New Zealand prohibits the importation of all goods bearing false or deceptive trademarks.  New Zealand also prohibits the entry of any foreign manufactured goods that bear the name or trademark of a New Zealand manufacturer or trader, the name of a place in New Zealand, or words that would associate the goods with New Zealand, unless the names or words are accompanied by a definite indication of the country of origin.

Country of origin labelling must be shown on footwear, clothing items, and dry-cell batteries.  Paints containing lead, wool products, electrical appliances and equipment, footwear, drugs, toilet preparations, and food products must also be specially labeled.  Regulations also provide that all packaged goods bear an indication of the net weight of the contents and specify how such weights are to be indicated for each commodity.  All weights and measures should be quoted in metric units.

In 2022, new country of origin regulations were introduced for the import of fresh, thawed and frozen foods.    

New Zealand has a labeling standard for genetically modified (GM) food.  Under the standard, the label listing ingredients for food products, with certain exceptions, must include the words “genetically modified” if genetic material or protein from genetic modification is present.  It is the responsibility of food businesses applying the food label, re-labeling food, or selling the food to meet this standard’s requirement.  This includes manufacturers, packers, importers, and sometimes retailers.  Several exceptions exist for the labeling of GM food.

Except for movie film and dangerous goods, there are no regulations governing the marking of outside packing cases.