Food Law News - UK - 2001
FAC News (2/2001), 25 July 2001
LABELLING - FAC Review of the use of the terms Fresh, Pure, Natural etc in Food Labelling 2001
The Food Advisory Committee (FAC) today published the results of its review of the use of the terms fresh, pure, natural etc in food labelling. The publication of this report is the culmination of a process which began in October 1998 when the Committee considered whether there was a need for improved guidance on the use of the term 'fresh', following press reports at the time that consumers were being misled. On the basis of the Committee's recommendation for further research on consumer attitudes to labelling, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food commissioned a survey in relation to this issue. The survey report was published in February 2000. At its meeting in March 2000, the Committee discussed this issue in the light of the survey results. It was agreed that additional guidance from the Committee on appropriate use of terms such as 'fresh' and 'pure' would be useful. The Committee also agreed to review existing guidance on the use of the term 'natural'. A sub-group of the Committee, chaired by FAC member Neville Craddock, was set up to draw up this guidance. The Review has also been considered and commented on by the full Committee prior to publication. Apart from FAC guidance on 'fresh', 'pure' and 'natural', the Review includes guidance on other food labelling terms such as 'traditional', 'original', 'authentic', 'home-made', and 'farmhouse'. The published Review has been forwarded to the Food Standards Agency to be fed into their ongoing Food Labelling Review.
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