Opportunity for Defra to get to grips with food labelling laws

News that the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is to take over policy decisions on food labelling, formerly the remit of the Food Standards Agency (FSA), is an opportunity for greater clarity in this area.


News that the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is to take over policy decisions on food labelling, formerly the remit of the Food Standards Agency (FSA), is an opportunity for greater clarity in this area.

Philip Davey, partner at Burges Salmon, has called on Defra to ‘get to grips’ with the need for labelling laws to be improved for the benefit of manufacturers and processors.

“The public is being misled and food processors and manufacturers are getting confused by legislation often drafted in terms which leaves too much scope for misleading interpretations to be applied. .

“The FSA has done a lot of very good work, particularly in terms of guidance on the application of the legislation. We will be looking to Defra to be proactive in maintaining this good service to industry. The situation currently is very difficult, as there is so much legislation and guidance, and this has led to confusion in the market place,” says Mr Davey.

The FSA will retain responsibility for food safety throughout the UK.

Burges Salmon’s food and drink team has lawyers with specific expertise and knowledge of this sector and has worked with clients to advise on food labelling and other related issues.

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