The Belgian Presidency of the EU Council and representatives of the European Parliament reached, on the evening of Tuesday 30 January, a provisional political agreement on the proposal for a directive aimed at strengthening the labelling of honey, jams, fruit juices and dehydrated milk.
The agreement covers four of the so-called ‘breakfast directives’ and, once formally adopted, will update the rules concerning the composition, labelling and naming of certain foodstuffs (see EUROPE 13324/3).
The updated directives aim to promote a shift to healthier diets, help consumers make informed choices and ensure transparency regarding the origin of products.
Honey. The text provides for more comprehensive labelling:
- the countries of origin must be indicated on the label in descending order by weight, and the label must also show the percentage that each country represents in the blend;
- Member States can decide that the obligation to indicate the percentage on the label only applies to the four largest parts, provided that they represent more than 50% of the weight of the mixture (if they do not represent more than half of the total honey, the percentages will have to be indicated for all the countries of origin);
- to ensure flexibility, for packages weighing less than 30 grams, the names of the countries of origin can be replaced by a two-letter ISO code.
In addition, a platform of experts will support the Commission with developing methods to detect honey adulteration and enhancing controls which would help combat honey fraud.
On the origin of products other than honey, i.e. fruit juices, jams and marmalades, the Commission will prepare (within 36 months of the entry into force of this Directive) a report assessing the possibility of making labelling of the country of origin of the fruit used compulsory, accompanied, if appropriate, by a legislative proposal.
Fruit Juices. To reflect the growing demand for reduced-sugar products, the provisionally agreed text adds three new categories: ‘reduced-sugar fruit juice’, ‘reduced-sugar fruit juice from concentrate’ and ‘concentrated reduced-sugar fruit juice’.
Reformulated fruit juices can be labelled ‘reduced sugar fruit juice’ if at least 30% of the natural sugars have been removed. However, producers will not be able to use sweeteners to compensate for the effect of reduced sugar on the taste, texture and quality of the final product.
In addition, operators will be allowed to use the statement ‘fruit juices contain only naturally occurring sugars’.
Fruit Jams. The EU Council and Parliament have agreed to increase the minimum fruit content in jams and extra jams (by 100 g per kilogram (kg) for jams and by 50 g per kg for extra jams) while ensuring a significant distinction between the two categories: 450 g (to produce 1 kg of this product) as a general rule for jams and 500 g as a general rule for extra jam. This increase in fruit content will help to reduce the amount of sugar in jams, enabling consumers to make healthier choices.
Milk. In the case of dehydrated milk, the two co-legislators have made provision in the text for authorising the use of treatments to obtain lactose-free dehydrated milk products.
Satisfaction. For David Clarinval, Belgium’s Deputy Prime Minister, marketing standards guarantee that the food we eat is of the highest quality. The agreement will enable consumers to make informed choices about the food they eat and help combat food fraud.
The European Parliament rapporteur, Alexander Bernhuber (EPP, Austrian), welcomed the consensus on measures to combat honey fraud: “ In the future, front labels will have to clearly state the countries of origin also of honey blends and the need for an EU traceability system for honey has been established. These initiatives will better inform consumers, and both beekeepers and consumers will be better protected from adulterated honey”.
According to Pascal Canfin MEP (Renew Europe, French), “we are moving from a vague ‘EU/non-EU’ indication to a precise percentage by country of origin. And this will have to be indicated on the front of the jar and no longer behind”. Finally, border controls on fake honey (sugar mixed with water) have been stepped up, welcomed the Chair of the European Parliament’s Committee on the Environment.
One of the S&D’s main achievements in these negotiations is the introduction of a traceability system in the honey supply chain, the group noted. This system will enable consumers to “check the origin of honey-based products through transparent labelling”. In addition, the revised directives will now make it compulsory to label the sugar naturally contained in fruit, avoiding misleading advertising messages, since some juices can be very sweet despite the absence of added sugar. The S&D group has also obtained this advance: new techniques that eliminate the sugars naturally present in fruit juices, jams or milk may not lead to the use of potentially carcinogenic sweeteners such as aspartame.
The agreement still has to be adopted by the EU Council and the European Parliament, after which the new legislation will be published in the EU Official Journal and will enter into force 20 days later. EU countries will have to apply the new rules two years after entry into force. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)