Food labelling

Agrifood 26-07-2017

Who is driving quality in EU agri-food?

The EU’s Southern member states are the leading producers of foods certified by EU quality schemes: between them, Italy, France, Spain, Portugal and Greece account for 70% of the total.

Agrifood 16-11-2015

Food sector looks beyond factory gates for deep CO2 cuts

Est. 12min

The European food and drink industry can boast a healthy track record in reducing its carbon footprint ahead of the COP21 conference, which opens in Paris later this month.

Alcohol
Agrifood 10-11-2015

Commission delays report on alcohol labelling – again

Est. 5min

EXCLUSIVE / The European Commission has again delayed the publication of a report on how to include alcoholic drinks under existing EU labelling rules on nutrition and ingredients.

BEUC
Agrifood 04-11-2015

Consumer organisations expose misleading meat labelling

Est. 3min

Test samples by consumer organisations in seven EU countries show that meat-based food labels are often misleading to consumers.

Bramley apple
Agrifood 29-07-2015

UK’s acclaimed Bramley apple wins EU ‘traditional speciality’ label

Est. 2min

The European Commission on Wednesday (29 July) said it would register Britain's "traditional Bramley apple pie filling" as a protected historical delicacy in the European Union.

Agrifood 22-04-2015

Officials accuse Timmermans of delaying EU health, food safety rules

Est. 4min

A growing number of officials in the European Commission's health unit are complaining that health and food safety legislation is being delayed due to slow decision-making from Frans Timmermans, the Commission's First Vice-President in charge of Better Regulation.

Food labelling
Health 31-03-2015

Consumers in the dark over alcoholic drinks content

Est. 5min

SPECIAL REPORT / Consumer knowledge about the nutritional value and ingredients contained in alcoholic beverages is limited, according to a new survey published last week.

Beer labels
Agrifood 30-03-2015

Delayed Commission report on alcohol labelling frustrates beer industry

Est. 6min

SPECIAL REPORT / New EU rules on nutrition labelling for food and drinks entered into force a few months ago. But whether or not alcoholic beverages will also have to carry them in the future is still unclear. A Commission report on the issue, due in December last year, is yet to be published.

Agrifood 12-02-2015

Paris gets behind Parliament resolution on meat labels

Est. 4min

The European Parliament has adopted a resolution calling on the Commission to introduce mandatory labeling of the origin of all meats used in ready-prepared meals. Paris has expressed its strong support for the resolution. EURACTIV France reports.

Food
Agrifood 22-01-2015

MEPs call for country of origin labelling of meat in processed foods

Est. 3min

Meat used as an ingredient in processed foods, such as lasagne, should have a country of origin label which is already the case for bovine fresh meat, said the Parliament's Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) Committee on Wednesday evening (22 January) in a non-binding resolution.

Agrifood 07-01-2015

Germans fret about ‘Kentucky Fried Bratwurst’ under TTIP

Est. 5min

Concern that protection of certain regional delicacies could slacken under the planned EU-US free trade agreement TTIP is sparking heated debate in Germany. EURACTIV.de reports.

Food
Agrifood 12-12-2014

New EU-wide food labelling rules begin to apply

Est. 3min

?New EU food labelling rules will come into force on Saturday (13 December). The aim is to ensure that consumers receive clearer and more accurate information about what they buy and eat.

Health 07-02-2014

MEPs reject Commission proposal on origin labelling of meat

Est. 3min

The European Parliament endorsed on Thursday (6 February) a motion which rejects the new rules on origin labelling of meat that were tabled by the European Commission following last year's 'horsegate' scandal.

Health 24-01-2014

MEPs oppose Commission proposal on country of origin for meat

Est. 3min

Members of the Parliament's environment, public health and food safety committee opposed on Wednesday (22 January) a proposal from the Commission on food labelling for meat.

Agrifood 18-12-2013

Mediterranean diet could suffer from UK ‘traffic light’ labels, Italy claims

Est. 4min

Italy has raised concerns with other European governments over a UK proposal for ‘traffic light’ food labels across the 28-country bloc, saying the scheme to warn consumers of high fat or salt content could damage the reputation of the Mediterranean diet.

Agrifood 06-12-2013

Soyfood chief calls for harmonised GM food labels

Est. 3min

SPECIAL REPORT / The president of the European Natural Soyfood Manufacturers Association (ENSA), Bernard Deryckere, has called on the EU to better direct consumers towards foods that are not genetically-modified, perhaps by introducing GM-free labels across the food industry.

Health 16-07-2013

British lawmakers call for criminal probe of horsemeat scandal

Est. 3min

The contamination of meat products with horse DNA was most likely due to fraud and prosecutions should be pursued, according to a second British parliamentary report into the scandal.

Health 31-05-2013

Groups warn EU-US trade deal could weaken consumer laws ‘via the backdoor’

Est. 3min

Consumer groups on both sides of the Atlantic have raised concerns about a  proposed EU-US free trade agreement, saying it could weaken health, banking and food safety regulations through the back door.

Health 07-05-2013

French fair-trade sector seeks revival after crisis dip

Est. 4min

France’s appetite for fair-trade products lags behind European counterparts, with the sector turning increasingly to producers in the developing world for a recovery solution, EURACTIV France and Germany report.

Health 17-04-2013

Tests show up to 5% of EU beef products contain horsemeat

Est. 3min

Up to 5% of European Union products labelled as beef contain horsemeat, according to results published by the European Commission yesterday (16 April).

Brexit 14-02-2013

Widening scandal prompts EU to seek DNA testing of meat

Est. 3min

The European Commission has proposed increased DNA testing of meat products to assess the scale of a scandal involving horsemeat sold as beef that has shocked the public and raised concern over the continent's food supply chains.

Health 13-02-2013

EU debates tighter food labelling rules after horsemeat scandal

Est. 5min

EU ministers in charge of agriculture and food safety are meeting in Brussels on Wednesday (13 February) to consider the wider implications of the recent discovery of horsemeat in beef products.

Health 11-02-2013

Romania’s Ponta ‘very angry’ at horsemeat fraud allegations

Est. 2min

The Romanian prime minister said on Monday (11 February) that any fraud over horsemeat sold as beef had not happened in his country and he was angered by suggestions it might have been.

Health 11-02-2013

EU-wide alert as British horsemeat scandal takes ‘criminal’ turn

Est. 4min

Swedish frozen-food company Findus withdrew all its beef lasagna ready meals from supermarkets after tests revealed they contained up to 100% horsemeat. But the investigation took an EU-wide dimension as British investigators found evidence of "gross negligence or possibly criminality" involving several countries.