Written question asked by Earl Howe (Conservative), in the House of Lords. It was answered by Lord Warner (Labour) on Tuesday, 7 November 2006.

Food: Health Claims

Question: What support will be provided by (a) theFood Standards Agency, and (b) the European Food Safety Authority for small and medium-sized enterprises under the European Union nutrition and health claims made on foods regulation.

Answer: The Food Standards Agency has worked closely with the Small Business Service and in consultation with small businesses to find ways to help them to comply with the regulation. Detailed guidance is in preparation, tailored to the needs of small business, and the agency will be consulting on this once the EU regulation on nutrition and health claims made on foods is published. The agency has published the developing list of UK health claims on its website to help small businesses to monitor and ensure that the list of generally accepted claims is complete. The regulation refers to the importance of small businesses in the European food industry and makes it a requirement for the Commission, in close co-operation with the European Food Safety Authority, to make available technical guidance and tools to assist them in the preparation and presentation of an application for authorisation of a claim. We expect this to be addressed once the regulation is published.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 8014; 686 c120WA
Session: 2005-06
Subjects: Health EU law Food Labelling Government assistance Nutrition Small businesses
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk