This year's Academy of European law (ERA) seminar will be held in Parma 12 to 13 October, and will cover developments in European food law including regulation 178/2002 on traceability.
Other regulations to be touched on include the food-related hygiene package, the regulation on microbiological criteria for foodstuffs, the regulation on official feed and food controls and the feed hygiene regulation.
The conference comes at a critical time for the food industry, which has had to cope with numerous regulatory changes.
From 1 January 2006, food sector operators must comply with the provisions of regulation 178/02: the general duty of compliance (articles 14 and 17), traceability (article 18) and crisis management (article 19). While the Community is not responsible for enforcement, it is up to the Member states to decide on the penalties for breach of these obligations.
Many member states face difficulties in implementing these new regulations. Italian lawyer Daniele Pisanello told FoodNavigator this week for example that Italy's application of EC regulations could be hampered by the country's legislative framework.
"The Italian legislative framework presents some doubts and difficulties, the first of which concerns its application," he wrote.
"The new penalties apply only if the act does not constitute an offence. In case law, this offence exception applies when the act is the same as one which is governed by the criminal law."
In the case of doubt, Pisanello said that the competent authority would probably decide whether a matter was of a criminal nature, and would most likely forward it to the state prosecutors office. This, he said, could lead to time delays and uncertainty as to the basis for the penalty.
Along with examining such uncertainties surrounding recently adopted legislation, the ERA seminar will also consider forthcoming legislation such as the new rules on labelling and the proposal on fortified foods and health and nutrition claims influencing labelling and food advertising, on which the European Parliament voted in May 2006.
Speakers at the conference will include EFSAs executive director Catherine Geslain-Laneelle and professor Fausto Capelli, specialist in community and international law, Parma University. Agri-food and environmental lawyers, civil servants, representatives of national surveillance authorities and consumer protection associations will be in attendance.
As well as the role of the EFSA and the hygiene package, other topics include the rules on GM food and labelling.