Clearer labelling laws, that make it easier for consumers to know where products come from, have been the subject of industry and consumer lobbying for years as well as numerous government inquiries.

The most recent inquiry, by the House of Representatives Agriculture and Industry committee, has reported this week and recommended the Government introduce labelling rules that stipulate the level of imported ingredients in food products.

But, the vegetable industry says the proposed changes to country of origin labelling won't make it easier for consumers to work out where products come from.

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Listen Duration: 4 minutes 20 seconds 4 m 20 s Consumers and the food industry respond to a report on country of origin labelling laws Download 2 MB

Under the recommendations, the term 'made in Australia from Australian ingredients' would apply to products containing 90 per cent Australian ingredients, while 'made in Australia from mostly local ingredients' could apply when Australian ingredients make up more than 50 per cent of the product.

Andrew White, of industry group Ausveg, says that's no better than the current labelling system.

"We believe that this is very confusing and we don't believe that it provides enough clarity for consumers," Mr White said.

"We think that the threshold should be higher, in terms of the amount of Australian content that is required to actually be able to say local ingredients are included.

"And we think that the words 'made in' is actually confusing as well and we'd prefer to use a term such as 'manufactured in', or 'processed in'."

Peter Stahle, executive director of the Australian Dairy Products Federation, says the dairy processing industry believes the current labelling regulations are robust and don't need to be changed.

Currently, dairy products labelled 'Made in Australia' or 'Product of Australia' can contain minor imported ingredients, like flavourings and cultures, that are not always available locally.

Dr Stahle says he'd be concerned about the introduction of prescriptive percentages for labelling.

"This presents a real issue to not only dairy product manufacturers, but other manufacturers where they have to source their ingredients from various locations, depending on the season and even just basic supply," Dr Stahle said.

"It is a concern, particularly because we are now talking a specified percentage, that if a manufacturer fails to meet that by half a per cent, simply because of some issue of supply, that manufacturer is potentially running foul of the ACCC of regulations."