EU plans food claims clampdown

Many products carry nutrition claims

A clampdown on the health claims made about food products has been proposed by the European Commission.

But the food industry says new regulations would not help consumers.

The European Commission wants all claims about the benefits of food to be backed up by hard science.

It wants to ban vague and unverifiable claims, such as promises that products can boost energy, improve the body's immunity and help concentration.

You can't make good food choices if you are fed the wrong information Labour MEP Catherine Stihler

Under the proposals, potentially misleading terms such as "90% fat free" and "reduces your calorific intake" will be also be banned.

And there would be strict rules on the use of terms such as "fat free", "no added sugar" and "high fibre".

References to and endorsements by doctors or health professionals would also be outlawed - on the grounds that they might be seen as suggesting that not eating the specified food could lead to health problems.

EU Health and Consumer Affairs Commissioner David Byrne told a press conference in Brussels: "Any information about foods and their nutritional value used in labelling, marketing and advertising which is not clear, accurate and meaningful and cannot be substantiated will not be permitted."

Under present EU food and health rules, food manufacturers have to reveal the full ingredients to consumers on labels.

But they are not obliged to provide full nutritional information, and there are no clear laws regulating the use of claims such as "low fat" or high fibre".

Sweeping claims about the alleged benefits of certain products are banned under national law, but there is no EU-wide agreement yet about how far claims can go.

Support

The UK Food Standards Agency welcomed the proposals as a "harmonised approach to ensure that labels provide truthful information, which does not mislead and does not undermine efforts to promote healthy lifestyles".

Sue Davies, of the Consumers' Association, said: "There are vast numbers of products on the shelves promising health claims but it has always been impossible for consumers to distinguish between the real and the bogus.

"These proposals will tackle this confusion once and for all so that consumers will no longer be handing over money for products without the guarantee that they will deliver the health benefits they promise."

"This is a great victory for consumers today but it is only the first hurdle.

"We have a long way to go before we see these much-needed changes on the shelves and we will continue to battle with all manufacturers who exploit consumers trying to buy healthier products."

Concerns

But food manufacturers have hit back. They say this would hit consumer choice and would be bad for business.

The UK Food and Drink Federation (FDF) is concerned that the proposals will prevent manufacturers from highlighting the benefits of products that do not meet all the criteria laid down by the Commission.

A spokeswoman told BBC News Online: "Just because a product contains fats or sugars does not mean that it has nothing in it which will benefit the consumer."

She warned the proposals could deter companies from investing in research and development of new products.

In addition, they would place a disproportionate burden on companies who wish to make a claim by requiring that they translate the proposed claim into all member state languages - even though they may propose to market the product in only one or two countries.

However, Labour MEP Catherine Stihler said: "Almost one in five people are obese in the UK and the number of obese children has doubled in a decade.

"It's a jungle out there as far as healthy eating is concerned. With pizzas, French fries, giant muffins and chocolate cookies on sale at every street corner there's no shortage of temptation - and you can't make good food choices if you are fed the wrong information."

The European Commission is likely to want the proposals become law by 2005.