Guidance on Commission Implementing Regulation (EU)
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supported by: Guidance on Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/775 of 28 May 2018 on the provision of food information to consumers, as regards the rules for indicating the country of origin or place of provenance of the primary ingredient of a food 01/05/2019 CONTENTS PAGE EXPLANATORY NOTEs 3 PRIMARY INGREDIENT 16 definitions 3 Additional considerations 17 GENERAL principles 4 DEFINING ORIGIN 17 background 4 HOW TO ESTABLISH IF THE PRIMARY INGREDIENT 18 HAS THE SAME ORIGIN AS THE FOOD SCOPE - Which country of origin 5 indications trigger these provisions? INDICATION OF THE ORIGIN 19 In scope In scope with delayed implementation Presentation 21 Out of scope Pre-Packed Non Pre-packed decision tree 15 2 // BRC - food information to consumers EXPLANATORY NOTEs DEFINITIONS Regulation (EU) No. 1169/2011 on food information (a) the country of origin or place of provenance of the The FIC contains some important definitions, which to consumers, was published in 2011. This Regulation primary ingredient in question shall also be given; or should be referred to when reading this guidance was implemented into UK legislation as: The Food (Article 2): Information Regulations (England) (Scotland) (Wales) (b) the country of origin or place of provenance of (Northern Ireland) 2014. the primary ingredient shall be indicated as being ‘Ingredient’ means any substance or product, including different to that of the food. flavourings, food additives and food enzymes, and For the purpose of this guidance document the any constituent of a compound ingredient, used in the European Regulation (EU) No. 1169/2011 will Article 26(8) of FIC, required the Commission by 13 manufacture or preparation of a food and still present be referred to as FIC. December 2013, and following impact assessments, in the finished product, even if in an altered form; to adopt an implementing act concerning the residues shall not be considered as ‘ingredients’; Article 26 of FIC includes provisions on country application of point (b) of paragraph 2 of this Article of origin labelling. Article 26(2) and Article 26(3) and the application of paragraph 3 of this Article. ‘Place of provenance’ means any place where a food state the following: Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/775 of 28 May is indicated to come from, and that is not the ‘country fulfils these requirements. of origin’ as determined in accordance with Articles 2. Indication of the country of origin or place 23 to 26 of Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92; the name, of provenance shall be mandatory: At the time of publication of this document, business name or address of the food business operator Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/775 had not on the label shall not constitute an indication of the (a) where failure to indicate this might mislead the been enacted into UK legislation, nor had the country of origin or place of provenance of food within consumer as to the true country of origin or place Commission or UK government published guidance. the meaning of this Regulation; of provenance of the food, in particular if the In light of publication of further legislation and information accompanying the food or the label associated guidance, this document will be reviewed ‘Customary name’ means a name which is accepted as a whole would otherwise imply that the food has in due course to incorporate any required changes. as the name of the food by consumers in the Member a different country of origin or place of provenance; State in which that food is sold, without that name The guidance has been produced to help compliance needing further explanation; (b) for meat falling within the Combined Nomenclature by the end of the EU transitional period of 1 April (‘CN’) codes listed in Annex XI. The application of this 2020. This period may be longer for products sold ‘Primary ingredient’ means an ingredient or ingredients point shall be subject to the adoption of implementing only in the UK. of a food that represent more than 50 % of that food or acts referred to in paragraph 8. which are usually associated with the name of the food by the consumer and for which in most cases 3. Where the country of origin or the place of a quantitative indication is required provenance of a food is given and where it is not the same as that of its primary ingredient: ‘Field of vision’ means all the surfaces of a package that can be read from a single viewing point 3 // BRC - food information to consumers GENERAL PRINCIPLES BACKGROUND Regulation (EU) No. 1169/2011 (FIC) was published When reading this guidance document, it is important The requirement in December 2011 and incorporated in to UK law to note that if you reach the conclusion that you do Article 26(3) of Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 by the UK Food Information Regulations 2014. The not need to declare the country of origin of the primary states that where the country of origin or place Regulations list all the mandatory information required ingredient, as required by Article 26(3), the general of provenance of a food is given and where it is to be given for food. It also specifies the manner in provisions in Article 26(2) may still apply. The customer not the same as that of its primary ingredient, the which information is to be given. Information which should never be misled about the origin of the food. country of origin or place of provenance of that is given voluntarily is also regulated and is not allowed In 2010, BRC, together with FDF, and other industry primary ingredient shall be given or indicated as to mislead consumers. This is specifically true for bodies, worked with DEFRA on a set of country of being different to that of the food. country of origin, where the rules are contained in a number of provisions. origin principles (See Annex IV). While some of the country of origin principles previously agreed upon have been superseded by the publication of this and other The legislation is intended to ensure that where a Regulations, many are still relevant. The expectation country of origin is given on a product, consumers are remains that responsible businesses will continue not misled into believing that the primary ingredient to provide information on the origin of the ingredient came from the named country if that is not the case. in the products covered by the principles. It is important to note that this requirement only applies where the country of origin of the food is given and the primary ingredient is not from that country. How the country of origin or place or provenance of the food is indicated dictates how the information on the origin of the primary ingredient must be given. For pre-packed foods, the information should be given on the label. In the UK, where the Food Information Regulations 2014 require the name of the food to be given, the information about the origin of the primary ingredient should be given in close proximity to the food origin claim. 4 // BRC - food information to consumers SCOPE - Which origin indications trigger these provisions? The following information is given to help with that decision. Defining what is in and out of the scope should be decided on a case by case basis. In scope: The Implementing Regulation can apply to any type of foodstuff, including single ingredient foods. Any indication, whether written or in pictorial The use of text in a foreign language on a label may 1 form, which by common understanding is trigger the indication being in the scope, however, an indication of origin or place of provenance this will depend on the purpose and the nature of of the food. the text and the content in which is being used. In isolation ‘baguette’ or ‘pain au chocolat’ to describe These indications are usually provided in a product would not be in scope - but if accompanied prominent manner on the front of the pack. by iconography and colours which inferred the product They are a selling feature of the product and was French then consideration should be given to avoid usually take the following forms: consumers being misled in relation to the product itself or its primary ingredient. • The pack design features an explicit written origin claim Country codes on multilanguage labels which highlight to the consumer which market the mandatory labelling • The pack design features an explicit non-written information relates to (e.g. FR for French) are out of the origin claim e.g. a flag, map, scene, country scope of the Implementing Regulation, however, other In scope: The pack design features an explicit origin claim. It graphic, monument, pattern, colour/design or origin indications may trigger the application of the includes the written statement ‘Made in Italy’. For the product other objects which customers would immediately primary ingredient rules. not to be in scope, the Made in Italy statement would have to be associate with a country or a geographical indication. removed. Alternatively the product label could make it clear the The use of international language characters (e.g. product has been produced to an Italian recipe. If the primary Chinese text) in a prominent manner as part of the • The overall pack design, whilst not featuring ingredients (beef, egg pasta) of this product were Italian, it marketing presentation of the product, may bring a explicit origin claims, is clearly designed to imply would also be out of scope. product in scope of the Implementing Regulation if origin, e.g. the prominent use of red, green and the origin of the food is required to be given to avoid white colours that suggest Italian origin misleading the customer.