Lot marking

Food Safety Act 1990

Specific foods

Although these pages have given guidance as the general labelling requirements for food, there are many legal documents that contain additional labelling provisions. Some of these relate to foods meeting certain standards (e.g. organic foods), some relate to foods of a particular type (e.g. chocolate or fruit juice) and some relate to hygiene requirements (e.g. the health mark on various meat products). This page provides some examples of these additional provisions but in most cases, users should consult the legislation relating to their own food to determine any specific requirements.

• Reserved Descriptions
• EU Protected Terms
• Organic Foods
• Identification Marks (for products of animal origin)
• Beef Labelling Scheme

Reserved Descriptions

EU Protected Terms

Under an agricultural based quality policy, the EU adopted certain Regulations to protect products coming from a certain geographical areas and which have been made following certain traditional manufacturing processes (See EU Regulation 1151/2012). Based on this as retained EU legislation, the UK has started to apply its own system of registration and control. For more details see the Defra page on Protected Food Names - Guidance for Producers. Special symbols may be used on labels meeting the requirements.

PGI - Geographical Indication

Under agreed EU controls, restrictions have been placed on the use of certain names of food products which link the product with a certain geographical area. The use of these terms is open to products which must be produced or processed or prepared within a geographical area and have a reputation, features or certain qualities attributable to that area. The terms may only be used if the specified requirements are met.

PDI - Designation of Origin

In this case, the PDO is open to products which are produced, processed and prepared within a particular geographical area, and with features and characteristics which must be due to the geographical area. The methods used to produce the product must be unique in that area. Monitoring by a recognised authority has to be conducted to ensure that the registered procedure is followed.

In the UK the following are examples of foods which had previously been registered under the EU's PGI and PDO controls:

• Beer:  Kentish ale  (PGI), Kentish strong ale  (PGI), Rutland bitter (PGI).
• Cheeses:  Beacon Fell traditional Lancashire  (PDO), Bonchester  (PDO), Buxton Blue  (PDO), Dorset Blue  (PGI), Dovedale  (PDO), Exmoor Blue  (PGI), Single Gloucester  (PDO), Staffordshire Cheese  (PDO), Stilton - Blue  (PDO), Stilton - White  (PDO), Swaledale  (PDO), Swaledale ewes' cheese  (PDO), Teviotdale  (PGI), West Country Farmhouse Cheddar  (PDO).
• Ciders: Gloucestershire cider (PGI), Gloucestershire perry (PGI), Herefordshire cider  (PGI), Worcestershire cider (PGI), Worcestershire perry (PGI).
• Cream: Cornish Clotted Cream  (PDO).
• Fresh fish, molluscs and crustaceans and products derived there from:  Arbroath Smokie (PGI), Whitstable Oysters (PGI), Scottish farmed salmon (PGI).
• Fresh meat and offal:  Orkney beef  (PDO), Orkney lamb  (PDO), Scotch beef (PGI), Scotch lamb  (PGI), Shetland lamb  (PDO), Welsh beef * (PGI), Welsh lamb * (PGI), Isle of Man Manx Loaghtan Lamb (PDO).
• Meat products: Melton Mowbray Pork Pie(PGI).
• Fruit, vegetables and cereals:  Jersey Royal Potatoes (PDO).

Traditional Speciality Guaranteed (TSG)

Open to products which are traditional or have customary names and have a set of features which distinguish them from other similar products. These features must not be due to the geographical area the product is produced in nor entirely based on technical advances in the method of production. Under the EU controls, in the UK, the term 'Traditional Farmfresh Turkey' had been registered.

Organic Foods

Controls on the use of the term 'organic' have been established by the adoption of EU regulations. These are currently: Regulation (EC) 834/2007, implemented by Regulation (EC) 889/2008 and Regulation (EC) 1235/2008, organic imports implementing regulation. The legal texts are therefore in EU publications. They are complex and it is not possible to provide guidance on these pages. If you wish to use the word 'organic' on a label, the advice of a specialist should be obtained. There is quite detailed information available on the Defra web site at: Organic Certification and Standards.

Identification Marks (for products of animal origin)

As part of the controls on products of animal origin (POAO), their labels are required to have an 'identification mark'. This enables an enforcement officer to identify the factory in which the product was packaged. All such factories which meet the specified safety and hygiene requirements and are approved are allocated a code number which is part of the identification mark. The code number is indicated in an oval.

Beef Labelling Scheme

In summary, the following apply. However, for further details, see the Rural Payments Agency page: Beef and veal labelling: guidance. Compulsory labelling may include an indication of the following.

• Reference number or code
• Country of birth
• Countries where fattening took place
• Country where slaughter took place
• Licence number of slaughterhouse
• Country of cutting
• Licence number(s) of cutting plant(s)

For mince, compulsory labelling information may include:

• Reference number or code
• Country of slaughter
• Country of mincing
• Country (or countries) where the animal lived from birth to slaughter

Food Safety Act 1990