance or quality demanded 15. Labelling, etc., not complying with standard of food 16. False labelling, etc. 17. Advertisement 18. Power of court to order licence to be cancelled and food to be disposed of 19. Prosecutions 20. Certificate of analyst to be prima facie evidence 21. Court may order independent analysis 22. Presumption of sale, etc. 23. No defence that offence not wilfully committed 23A. Advance notice of expert evidence in court 24. Sales, etc., by agent or servant 25. Presumption for human consumption 26. Non-disclosure of information 27. Manufacturing process and trade secret 28. Liability of importer, manufacturer, packer, etc. PART IV IMPORTATION, WARRANTY AND DEFENCES 29. Importation 30. Warranty 31. Reliance on written warranty a good defence Food Section 32. Penalty for false warranty PART V MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 32A. Prosecution 32B. Power to order appearance in court 33. Power to compound 33A. Offence by body corporate 33B. Protection against legal proceedings 33C. Indemnity 34. Power to make regulations 35. Repeal and savings 36. (Deleted) 5 7 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 281 FOOD ACT 1983 An Act to protect the public against health hazards and fraud in the preparation, sale and use of food, and for matters incidental thereto or connected therewith. [1 October 1985, P.U. (B) 446/1985] BE IT ENACTED by the Seri Paduka Baginda Yang di-Pertuan Agong with the advice and consent of the Dewan Negara and Dewan Rakyat in Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows: PART I PRELIMINARY Short title, application and commencement 1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Food Act 1983 and shall apply throughout Malaysia. (2) This Act shall come into force on such date as the Minister may by notification in the Gazette appoint and the Minister may appoint different dates for the coming into force of this Act for different States in Malaysia or for different provisions of this Act. Interpretation 2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires— 8 Laws of Malaysia ACT 281 “advertisement” includes any representation by any means whatsoever for the purposes of promoting directly or indirectly the sale or other disposal of any food; “analyst” means any analyst appointed under section 3; “animal” includes any quadruped or bird either domesticated or otherwise, fish, reptile or insect, whole or part of which are used for human consumption; “appliance” includes the whole or any part of any utensil, machinery, instrument, apparatus, or article used for or in connection with the preparation, preservation, packaging, storage, conveyance, distribution or sale of food; “approved laboratory” means any laboratory approved by the Minister under section 3A; “authorized officer” means any medical officer of health or any assistant environmental health officer of the Ministry of Health or of any local authority, or any suitably qualified person, appointed by the Minister to be an authorized officer under section 3; “compoundable offence” means an offence under this Act or any regulation made under this Act and prescribed to be a compoundable offence by regulations made under this Act; “Director” means the Deputy Director General of Health (Public Health) of the Ministry of Health; “Director General” means the Director General of Health of the Ministry of Health; “entertainment” includes any social or other form of gathering, amusement, festival, exhibition, performance, game, competition, sport or trial of skill; “food” includes every article manufactured, sold or represented for use as food or drink for human consumption or which enters into or is used in the composition, preparation, preservation, of any food or Food 9 drink and includes confectionery, chewing substances and any ingredient of such food, drink, confectionery or chewing substances; “food premises” means premises used for or in conection with the preparation, preservation, packaging, storage, conveyance, distribution or sale of any food, or the relabelling, reprocessing or reconditioning of any food; “import” means to bring or cause to be brought into Malaysia by land, water or air for the purpose of sale from any place outside Malaysia but does not include the bringing into Malaysia of any food which it is proved is intended to be taken out of Malaysia on the same vehicle, vessel, or aircraft on which such food was brought into Malaysia without any transhipment or landing; “importer” includes any person who, whether as owner, consignor, consignee, agent or broker, is in possession of, or is otherwise entitled to the custody or control, of the imported food; “International Health Regulations” means the International Health Regulations as adopted by the World Health Assembly in 1969 and as amended from time to time; “label” includes any tag, brand, mark, pictorial or other descriptive matter, written, printed, stencilled, marked, painted, embossed or impressed on, or attached to or included in, belonging to, or accompanying any food; “medical examination” includes physical, microbiological, chemical, serological and radiological examination, and such examination may include the taking of specimen of any body fluid, tissue or waste product for examination or analysis; “package” includes anything in which or any means by which food is wholly or partly cased, covered, enclosed, contained, placed or otherwise packed in any way whatsoever and includes any basket, pail, tray or receptacle of any kind whether opened or closed; “premises” includes— 10 Laws of Malaysia ACT 281 (a) any building or tent or any other structure, permanent or otherwise together with the land on which the building, tent or other structure is situated and any adjoining land used in connection therewith and any vehicle, conveyance, vessel or aircraft; and (b) for the purposes of section 4 any street, open space or place of public resort or bicycle or any vehicle used for or in connection with the preparation, preservation, packaging, storage, conveyance, distribution or sale of any food; “preparation” includes manufacture, packaging, processing and any form of treatment; “seal” includes the detention in bulk of any food, a sample of which has been taken for analysis, pending the result of the analysis; “sell or sale” refers only to sale for human consumption or use and includes barter and exchange, offering or attempting to sell, causing or allowing to be sold, exposing for sale, receiving, sending, conveying or delivering for sale or exchange or in pursuance of such sale or exchange, supplying any food where consideration is to be received by the supplier for such supply either specifically or as part of a service contracted for sale, or having in possession any food for sale or exchange, or having in possession any food or appliance knowing that the food or appliance is likely to be sold or offered or displayed or exposed for sale or disposed of for any consideration, and includes electronic sale; “vegetable substance” means any plant or part of a plant, and includes the stem, root, bark, tuber, rhizome, leaf, stalk, inflorescence, bud, shoot, flowers, fruit and seed, or an extract thereof. Food 11 PART II ADMINISTRATION AND ENFORCEMENT Appointment of analysts and authorized officers 3. (1) The Minister may appoint such number of analysts as he may consider necessary for the purposes of this Act and may make regulations concerning their qualifications, conduct and duties, and shall prepare or cause to be prepared a list of appointed analysts and revise it as the circumstances may require. (2) The Minister may appoint such number of authorized officers as he may consider necessary for the purposes of this Act and every authorized officer shall be issued with a Certificate of Authorization which certificate shall in any legal proceedings under this Act be admissible in evidence and shall be prima facie evidence of the facts so certified. (3) The Minister may, in relation to any matter which appears to him to affect the general interests of the consumer, authorize any public officer to procure for analysis samples of any food, and thereupon that officer shall have all the powers of an authorized officer under this Act, and this Act shall apply as if the officer was an authorized officer. (4) The analysts and authorized officers appointed under this section shall be deemed to be public servants within the meaning of the Penal Code [Act 574]. Approved laboratories 3A. (1) The Minister may, by order, approve such number of laboratories as he may consider necessary for the purposes of this Act. (2) A laboratory approved under subsection (1) shall be issued with a Certificate of Approval which certificate shall, in any legal 12 Laws of Malaysia ACT 281 proceedings under this Act, be admissible in evidence and shall be prima facie evidence of the facts so certified. (3) The Minister shall prepare or cause to be prepared a list of approved laboratories and revise it as the circumstances may require. Powers of authorized officer 4. (1) An authorized officer may at any time for the proper and better performance of his duty— (a) enter any premises which he believes to be food premises and examine any food found therein and take samples of such food, and examine anything that he believes is used or capable of being used for the preparation, preservation, packaging, storage, conveyance, distribution or sale of the food; (b) stop, search or detain any aircraft, ship or vehicle in which he believes on reasonable grounds that any food to which this Act applies is being conveyed and examine any such food and take samples thereof for the purposes of this Act, except an aircraft, ship or vehicle making an international voyage in respect of which the International Health Regulations apply; (c) open and examine any package which he believes contains any food to which this Act applies; (d) examine any books, documents or other records found in any food premises that he believes contain any information relevant to the enforcement of this Act with respect to any food to which this Act applies and make copies thereof