So the clock is seriously ticking now on new nutrition and health claims rules. Regulation 1924/2006 comes into force on July 1 2007. The Regulation contains a variety of transition periods which apply to products already on the market, or certain claims already in use. The Regulation significantly has no transition period for claims referring to children's development and health.
I took the opportunity of sharing the platform at Vitafoods with Fabio D'Atri from DG Sanco (European Commission) and he suggested that the hoped for amendment to allow a transition period with regard to children's claims is unlikely to be forthcoming.
Discussion then moved to Article 13 claims, in particular for companies seeking protection for proprietary data expecting a fast track claims authorisation to reward investment and innovation. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) pre-submission guidance advises that applications for such claims will not be considered until post publication of the harmonised Article 13 list. This is the interpretation of the EFSA legal advisors and, D'Atri confirmed, also the view of the Commission's legal team - oh dear! The Regulation shows another hole in its drafting here and it is suggested that you contact the Food Standards Agency to raise your concerns on this point.
For those of you who are madly compiling dossiers for submission you can relax slightly. While in theory you can submit for authorisation of Article 14 disease risk reduction and children's claims from July 1, EFSA has advised that companies await publication of their guidance on preparation and presentation of applications (ref Article 15(5)). Helpfully this guidance is due in "summer 2007" - not likely to be by July 1 I have been told.
On a positive note the first draft of the new Novel Foods proposal is circulating at the Commission and at this stage things look promising for traditional foods from third countries and for acceptance of ingredients with history of use in food supplements.
Kath Veal is international regulatory team leader at Leatherhead Food International