Brussels, 17/06/2009 (Agence Europe) - Consultations are increasing between scientists and industrialists as controversy swells on the opinions to be delivered by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) on nutritional and health claims submitted by manufacturers under Regulation 1924/2006 (amended by Regulation 109/2008/EC) harmonising the use of health and nutritional claims for foodstuffs throughout the EU.
On Monday 15 June, EFSA scientific experts met applicants in Brussels to explain the procedure for assessing claims and inform them of EFSA's intention to hold more regular meetings with them in the course of the assessment if the dietetic, nutrition and allergies expert panel (NDA Panel) requires additional information before its final opinion can be delivered. “This has been a very successful public consultation. Our discussions with industry on guidance and new communications procedures will help applicants for the authorisation of claims and will also benefit the overall efficiency of EFSA evaluation process,” said NDA Panel chairman Prof. Albert Flynn.
Various operators and two MEPs call for period of reflection
On 2 June, a range of operators (patients, food industries, the European Patents Office, regulatory experts, and politicians), believing that this regulation was damaging to innovation, called for a period of reflection to assess the efficacy of the implementation and stressed the need and urgency for an impact and regulatory impact assessment.
Relaying this call, Danish ALDE MEP Karin Riis-Jorgensen and Dutch ALDE MEP Jules Maaten sent a letter on 5 June 2009 to the President of the Commission, José Manuel Barroso, and EU Industry Commissioner Günter Verheugen, Health Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou and Science and Research Commissioner Janez Potocnik. The two signatories express concern about the impact this legislation will have on R&D investment and innovation in Europe and call for a pause for thought to assess the effectiveness of introducing the legislation and its impact on innovation. They recommend as an immediate measure publication of the EFSA opinions, particularly as the January 2010 deadline fro assessing all the health allegations will not be met, as the Commission itself recognises, and debate on the nutritional value and labelling of foodstuffs has been postponed. They add that a pause for thought will allow legislators to arrange a perfect marriage between prevention and precaution to the long-term benefit of European citizens, industry and public health. (A.N. trans fl)