EU-Food Information Regulation 1169/2011

The EU Food Information Regulation 1169/2011 (FIR) harmonizes European food information law to a full and comprehensive degree, covering nearly all aspects of commercial communication about food. However, in the name of subsidiarity, and in the interest of SMEs, the FIR leaves some areas for the national regulator to decide upon. This mainly concerns the labelling requirements of non-prepacked foods but also specific types or categories of foods, as well as a selected number of pre-packed foods. Member States have enacted laws, or are preparing to do so, to provide the necessary regulation for food markets within their jurisdiction. The decisions they have made in shaping their laws, and the balance they have struck between consumer information and the food business operators’ desire for flexibility, are the focus of this book. Specialized lawyers of the Food Lawyers’ Network have pooled their knowledge in this volume to provide an account of the measures taken, showing the level of discretion national regulators retain in the area of food information, within what is a highly integrated regulatory environment of the European Union.