EU Parliament Plenary Votes to Modernize EU Specialized Nutrition Rules

12 June 2013 --- The European Parliament gave its green light on a set of clearer rules protecting specific groups of consumers such as infants and young children. The aim is to better protect consumers on the content and marketing of these “special” food products, and to provide a better environment for businesses, as well as better application of rules.

Tonio Borg, EU Commissioner for Health and Consumers said “I welcome today’s endorsement by the European Parliament as we need to make sure that EU rules on food for specific groups are fit for purpose and evolve at the same speed as market developments. Today’s agreement goes exactly in that direction by maintaining rules to protect vulnerable groups of consumers and by getting rid of outdated rules that no longer serve any purpose.”

More and more food products exist on the market that target specific groups of the population. The EU rules in force for these products are complex and fragmented since different sets of rules and concepts can overlap and create confusion for businesses and national authorities who apply the rules.

This new Regulation on food for specific groups will streamline the rules that apply throughout the EU, by eliminating those that are unnecessary and contradictory and by replacing them with a new, simplified Framework. The new Framework will cover:

•  food for infants and young children;
•  food for people with specific medical conditions;
•  food for weight control that replace the totality of the daily diet.

The new Regulation will do away with the dated broad concept of 'foodstuffs for particular nutritional uses', which has proven not fit for today’s market and legal context.

Under the new approach, food for other population groups will fall under different legislation. For example, rules on food for coeliacs will be transferred to the Regulation on Food Information to Consumers.

The Regulation will be published in the EU Official Journal in the coming weeks and will only apply from 2016 to allow time for businesses to adapt their commercial practices. No products will however have to be withdrawn from the market.

Over the next two years, the Commission will:

•  adopt detailed rules (delegated acts) on food covered by the Regulation; and
•  present two reports on the necessity to develop, in the future, specific rules for so-called 'growing up milks' for young children and food for sports people.

The Commission will also adopt specific rules on the use of statements on the absence or reduced presence of lactose in foods.

Foods for particular nutritional uses (or 'dietetic foods') are currently defined as foods that are different from foods for normal consumption and, owing to their special composition or manufacturing, are intended to satisfy the particular nutritional requirements of specific groups of the population.

The designation under which a dietetic food is sold is accompanied by a suitability statement for the particular nutritional use and the specific group of the population to whom the food is intended (e.g.: gluten-free food for celiac people, processed cereal-based food for young children, infant formulae for infants from birth, food for sports people etc.).

The rules for these foods have been in place for over 30 years and given the evolution of food products and of EU food legislation, a review of the dietetic food framework became necessary. Specialised "normal" foods have increasingly been targeting groups of the general population (e.g. protein bar supporting muscle building for athletes, food supplements for pregnant women, fortified food in calcium and vitamin D suitable for older adults, slimming products etc.).

In the meantime, more recent legislation was developed to better regulate these products (e.g. Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006 on nutrition and health claims made on foods that sets specific rules on how operators can inform consumers about the beneficial nutritional or health properties of food). It appeared clear that the difference between "dietetic foods" and "normal foods" for specific groups of the population was no longer clear for citizens, stakeholders and enforcement authorities. An Impact Assessment drafted by the Commission confirmed that the existence of a specific EU framework for "dietetic foods" existing in parallel with other, more recent, pieces of legislation was no longer justified. 

The vote represents the final formal step in adopting a modernised legislative framework to protect vulnerable consumers, notes IDACE – the association representing the specialised nutrition industry in Europe.

IDACE acknowledges the concerted efforts of the European Institutions over the past two years in finding an appropriate legal solution to ensure the continued protection of European consumers who require specialised nutrition products to manage their dietary needs.

Roger Clarke, Member of the IDACE Operational Board with responsibility for this new legislation comments: “Work remains to be done in order to complete this basic act, and to ensure appropriate legal solutions for several categories of specialised nutrition for which the legislative future remains unclear.”

In the coming months, the European Institutions will need to adopt specific acts to ensure that the needs of each category of vulnerable consumers will be recognized, including the very specific needs of infants and young children, individuals under medical supervision, sportsmen, overweight and obese consumers, and those suffering from coeliac disease. It is furthermore critical that healthcare professionals will be able to communicate with consumers on the proper use of these products.

IDACE calls upon the European Institutions to ensure that the various follow up activities will be undertaken without delay, in order to ensure that both consumers and industry will have a more modern and suitable legal framework before the previous rules are repealed.

IDACE looks forward to gaining clarity on various legislative uncertainties and to their swift resolution in order to guarantee a solid legal basis to protect vulnerable consumers.