The 27 EU ministers in charge of consumer affairs reached a political agreement on Monday (6 December) on how food information should be displayed to consumers.
As suggested by the European Parliament, the ministers omitted references to national labelling schemes.
However, this does not mean that the UK traffic light system – which indicates values of fats, sugar and salts in foods – would become illegal.
Indeed, "additional forms of expression and presentation" will still be allowed in addition to EU-level requirements, provided that they are not misleading and are supported by evidence that consumers actually understand them.
Food business operators can also use their own schemes provided that they meet EU requirements.
EU countries could thus recommend that food companies use one or more additional forms of labelling. But they would need to inform the European Commission about these.
Ministers also suggest that "in the light of the experience gained" and within five years after the entry into force of the new rules, the Commission should present a report on the use of these additional forms of presentation, their effect on the internal market and on the advisability of further harmonisation of such ways of displaying information.
The Council, which represents the 27 EU member states, further suggests that "the Commission may accompany this report with proposals to modify the relevant Union provisions".
Contrary to the European Parliament and Commission proposals, ministers rejected the idea of making front-of-pack labelling of some nutrients mandatory.
Status quo for GDA scheme
As it currently stands, both the European Parliament's first reading of the dossier last summer and the Council's deal this week basically mean retaining the status quo for those companies that have recently rolled out a voluntary Guideline Daily Amounts (GDAs) labelling scheme across Europe.
The GDA scheme was designed by EU food and drinks lobby CIAA. GDAs estimate the average daily energy requirements for men and women aged between 19-50 of normal weight and fitness. There are currently no GDAs for children.
Major multinationals including Cadbury's, Coca Cola, Danone, Ferrero, Kellogg's, Kraft and Unilever have committed to using the GDA scheme.
