The US and EU have called on the World Trade Organisation to make the provision of full information on India’s food subsidy programme a precondition before they can begin negotiations on how to tackle the issue of legitimising food procurement subsidies.
The European Commission is investigating whether the UK’s ‘traffic light’ front of pack labelling is compatible with EU law, something which could result in an infringement procedure, it says.
"Environment Council has just broken the deadlock on the GMO cultivation proposal": Commission
The European Commission’s Environmental Council has “broken the deadlock” on GM crop cultivation proposals with a political agreement around how member states can restrict or ban such crop production on their soil.
Organic food firms changing their packaging to meet new EU labelling rules could accidentally breach organic labelling rules in the process, one certifier has warned.
Calls for the UK and other countries around the world to place tobacco style health warnings on sugary drinks are growing, warns Professor Simon Capewell.
A new law being discussed in Brussels this week could give biotech companies “unprecedented power” over decisions to ban genetically modified (GM) crops in Europe, according to Friends of the Earth (FoE).
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is inviting comments on a draft scientific opinion for the evaluation of allergenic foods and food ingredients for labelling purposes.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has delivered a positive scientific opinion on Monsanto’s MON 87769 soybean crop, which has been genetically modified to contain stearidonic acid.
Southeast Asia’s regulatory system is out of sync with industry practices, with some regulators sometimes uncertain of what constitutes a natural ingredient.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has dismissed a health claim application suggesting 'complex carbohydrates' have a beneficial effect on infants and young children by increasing satiety.
Unhealthy diets now rank above tobacco global as cause of preventable diseases
The international community must develop a global convention similar to the legal framework for tobacco control to fight diet-related ill health, warn Consumers International and the World Obesity Federation.
EFSA MGMT BOARD: "Bernhard will ...provide Europe with the best scientific advice to protect consumers from food-related risks..."
Doctor Bernhard Url is the new chief of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) after its management board confirmed the acting-chief as its next executive director this week.
Over five years after it imposed a ban on poultry meat imports from India, the European Union has now approved their shipment subject to tough conditions.
The European Commission has adopted new measures to reduce consumer’s maximum levels of exposure to cadmium in foods such as chocolate and infant formula.
Now that common sense has been confirmed by a consumer survey that traffic light labelling is confusing and misleading, maybe the Department of Health (DH) should sit up, take stock and review its strategy on healthy eating
Novel food approval systems in Europe prevent the food industry from bringing new and exciting foods on to the market quickly, but could be about to change, according to one specialist.
Cereal Partners UK has defended its cinema advert for Nestlé Cookie Crisp breakfast cereal and the health values of the product, following a complaint claiming it encouraged an unhealthy lifestyle in children.
Taxes on food and drink containing high levels of saturated fat, sugar and salt (HFSS) would need to be so high to have any significant effect on reducing obesity levels in the UK population that they would not be acceptable to consumers, leading academics...
The UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) has issued a draft EU novel foods approval to UK company Sporomex for shells derived from the clubmoss (Lycopodium clavatum) plant.
While it may be clear that people should probably cut down on their intakes of salt, sugar, and fat, the best way to achieve this has always caused a bit of a headache. Is quiet reformulation the most pragmatic solution?
India’s regulator responsible for agriculture exports has said it was not consulted ahead of the European Union’s decision this week to temporarily ban the import of Indian mangoes and vegetables due to pest concerns.
spiritsEUROPE insists that laws on production and labeling of organic products including spirits present opportunities for small to medium-sized distillers in particular to better cater for consumer needs.
The rejected pan-EU fees for food chain inspections would have spelled higher food costs and an excuse to dip official hands into industry and consumer pockets, says a UK Conservative MEP.
CONTROVERSIAL HEALTH SERVICE AD COMPARES ALCOHOL TO ASBESTOS AND TOBACCO
The UK beer industry has failed in its bid to stop the broadcast of a controversial National Health Service (NHS) aligned advert that shows a man swallowing a cancerous tumor from a glass of beer.
UK FSA: "We are working to clear the backlog as quickly as possible."
The UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) has backtracked on a decision to close its doors on EU novel foods applications after stakeholder unrest at the UK government austerity driven measure.
Campden BRI has appointed Melanie Ruffell as principal law advisor for its regulatory affairs team in order to meet growing demand for advice on matters such as the Food Information to Consumers Regulation (FIR), due to come into force in December 2014.
UK FSA: "If you are interested in submitting a novel food dossier to the EU, we advise you to contact another EU member state..."
Industry will meet with scientists next week in Vienna to start discussions on the future of pan-European whole grain labeling, but it’s likely to take more than one year to finalize, says an expert from TNO.
The European Union’s central science agency must become more transparent to meet rapid technological change in food and agriculture, its likely next chief told the European Parliament this week. And conflicts of interest were not an issue.
There is light at the end of the tunnel for a European whey wholesaler, as a long-running dispute over EU import duties on milk fat in whey protein is finally coming to an end.
Protein from insects is expected to be approved by the EU for use as feed for pigs and chickens over the next six months, according to a leading expert and advisor on edible insects to the United Nations’ Food & Agriculture Organisation.
Lactalis has teamed up with the US Agency for International Development (USAID) in an attempt to increase the quality of milk in Bosnia-Herzegovina to European Union (EU) standard.
Food businesses need to re-think their labels fast if they don't want to be caught out by the new Food Information for Consumers (FIC) regulation, says RSSL.
First Lady Michelle Obama has called it “liquid sugar” and the World Health Organization warns that much of our sugar intake is “hidden” in processed food and beverages such as soda (a 12-ounce can contains 10 teaspoons). As public health officials continue...
Due diligence has weaknesses and isn’t a perfect defence against food fraud, despite offering firms legal protection, Dominic Watkins, partner and head of food at law firm DWF has warned.
The European Commission (EC) has proposed new laws that will shake up the way organic foods are regulated, in a bid to address what it calls 'the shortcomings of the current system.'
A food industry panel chaired by former UK cabinet minister Michael Portillo has warned that the UK drive to cut sugar and salt levels in food and drink risks being undermined by larger portion sizes.
A French senatorial report has proposed a 'junk-food' tax on products that are linked to heart disease - with the report taking particular aim at soft drinks, which currently benefit from low taxes.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) plans to revise the tool used to estimate food additive intakes on the back of stakeholder feedback and updates of food consumption in its Comprehensive Database.
Novel foods such as raspberry ketones continue to be widely available for sale throughout the UK in weight loss products and dietary supplements, despite not being approved by the regulatory authorities, as the Food Standard Agency (FSA) has just confirmed...
A group of anti-GM protesters forced entry into EFSA’s premises yesterday, in what the authority says was a bid to 'denounce' its role in assessing GMO applications in the European Union.
The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has backed a proposal to strengthen the existing harmonised classification and labelling (CLH) of bisphenol A (BPA).
