ATO Interpretative Decision

ATO ID 2001/470 (Withdrawn)

Goods and Services Tax

GST and shredded pork
FOI status: may be released
CAUTION: This is an edited and summarised record of a Tax Office decision. This record is not published as a form of advice. It is being made available for your inspection to meet FOI requirements, because it may be used by an officer in making another decision.

This ATOID provides you with the following level of protection:

If you reasonably apply this decision in good faith to your own circumstances (which are not materially different from those described in the decision), and the decision is later found to be incorrect you will not be liable to pay any penalty or interest. However, you will be required to pay any underpaid tax (or repay any over-claimed credit, grant or benefit), provided the time limits under the law allow it. If you do intend to apply this decision to your own circumstances, you will need to ensure that the relevant provisions referred to in the decision have not been amended or repealed. You may wish to obtain further advice from the Tax Office or from a professional adviser.

Issue

Is the entity, a food supplier, making a GST-free supply under section 38-2 of the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 (GST Act), when it sells shredded pork?

Decision

Yes, the entity is making a GST-free supply under section 38-2 of the GST Act when it sells shredded pork.

Facts

The entity is a food supplier. The entity sells shredded pork.

The product is cooked, dried and shredded. The label shows that the ingredients for the product are pork, cane sugar, soy sauce, condiments, salt and bean flour. The product is mainly used in making sushi and rice balls. It may also be served on sandwiches and hamburgers or added to rice and noodles.

The product is not supplied for consumption on the premises from which it is supplied. The entity is registered for goods and services tax (GST).

Reasons for Decision

A supply of food is GST-free under section 38-2 of the GST Act, provided that it does not come within any of the exclusions listed in section 38-3 of the GST Act.

Food is defined in subsection 38-4(1) of the GST Act. Paragraph 38-4(1)(a) of the GST Act provides that food means food for human consumption (whether or not requiring further processing or treatment). Shredded pork is food for human consumption and therefore satisfies the definition of food contained in paragraph 38-4(1)(a) of the GST Act.

The supply of the shredded pork does not fall within any of the exclusions in section 38-3 of the GST Act. Therefore, the entity is making a GST-free supply under section 38-2 of the GST Act when it sells shredded pork.

Date of decision:  20 August 2001

Legislative References:
A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999
   section 38-2
   section 38-3
   subsection 38-4(1)
   paragraph 38-4(1)(a)

Keywords
Goods and services tax
GST free
GST food
Food for human consumption
Ingredients for food

Business Line:  GST

Date of publication:  17 October 2001

ISSN: 1445-2782

history
  Date: Version:
  20 August 2001 Original statement
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