A statement from the director of Augustine Approved Pty Ltd.
The transcript:
On 26 June, Augustine Approved was issued two infringement notices by the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority in relation to selling one jar of our certified organic coconut oil and one jar of SuperHeal, with fines totalling almost $25,000.
On 24 July, 28 days later, we formally lodged an objection. In that letter we set out our position and demands clearly, including the expectation of a reply within 14 days.
Now, 31 days have passed. In good faith, we have refrained from advertising during this entire time, waiting for a reply. The losses to my company in the past two months have been severe — and over the last 11 years, deeply damaging — hindering our ability to advertise and operate without restriction.
The reality is—we’ve heard nothing. No acknowledgement. No response. It is neither fair nor reasonable for us, or our customers, to be left waiting indefinitely. We maintain that these infringement notices were not lawfully issued, and it appears the APVMA are hesitant to address our allegations. Instead, it seems they may be waiting for another investigation by the Commonwealth Ombudsman — who has already ruled in our favour once before on this same issue of our correspondence being ignored.
We are dealing with a government regulator that has a well-documented history of shifting the goal posts and acted as a law unto themselves.
That is why, effective immediately, we will resume business as usual. We will once again advertise and communicate openly about our products. Any further action from the APVMA would, in our view, only demonstrate further unfair treatment.
We have acted with patience and respect. Now, the correct and responsible step is to continue serving our community without further unnecessary delay.
Finally, we will ensure the APVMA is held accountable, and we are committed to working towards bringing change to the legislation so that organic and natural products are properly recognised. At present, the framework is outdated, focused only on chemical and pharmaceutical products, with no genuine allowance for the diversity of natural alternatives.
Augustine Approved stands with the natural industry, backed by thousands of customers and supporters who all want government hands off natural and organic products.
Thank you.
