No more prevarication. That is the message that NGOs and foodstuffs manufacturers jointly delivered to the Commission on Monday 15 May urging it to present as a matter of urgency the nutrient profiles that have been awaited for ten years under the regulation on nutrition and health claims made on foods.
The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC), health NGOs EPHA and EHN and food businesses Unilever, Nestlé, The Coca Cola Company, Danone and Pepsico made the call in an open letter addressed to Commission Vice-President with responsibility for Better Regulation, Vice-President Jyrki Katainen, Employment and Growth, Commissioner Vytenis Andriukaitis, Health and Food Safety, and Commissioner Elżbieta Bieńkowska, Industry and Internal Market.
Enabling consumers to make healthy, well-informed food choices is a key tool in the fight against obesity and “in the fight against obesity, the EU needs to take action where it has the competences”, the signatories state.
The 2006 regulation on nutrition and health claims on foods (Regulation 1924/2006 amended by Regulation 109/2008/EC) made provision for the establishment of nutritional profiles but these have never been introduced because of resistance from the industry. The Commission recently deferred this proposal as part of the REFIT simplification of legislation. BEUC expressed its concern at this turn of events in April 2016 (see EUROPE 11531). The signatories of the open letter all voice the same concern.
The civil society and company signatories argue that not having nutrient profiles means that health claims can be made that mislead consumers as to the “healthfulness and nutritional attributes of products”. Furthermore, they point out, the lack of EU-wide nutrient profiles undermines the level playing field that industry needs to compete fairly and to innovate for health.
“With the unprecedented severity of the public health and nutrition challenges that Europe faces, we cannot afford to maintain a situation where the EU legal framework does not fully empower consumers to make the choices that are best for them and it remains uncertain for both consumers and food business operators”, the open letter states. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)