Digital Labels Are Coming to New Zealand Products — Here's What's Happening

New Zealand is working on a national standard for digital product labels, and the Government says it could be worth $111 million over ten years.

Regulations Minister David Seymour announced on 6 September 2026 that the standard will let businesses update product information in real time, cut compliance costs, and reduce the amount of shelf space taken up by physical labels. RNZ

Digital labels won't replace physical labels completely. Instead, businesses will have the option to use a recognised global standard for digital labelling. The idea is similar to scanning a QR code on a product to see live, up-to-date information online. The changes come from a review of product labelling by the Ministry for Regulation, which has been looking at how New Zealand's labelling system could be modernised. Seymour said decisions on the rest of the review have yet to be made. RNZ

The announcement also covers over-the-counter medicines. New Zealand will align its medicine labelling rules with Australia's, so companies won't need to make separate labels just for New Zealand. That removes a cost for pharmaceutical suppliers selling in both countries.

Separately, work on digital food labels has been going on for over a year through the Ministry for Primary Industries and New Zealand Food Safety. This is a different project from the broader product labelling review.

New Zealand Food Safety is planning a one-year trial of digital food labels on selected imported packaged foods. A process for retailers to express interest closed on 8 April 2026. A small number of approved retailers will be temporarily allowed to skip some physical labelling rules during the trial. All other retailers will keep using normal physical labels. Beehive

The trial is limited to lower-risk, pre-packaged imported foods. Products in the trial will still carry physical labels that meet the rules of countries with food safety systems comparable to New Zealand's. All the information consumers are used to seeing on labels will also be available digitally. Every product must still comply with the Food Act 2014 and all other relevant laws. Beehive

New Zealand Food Safety will pick the participants, run the trial, give guidance, and check how it's going. The results will help Food Standards Australia New Zealand, the joint body that sets food standards across both countries, decide its own approach to digital food labelling. Beehive

The lead-up to the food trial has gone through several steps. Finance Minister Nicola Willis, as Economic Growth Minister, and Food Safety Minister Andrew Hoggard announced in November 2025 that consultation had begun on allowing digital labels for lower-risk food products. That consultation was required by law under the Food Act. The Ministry for Primary Industries had earlier run a consultation on the trial proposal, with submissions closing on 19 December 2025, and published a summary of those submissions in March 2026. OpenGov Asia MPI MPI

The Government confirmed in March 2026 that the trial would go ahead after the consultation process. Beehive

The broader picture is that the Government is gradually changing labelling rules across many product types. The Ministry for Regulation's review covers more than just food, and Seymour's national digital standard suggests the Government wants one set of rules that can apply broadly rather than dealing with each sector separately.

For businesses, there are two main practical effects. Companies already meeting recognised international standards in countries with similar food safety rules may be able to reduce their physical labelling requirements in New Zealand, at least during the trial. Pharmaceutical suppliers benefit more directly, because aligning medicine labels with Australia removes the need for a separate New Zealand label run.

For regulators, the food trial is a test case. Food Standards Australia New Zealand will be watching the results to help shape its own position on digital food labels. The trial is designed to be cautious: products keep their physical labels, with digital information added on top, so consumer protection isn't put at risk while they check whether digital channels work reliably.

The $111 million figure is a ten-year forecast. Whether that benefit actually arrives will depend on how many businesses take it up, what the final standard covers, and how many of the review's remaining recommendations the Government adopts. Seymour has described digital labelling as optional rather than a replacement, meaning businesses can choose whether to use it, at least for now. That makes quick uptake less likely. The sectors most likely to move first are those with the highest labelling costs and the best existing digital systems.

The rest of the product labelling review is still undecided. Seymour has said further decisions are coming, and the Ministry for Regulation's website still lists the review as ongoing. The 6 September announcement covers one part of a wider reform programme, not the whole thing. RNZ Regulation.govt.nz