In the sphere of European food law, 2014 ended with somewhat of a bang, because the long-anticipated EU Food Information for Consumers Regulation (“EU FIC”) came into force on 13 December. The Regulation introduced and consolidated various requirements for the information accompanying food, whether given on the pack itself, or by some other means where food is loose/ non pre-packed. We … Continue Reading
We have blogged previously on the EU Food Information for Consumers Regulation (the “EU FIC”), which will apply in the UK from 13 December 2014. The EU FIC will mean a number of significant changes for the labelling of pre-packed food. However, it will also affect the provision of information on non-pre-packed/ loose foods, including … Continue Reading
It has been widely reported in the UK that maximum fines available to magistrates will soon increase fourfold; and that the lower courts will also be able to levy unlimited fines for some offences in England and Wales. The greatest attention in the popular press has probably been on the impact these powers will have … Continue Reading
The UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) has recently published the results of its biannual public attitudes tracker. The results show that the top food safety concern for respondents is food hygiene when eating out. Perhaps more noteworthy though is the increased awareness of the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme (FHRS), often called “scores on the doors”. The … Continue Reading
The EU Food Information for Consumers Regulation will apply in the UK from 13 December 2014. The Regulation will mean a number of significant changes for the labelling of pre-packed food. A recent client alert by Squire Sanders lawyers Rob Elvin and Nicola Smith identifies important changes for business operators.… Continue Reading
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) in the UK is inviting applications for a research project into food allergies. The project will look at how people with food allergies and intolerances prefer information to be provided when eating out. The FSA comment that ‘this work will inform the implementation of the new allergy requirements under the EU Food Information … Continue Reading
Background The recent European horse meat investigation uncovered that a number of products sold or labelled as beef across Europe contained equine DNA (horse meat). A number of sample results also indicated the presence of porcine DNA (pork meat) in beef and chicken products, which can have particular relevance to faith groups where products are … Continue Reading
The mislabelling of horsemeat as beef – originally uncovered in the UK, Ireland, France and Sweden – now appears to affect as many as 16 EU Member States and has led to products being pulled from retail shelves and warehouses, causing multimillion Euro losses to businesses. Emergency talks were held in Brussels this week between … Continue Reading
