The new EC Regulation on nutrition and health claims on foods

The area of health claims has been unregulated in Europe until recently. A new regulation on nutrition andhealth claims made on foods came into force on 19 January 2007. The Regulation has been eagerly awaited byall parties involved. The Regulation includes 37 whereas clauses, 29 Articles and an annex for nutrition claimsand conditions applying to them. In practice, three main types of health claim are included in the Regulation,as referred to in Articles 13 and 14. The type of the scientific evidence is described slightly differently forArticle 13.1 and Article 13.5: ‘‘generally accepted scientific evidence’’ and ‘‘newly developed scientificevidence’’, respectively, although the scientific status of evidence shall be the same for all kinds of claims. Sofar, there are four types of guidance for applying the Regulation. The wording of health claims is an essentialissue in the Regulation, as well as the concept of nutrient profiles. In the Regulation there are three issues ofspecial interest, when compared to the Swedish Food Sector’s Code of Practice, i.e. concerns about ‘‘othersubstances’’, ‘‘food supplements’’ and ‘‘the average consumer’’. The Regulation will be evaluated in 2013,reporting the impact of this Regulation on dietary choices and the potential impact on obesity and noncommunicablediseases.