Labelling within the EU
The term “food authenticity” also refers to whether food purchased by consumers matches its description, and labelling is a good prerequisite to have consumers make informed choices.
Labelling of food is subject to the general rules laid down in Council Directive 2000/13/EC of 20 March 2000 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the labelling, presentation and advertising of foodstuffs (OJ L 109 of 06.05.2000). The main provision of this legislation is to require the following particulars in the labelling of food: (i) the name under which a product is sold; (ii) the list of ingredients; (iii) the quantity of certain ingredients or categories of ingredients; (iv) the date of minimum durability i.e. ‘use by’ for those highly perishable foods from a microbiological point of view, or ‘best before’; (v) any special storage conditions of use, and (vi) the name of business name and address of the manufacturer, packager, or seller established within the EU.
Authenticity and traceability
Regulation (EC) No. 178/2002 (OJ L 31, 01/02/2002) lays down the general principles and requirements of food law, establishes the EFSA, and lays down procedures in matters of food safety. As far as food authenticity is concerned, this Regulation aims at preventing fraudulent or deceptive practices, adulteration of food, and any practice that may mislead the consumer. It also provides basis for consumers to make informed choices about the food they consume, as stated in article 8 on the “protection of consumers’ interests”.
Moreover, this Regulation takes account of the “precautionary principle” and sets out general provisions for imposing traceability of food and feed. The EU General Food Law makes, in fact, traceability compulsory for all food and feed businesses. It requires that all food and feed operators implement special traceability systems. They must be able to identify where their products have come from and where they are going and to rapidly provide this information to the competent authorities. In particular, it requires traceability records – ‘one up and one down’, i.e. from where a business purchased its raw materials or products and whom it sold them to. But, it does not cover the whole food chain from farm to fork.
PDO, PGI and TSG regulations
The EC adopted special provisions regarding the protection of geographical indications and designations of origin for agricultural products and foodstuffs that fall within the food authenticity issue. Council Regulations 509/2006 and 510/2006 regulate in particular the authenticity of foods whose origin, geographical indication and tradition are certified.
Council Regulation (EC) 510/2006 of 20 March 2006 (OJ, L 93, 31.3.2006) establishes rules for protecting designations of origin and geographical indications for agricultural products and foodstuffs intended for human consumption. Its main provision is (i) to ensure that only products genuinely originating in a specific region are allowed in commerce as such; (ii) to make Protected Designation of Origin and Protected Geographical Indication symbols or indications obligatory; and (iii) to enable an easier identification of these products on the market so as to facilitate controls.
Agricultural products and foodstuffs guaranteed as Traditional Specialities (TSG) are regulated by Council Regulation 509/2006 of 20 March 2006 (OJ, L93, 31.3.2006) that lays down the diversification of agricultural production as well as the promotion of traditional products with specific characteristics. Its main provision is (i) the encouragement of the diversification of agricultural production and the promotion of traditional products with traditional products with specific characteristics; (ii) the provision for economic operators of instruments allowing them to enhance the market value of their products while protecting consumers against improper practices; and (iii) the introduction of the certification of ‘Traditional Speciality Guaranteed’ that meets the consumer demand for traditional products with specific characteristics.
Breakfast directives
The EC also adopted special provisions on ‘names’ which have become ‘names’ prescribed by law – see all the ‘Breakfast Directives’ on sugars, honey, preserved milk, jams, chocolate and fruit juice.
Council Directive 2001/110/EC, Council Directive 2001/111/EC, Council Directive 2001/112/EC, Council Directive 2001/113/EC and Council Directive 2001/114/EC define, in fact, respectively the terms ‘honey’, ‘sugars’, ‘fruit juices’, ‘jams, jellies, and marmalades and sweetened chestnut purée’, ‘partly or wholly dehydrated preserved milk’, so that these names are used in trade to designate them.
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