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'Nutrition' and 'health' claims – new rules
25 July 2007
The beginning of this month saw the application of EC Regulation
1924/2006 for Nutrition and Health Claims made for foods in all
member states.
This new legislation is complex and its application is subject
to a number of exceptions and transition periods. We would urge any
food business operators making nutrition or health claims in
commercial communications, including advertising, packaging and
promotional campaigns to seek specific advice before making those
claims. In simple terms, you should take note of two key dates:
- All new product development on or after 1 July
2007 must comply with these Regulations
- With some narrow exceptions, the long stop date for compliance
for existing products is 31 July 2009. Food
business operators are responsible to ensure that they operate the
appropriate timetable to comply with the relevant rules applying to
their claims
Claims are divided into two categories:
- 'Nutrition' claims
- 'Health' claims
The Regulation prescribes the conditions which a food must
satisfy before either category of claims can be made in relation to
it. In addition, there are:
- Prohibited claims – these cannot be made under any
circumstances
Scope
The Regulation will apply to non-mandatory nutrition or
health claims made in commercial communications,
including:
However, food business operators must note that the scope of
this Regulation is not confined to claims contained in promotional
statements. Trade marks and other brand names, which may be
construed as claims must also comply with the Regulation.
An example would be the "BJ Light Bite Biscuit" (currently just
a crumb of an idea!). The "BJ Light" implies that there would be
health or nutrition advantages in eating a "lighter" biscuit. It
might well be marketed as a healthy option. As it includes a
nutrition claim, it will need to comply with the new rules.
An interesting exception is the digestive biscuit. The word
digestive suggests that it is good for the digestive system but as
a traditional description, it has been specifically excluded from
the new rules.
General requirements for all claims
The general requirements are too numerous to be listed in their
entirety here. However, by way of example, claims must:
- Not be false, ambiguous or misleading
- Not give rise to doubt about the safety and/or nutritional
adequacy of other foods
- Not encourage or condone excess consumption of a food
- Not state, suggest or imply that a balanced and varied diet
cannot provide quantities of nutrients in general (provisions are
in place for exemptions to this to be adopted, but they have yet to
be utilised)
- Comply with specific conditions set for nutrition and health
claims
- Be substantiated by generally accepted scientific evidence
- Be expressed in terms which are comprehensible to the average
consumer
By 19 January 2009, the EC Commission will have established
specific criteria on nutritional composition of foods referred to
in the Regulation as nutrient profiles. If applicable, foods will
have to meet their profile in its entirety before a claim may be
made. However, if only one nutrient is found to be inconsistent
with the profile, then a nutrition claim (and not a health claim)
will be permitted to be made provided that the high content of the
out-of-profile nutrient is also disclosed. Such disclosure must be
in the same field of vision and in the same size and typeface as
the claim.
Nutrition claims
Nutrition claim is defined in the Regulation as:
Any claim which states, suggests or implies that a food has
particular nutritional properties due to:
the energy (calorific value) it
- provides
- provides at a reduced or increased rate or
- does not provide and/or
the nutrients or other substances it
- contains
- contains in reduced or increased proportions or
- does not contain
Nutrition claims as defined above are permitted only if they are
listed in the Annex to the Regulation. However, nutrition claims
which have been used before 1 January 2006 in accordance with
national legislation and which are not included in the Annex may
continue to be used until 19 January 2010.
Beverages containing more than 1.2% alcohol will not be allowed
to make nutrition claims except for "low alcohol", "reduced
alcohol" and "reduced energy" claims.
Health claims
"Any claim that states, suggests or implies that a
relationship exists between a food category, a food or one of the
constituents and health".
Health claims will eventually only be permitted if they are
listed in the Community Register. Until the Community Register is
adopted, national rules apply. However, unless a transitional
measure applies, certain claims are now forbidden. These are:
- Health claims relating to alcoholic beverages
- Claims which suggest that health could be affected by not
consuming the food
- Claims which make reference to the rate or amount of weight
loss
- Claims which make reference to the recommendations of
individual doctors or health professionals
Once the Community Register has been adopted, health claims will
have to be authorised and listed before they can be made. This will
be the responsibility of the food business operator, who will be
able to submit applications together with supporting documentation
for health claims to be included on the Community Register.
For more information please contact Fiona
The content of this bulletin is provided for
the purposes of general interest and information. It contains only
brief summaries of aspects of the subject matter and does not
provide comprehensive statements of the law. It does not constitute
legal advice and does not provide a substitute for it.