Food legislation and food safety - November 2018

Healthy Choice Labelling
From 18 October it is forbidden in the Netherlands to produce products with healthy choice logo ‘Vinkje’ on the pack, but what will be the new system that will quickly show consumers how (un)healthy a product is? RTL Z has published an article (in Dutch) about this. The Dutch consumer association (Consumentenbond) also wants a new healthy choice mark (in Dutch). Meanwhile the Nutri-Score labelling has been introduced in France, just like it was before in Belgium (in Dutch).

Labelling US
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has also been working on the rules for food labelling. On 25 October, they have published an article about the new Nutrition Facts label for packaged foods that has been updated by the FDA to reflect updated scientific findings. Manufacturers with $10 million or more in annual food sales have until 2020 before the new label is required, and manufacturers with less than $10 million in annual food sales will have until 2021. You can find the Final Rule here. In November, the FDA also published a Draft Guidance for Industry on Food Labeling.

Food contact materials
On 7 November, the European Commission has adopted a Communication, confirming its commitment to protecting citizens and the environment from hazardous chemicals. According to the press release, this strategy also focuses on food contact materials. You can find more information on the webpage of the Commission about endocrine disruptors.
Food Packaging Forum reports about an article (only abstract available for free) published on 12 October 2018, in the peer-reviewed journal Food Additives & Contaminants: Part A, in which researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging IVV, Freising, Germany, characterized the oligomer composition of polyethylene furanoate (PEF) polymer intended for food contact.
On 29 October, CNN published an article about how prenatal exposure to phthalates is linked to language delays in children. This article is based on a study that was published in JAMA Pediatrics.
An article about the Toxic effects of mineral oil saturated hydrocarbons (MOSH) and relation to accumulation in rat liver was published in Food and Chemical Toxicology. It concludes that the dietary exposure to a broad MOSH mixture, covering the chemical composition relevant for human exposure, increased liver and spleen weights of the rats.

Certification
DNV has published a White Paper about the main changes in ISO 22000:2018 compared to ISO22000:2005. This white paper (in Dutch) can be downloaded free of charge after registration. The FSSC 22000 certification scheme is based on this standard. You can also find an overview of the Key changes in ISO 22000:2018 vs ISO 22000:2005 on this web page.

NVC members receive this information with all the relevant links in the monthly NVC Members-only Update. If you have any questions, please contact us: info@nvc.nl, +31-(0)182-512411.