Food legislation and food safety – August 2026

Food Contact Materials (FCMs) – rules and regulations
EU: FPF reports that the main transition period for the EU ban on bisphenol A (BPA) in FCMs ended on 20 July 2026. Regulation (EU) 2024/3190 was published in December 2024.
The EC has published its 2025 Annual Report: Alert and Cooperation Network (3.05 MB) on food and feed safety issues. Notifications on food safety risks via the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed RASFF) rose by 2%, reaching 5,344.
Indonesia: FPF reports that updated legislation setting requirements for FCMs was published in June 2026. The law will apply from 30 June 2027.
Montenegro: SGS reports that a new framework regulation (in Montenegrin) on FCMs has been published. This new law aligns the country’s regulatory framework more closely with the EU requirements in Regulation (EC) No. 1935/2004.
Switzerland: RO 2026 374 (in French) amending the legislation on FCMs has been published. An SGS article gives an overview of the key changes.
US: US Representatives Debbie Dingell and Brian Fitzpatrick have reintroduced the Keep Food Containers Safe from PFAS Act, prohibiting intentionally added PFAS in food packaging.
The FDA has added four new substances to its Inventory of Effective Food Contact Substances (FCS) Notifications, Keller and Heckman reports.

Claims, marking and labelling – rules and regulations
The ICC Whole Grain Initiative (113 kB) has announced the publication of a new global standard - ISO 20810:2026 - defining whole grain as an ingredient and setting technical criteria for labelling whole-grain content in foods.
Research led by the University of Sydney finds that while front-of-pack labelling (FOPL) can reduce sugar consumption at a broad population level, there is little evidence these labels are effective among low-income.
EU: The EP has published a briefing (10.13 MB) on alcohol labelling. At the moment, alcoholic beverages are partly exempt from standard labelling requirements. National approaches differ. A few countries have mandated health warnings.
Researchers at DTU are proposing new Listeria labelling for smoked salmon and other ready-to-eat foods. Products already exist that are produced in a way so that Listeria cannot grow in them. However, it is currently difficult for consumers to recognise these products.
NL: Food Waste Free United reports that in 2025 over 1 billion products carrying date-labelling icons were in circulation in the Netherlands. Figures (in Dutch, 1.39 MB) from the Netherlands Nutrition Centre (in Dutch) show that food waste is continuing to decrease and that a majority of consumers check, smell and taste food after the ‘best before’ date. However, the distinction between this and the ‘use by’ date remains unclear to many consumers.
Singapore: Researchers from Duke-NUS Medical School have found that the mandatory Nutri-Grade front-of-pack labels for beverages do indeed redirect consumers towards healthier drinks. The labels also encourage manufacturers to include less sugar in their products.
US: The FDA has released its updated Human Foods Program 2026 guidance agenda. New topics include labelling of caffeine content and Q&A regarding use of the “Healthy” claim.
California: As of 1 July 2026, AB 660 requires food manufacturers to use uniform terminology when labelling products with "quality" or "safety" dates and bans the use of "sell-by" dates, CDFA reports.

Beeswax wraps can lead to exposure to chlorinated paraffins
Research led by the University of Hohenheim has found that chlorinated paraffins are commonly present in beeswax wraps used for food packaging, FPF reports. The study (3.43 MB) is published in Food Packaging and Shelf Life.
 

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