Mandatory country of origin labelling is a useful way of informing consumers about the origin of pig meat, poultry meat, sheepmeat and goatmeat and monitoring compliance by the competent authorities. These are the main conclusions of a report on the implementation and impact of the mandatory indication of the country of origin or place of provenance for certain meats, published on 10 August by the European Commission.
An appraisal report on the same issue concludes that all the objectives of the origin labelling rules have been broadly achieved. These rules have been introduced without disrupting trade, without grossly increasing prices for consumers, and without unnecessary burdens on operators and the administration.
The appraisal recommends further analysis of the potential harmonisation of derogations for ‘certain meats’ with other types of foodstuffs.
However, the report found differences between the quality of the checks carried out by EU Member States.
The report contributes to the wider evaluation of food labelling and consumer information under the Farm to Fork strategy.
Link to the report: https://bit.ly/3DbfYPB (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)