Foodlaw-Reading

Dr David Jukes, The University of Reading, UK

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Food Law News - EU - 2014

Council Press Release, 8 May 2014

HONEY – Council agrees Directive amendment concerning pollen in honey

The following is an extract from the minutes of the Foreign Affairs Council meeting on the 8 May 2014:

The Council approved [see Note 1 below] a directive amending Council directive 2001/110/EC relating to honey (PECONS 65/14 + 8803/1/14 REV 1 ADD 1). This follows an agreement at first reading reached with the European Parliament.

The directive provides that pollen is a natural constituent, and not an ingredient, of honey. In order to ensure fair commercial practices, to protect consumers and to set out the relevant methods of analysis to verify the compliance of honey with the directive, the Commission is empowered to supplement the directive by defining two quantitative parameters related respectively to the floral or vegetable origin of honey and the minimal content of pollen in filtered honey.

The directive will be published in the Official Journal of the EU after being signed by the Presidents of the Council and of the European Parliament and will enter into force 20 days after its publication.

Note

[1] The Hungarian and Luxembourg delegations voted against. The Czech and French delegations abstained.


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