WHAT JUST HAPPENED?
From 1 October 2021, the requirements for prepacked for direct sale (PPDS) food labelling will be changing in Wales, England, and Northern Ireland, due to a new ruling passed in September 2019 known as ‘Natasha’s Law.’
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?
The Natashas Act requires food companies to label their pre-packaged food for sale with a full list of ingredients to protect against food allergies. Allergen information in the complete ingredient list of each dish must be provided in the form of a standardized allergen diagram or a detailed matrix to ensure that customers can see the ingredients in their food order. Food packaging must include a visible label on the packaging, including the name of the food, the full list of ingredients and the 14 allergens indicated. Foods must also have a label with a full list of ingredients highlighting allergenic ingredients.[1]
The Food Standards Agency says that the new labelling requirements will help consumers protect by providing life-saving allergen information on food packaging. One in four respondents said code scans on food products would make allergens clearer when shopping, with 36% checking for allergens and intolerances labelled.[2]
The legislation, named after teenager Natasha Ednan-Laperouse who suffered a fatal allergic reaction after eating a baguette containing sesame seeds, provides for additional labelling requirements for packaged foods for direct sale (PPDs).[3]
The exception being, fresh food produced locally does not need to be labelled with allergens or ingredients. However, if you produce pre-packaged food for direct sale locally - for example, a sandwich or salad that you prepare on site, package and sell on the same day - you must ensure that the allergens are stated in writing.[4]
The government said full labelling of ingredients had received overwhelming public support and how food companies could prepare for the change. The lobby group has challenged the lack of legislation on the issue and the government has confirmed that new laws will be implemented from 1 October 2021 to protect people with food allergies and give them a greater confidence in the food they buy.[5]
HOW DOES THIS IMPACT THE LEGAL SECTOR?
Consumers who are allergic or intolerant to ingredients listed as allergens are legally obliged to indicate them on food. Schools must ensure that one of the methods chosen is used to avoid cases where allergic people are given inaccurate allergen information, as eating foods that cause allergies can cause severe reactions that make allergic people ill and potentially kill them.[6]
However, there is a grey area in terms of when food can be labelled and when it cannot be. For instances, food companies are not legally obliged to provide a complete list of ingredients. Under the 1990 Food Safety Act and the General Food Law Regulation 178 (2002) businesses are responsible for ensuring that the food that customers eat is safe and of the quality that they expect.[7] In the other hand, the listing of a product's ingredients is required by law if the food product consists of two or more ingredients, including water and additives, they must include them under the heading "Ingredient" (or an appropriate heading with the word "Ingredient").[8] This could cause breaches in terms of intellectual property rights of a food company that may need to disclose ingredients that sets it apart from it’s competitors. As such, this could introduce work for law firms specialising in intellectual property to measure protocols against the regulations impacting the trade secrets and commercial interests of their clients.
Law firms will also need to advise their European clients and vice versa, their UK clients who wish to do business in the UK or Europe regarding certain rulings of labelling ahead of the logistics of their products. In EU, the label must indicate the net quantity of the food or drink contained in the package and list all ingredients if more than one ingredient is contained. Where a food additive is not intended for sale to the final consumer but is marketed as a mixture of other food ingredients, labeling information must be provided in accordance with Article 22 of Regulation 1333 / 2008 (CE). Food additives must be listed as ingredients in Annex VII, Part C of Regulations (EU).[9]
Composition and labelling requirements for such high-risk foods are covered by rules designed to protect consumers from illicit foods modifications. The 2014 Food Information Regulation (FIR 2014) aims to enforce provisions of EU law to ensure that food labels represent an honest representation of food and ensure consistency between industry and consumers. This will bring in work for law firms representing international food companies doing busy in the UK as they will need to guide their clients who manufacture certain goods to comply with the UK labelling and composition rules, which are reserved for the description and designation of foodstuffs.[10]
Written by LawMiracle Holdings
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REFERENCES:
[1] https://www.food.gov.uk/business-guidance/allergen-guidance-for-food-businesses and https://www.cms-lawnow.com/ealerts/2021/07/changes-to-food-allergen-labelling-requirements-are-you-ready
[2] https://hub4leaders.co.uk/learning-hub/resources/up-to-speed-on-natashas-law/up-to-speed-on-natashas-law/ and https://www.foodmanufacture.co.uk/Article/2021/07/21/Allergen-information-needs-more-work-says-GS1-UK
[3] https://www.food.gov.uk/business-guidance/allergen-guidance-for-food-businesses, https://cmcschoolfood.co.uk/natashas-law-3/ and https://www.cms-lawnow.com/ealerts/2021/07/changes-to-food-allergen-labelling-requirements-are-you-ready
[4] https://www.simplybusiness.co.uk/knowledge/articles/2021/05/natashas-law-new-allergen-legislation-2021/ and https://news.yahoo.com/natashas-law-legislation-introduced-protect-food-allergy-sufferers-115701310.html
[5] https://www.simplybusiness.co.uk/knowledge/articles/2021/05/natashas-law-new-allergen-legislation-2021/, https://hub4leaders.co.uk/learning-hub/resources/up-to-speed-on-natashas-law/up-to-speed-on-natashas-law/ and https://cmcschoolfood.co.uk/natashas-law-3/
[6] https://www.food.gov.uk/business-guidance/allergen-guidance-for-food-businesses and https://hub4leaders.co.uk/learning-hub/resources/up-to-speed-on-natashas-law/up-to-speed-on-natashas-law/
[7] https://www.visitbritain.org/business-advice/food-safety-and-hygiene, https://www.businesscompanion.info/en/quick-guides/food-and-drink and https://www.food.gov.uk/business-guidance/packaging-and-labelling
[8] https://1cold.com/blogs/legal-food-labelling-requirements-uk/, https://www.food.gov.uk/business-guidance/packaging-and-labelling and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom_food_labelling_regulations
[9] https://1cold.com/blogs/legal-food-labelling-requirements-uk/ and https://www.fsai.ie/faq/additives/labelling_requirements.html
[10] https://www.businesscompanion.info/en/quick-guides/food-and-drink and https://www.gov.uk/guidance/food-standards-labelling-durability-and-composition
Disclaimer: This article (and any information accessed through links in this article) is provided for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.