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EU policies on the cultivation and imports of GMOs by EUbusiness — last modified 07 November 2013, 00:42 CET

On the 26th September 2013, the General Court of the European Union delivered a ruling finding that the Commission failed to act on a GMO cultivation request which had been submitted twelve years ago in 2001. In line with this ruling, the Commission today acted by referring the cultivation request to the Council of Ministers. It is now up to the Ministers to take a position by qualified majority on this request. The European Food Safety Agency had already submitted a positive opinion on this request in 2005, 2006, 2008, 2011 and 2012, in all six positive opinions. This 2001 request falls under the "old" pre-Lisbon comitology procedure, which means that if the Council is not able to muster a qualified majority, either for or against the authorisation, then the Commission is obliged by law to grant the authorisation. In parallel, the Commission has requested a fresh debate in the Council of Ministers of its so-called "cultivation proposal" on which the European Parliament has already adopted its opinion which would allow Member States to restrict or prohibit cultivation of GMOs on their territory on grounds other than those relating to risks to health and the environment.

What future for our food system? - EU consults by EUbusiness — last modified 18 July 2013, 13:28 CET

The European Commission has put out a consultation asking for opinions about the European food production and consumption system. With some 89 million tons of food wasted every year in Europe, the consultation asks stakeholders, citizens, businesses, NGOs and public authorities for ideas on how to reduce food waste and, more generally, how to ensure our food system is using resources efficiently. The Commission says these will provide input for a Communication on Sustainable Food later this year.

Smarter rules for safer food by EUbusiness — last modified 06 May 2013, 22:57 CET

The European Commission has adopted a package of measures to strengthen the enforcement of health and safety standards for the whole agri-food chain. Food safety is essential to ensure consumers' confidence and sustainability of food production. The Commission says the package of measures provides a modernised and simplified, more risked-based approach to the protection of health and more efficient control tools to ensure the effective application of the rules guiding the operation of the food chain. The package is a response to calls for better simplification of legislation and smarter regulation thus reducing administrative burden for operators and simplifying the regulatory environment. Special consideration is given to the impact of this legislation on SMEs and micro enterprises which are exempted from the most costly and burdensome elements in the legislation. The current body of EU legislation covering the food chain consists of almost 70 pieces of legislation. Today's package of reform will cut this down to 5 pieces of legislation and will also reduce the red-tape on processes and procedures for farmers, breeders and food business operators (producers, processors and distributors) to make it easier for them to carry out their profession.

European test results on horse DNA and Phenylbutazone by EUbusiness — last modified 16 April 2013, 17:59 CET

Coordinated EU-wide testing for horse meat DNA and phenylbutazone, requested, and co-financed, by the European Commission in the wake of the horse meat scandal, reveal that less than 5 % of the tested products had horse DNA and that about 0.5 % of the equine carcasses tested were found to be contaminated with bute.

Value of production of agricultural products and foodstuffs, wines, aromatised wines and spirits protected by a geographical indication (GI) by EUbusiness — last modified 04 March 2013, 17:15 CET

This study, financed by the European Commission, was carried out by AND International. The conclusions, recommendations and opinions presented in this report reflect the opinion of the consultant and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Commission.

EU adopts list of approved flavouring substances by EUbusiness — last modified 02 October 2012, 14:12 CET

Flavouring substances in food will become even safer and more transparent thanks to two pieces of legislation adopted today by the European Commission. Only those flavouring substances featuring on the approved lists will be permitted for use by the food industry. Used to alter the taste and/or odour of food, flavourings substances have a long history of safe use in a wide variety of foods, such as soft drinks, confectionery, cereals, cakes and yoghurts, and have now been evaluated at EU level. These two new pieces of legislation will clarify and harmonise the use of flavouring substances within the single market: The first Regulation1 provides for a new EU wide list of flavouring substances which can be used in food and will apply from 22 April 2013, giving time for the EU food industry to adapt to the new rules. All flavouring substances not in the list will be prohibited after a phasing out period of 18 months. The second Regulation2 concerns transitional measures for other flavourings such as flavourings made from non-food sources and will apply from 22 October 2012. The new list includes over 2,100 authorised flavouring substances. A further 400 will remain on the market until EFSA concludes its evaluation. These have been used for a long time and have already been assessed as safe by other scientific bodies.

Food quality labels: faster delivery, better protection, clearer information by EUbusiness — last modified 13 September 2012, 22:50 CET

The time it takes to obtain an EU quality label for farm produce from a given geographical area, or produced in a traditional way, could be halved by a regulation endorsed by Parliament on 13 September. The new rules, agreed by EP Agriculture Committee MEPs and Council negotiators in June, would also introduce a new label for "mountain" products. Labels for island produce and farm gate sales may follow soon.

List of permitted Health Claims on food products - guide by EUbusiness — last modified 16 May 2012, 17:38 CET

Health claims on food labelling and in advertising, for example on the role of calcium and bone health or vitamin C and the immune system, have become vital marketing tools to attract consumers' attention. EU consumers now expect accurate information on products they buy, in particular on the health claims the products may put forward. Today, a list of 222 health claims has been approved by the European Commission. This list is based on sound scientific advice, will be used throughout the EU and will also help to remove misleading claims from the market before the end of the year.

Organic Wine rules - guide by EUbusiness — last modified 08 February 2012, 22:55 CET

New EU rules for “organic wine” have been agreed in the Standing Committee on Organic Farming (SCOF), and will be published in the Official Journal in the coming weeks. With the new regulation, which will apply from the 2012 harvest, organic wine growers will be allowed to use the term “organic wine” on their labels. The labels must also show the EU-organic-logo and the code number of their certifier, and must respect other wine labelling rules. Although there are already rules for “wine made from organic grapes”, these do not cover wine-making practices, i.e. the whole process from grape to wine. Wine is the one remaining sector not fully covered by the EU rules on organic farming standards under Regulation 834/2007.

List of permitted Health Claims for use on Food - guide by EUbusiness — last modified 07 December 2011, 23:49 CET

In a meeting of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health, EU Member States supported the European Commission's draft Regulation to adopt a list of permitted health claims for use on food.

Food Additives - guide by EUbusiness — last modified 14 November 2011, 14:15 CET

The use of additives in food will soon become safer and more transparent thanks to two pieces of legislation adopted by the European Commission.

Evaluation of the European Union's GMO legislation - guide by EUbusiness — last modified 29 October 2011, 00:14 CET

Two independent reports evaluating the European Union's legislation on Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) conclude that there is broad support for the legislation's objectives and show that recent legislative Commission initiatives are heading in the right direction. The documents, published today, also note that some adjustments are necessary if we are to meet the objectives of the legislation -the protection of health and the environment and the creation of an internal market- and to ensure that the legislation is properly implemented.

Report documents growing importance of the EU's Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed by EUbusiness — last modified 25 October 2011, 17:49 CET

The European Union's system for quick exchange of information on risks linked to food and feed - an invaluable tool especially at times of crisis - has further grown in importance during 2010, the system's annual report reveals.

Food labels: clearer information for consumers - guide by EUbusiness — last modified 06 July 2011, 23:02 CET

Food shoppers will be able to make better informed, healthier choices as the result of new EU food labelling rules approved by MEPs on 6 July. Labels will have to spell out a food's energy content as well as fat, saturated fat, carbohydrate, sugar, protein and salt levels, in a way that makes them easy for consumers to read.

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) - guide by EFSA — last modified 05 July 2011, 23:39 CET

EFSA publishes report from its Task Force on the E. coli O104:H4 outbreaks in Germany and France in 2011 and makes further recommendations to protect consumers

More consumer friendly labelling for European foods - guide by EUbusiness — last modified 22 June 2011, 20:45 CET

On 22 June 2011, EU Member States confirmed the compromise that was hammered out by the Hungarian Presidency with the European Parliament (EP), on the way food information will be indicated to consumers in the future. Agreements like on mandatory nutrition information and legibility will enable consumers to make healthier dietary choices.

Cloning - guide by EUbusiness — last modified 19 October 2010, 17:27 CET

The European Commission has announced that it will propose a temporary suspension of animal cloning for food production in the EU. The Commission also plans to suspend temporarily the use of cloned farm animals and the marketing of food from clones. All temporary measures will be reviewed after five years. The establishment of a traceability system for imports of reproductive materials for clones, such as semen and embryos of clones is also envisaged. The system will allow farmers and industry to set up database with the animals that would emerge from these reproductive materials.

Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed - guide by EUbusiness — last modified 13 September 2010, 19:42 CET

In 2009 the number of notifications in the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) reached a total of nearly 8000, a 12% increase compared to 2008 and an all-time-high number. The record number was established because RASFF members sent more follow-up notifications, also for less urgent problems. There were 557 alert notifications reporting on serious risks found in products on the market, a small increase compared to 2008.

EU's new approach to the cultivation of GMOs - guide by EUbusiness — last modified 13 July 2010, 13:57 CET

The European Commission has proposed to confer to EU Member States the freedom to allow, restrict or ban the cultivation of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) on part or all of their territory. While keeping unchanged the EU's science-based GM authorisation system, the adopted package consists of a Communication, a new Recommendation on co-existence of GM crops with conventional and/or organic crops and a draft Regulation proposing a change to the GMO legislation. The new Recommendation on co-existence allows more flexibility to Member States taking into account their local, regional and national conditions when adopting co-existence measures. The proposed regulation amends Directive 2001/18/EC to allow Member States to restrict or prohibit the cultivation of GMOs in their territory.

European Commission DG Health and Consumers Contacts by Ina Dimireva — last modified 21 January 2010, 12:46 CET

Contacts of the European Commission Directorate-General for Health and Consumers.