Consumer information on labels Holger Preibisch Representative of the European Coffee Federation (ECF) Importance of labels - Not only point of interaction with the consumer where the choice is made - But also it has to carry an increasing amount of obligatory information it becomes the vehicle for consumer education Result: labels are overloaded confusion of consumers and manufacturers 1
What must be put on the label? New EU legislation: Food information to consumers (1169/2011/EU) Legislation The new law combines two directives into one piece of legislation: 2000/13/EC labelling, presentation and advertising of foodstuffs 90/496/EEC nutrition labelling for foodstuffs 1169/2011/EU Provision of food information to consumers 2
Labelling Labelling remains unchanged for: name list of ingredients and quantitative ingredients declaration net quantity date of minimum durability or use by date special storage conditions or conditions of use thenameorbusinessnameandaddressofthe manufacturer/packager/seller instructions for use when necessary Main topics New Regulation changes considerably existing legislation on food labelling including: origin labelling for certain products mandatory nutrition labelling 3
Origin labelling Origin labelling (Art. 26) (Art. 26.2.) Indication of the country of origin or the place of provenance shall be mandatory where failure to indicate this might mislead the consumer as to the true country of origin or place of provenance of the food, in particular if the information accompanying the food or the label as a whole would otherwise imply that the food has a different country of origin or place of provenance. No origin labelling for coffee in general! Mandatory labelling only if omission would be confusing! Maintenance of the current legislation! Origin labelling How has the origin to be declared? Art.26.3. Where the country of origin or the place of provenance of a food is given and where it is not the same as that of its primary ingredient: a) the country of origin or place of provenance of the primary ingredient in question shall also be given; or b) the country of origin or place of provenance of the primary ingredient shall be indicated as being different to that of the food. 4
Origin labelling Country of origin: determined in accordance with Art. 23-26 of Regulation EEC 2913/92 (Custom Code). This is the country where the coffee underwent its last substantial processing (in practice often roasting or soluble coffee manufacturing) e.g. Germany, UK Place of provenance: (Art.2.2 g): means any place where a food is indicated to come from, and that is not the country of origin. (in practice country where the green coffee was grown) e.g. Brazil, Vietnam Labelling options: Origin labelling The place of provenance has to be declared. At least it has to be declared that the ingrendient comes from another country than the country of origin Note: This labelling is an exception! In general there is no obligation for mandatory origin labelling! For coffee, labelling of countries where the coffee was grown: is not feasible because of frequent changes of blends is not relevant for the majority of consumers 5
Origin labelling The topic is prevailing! impact assessment of the commission until 13.12.2014 regarding mandatory indication of country of origin or place of provenance for single ingrendient products (coffee!) impact assessment shall take into account: - the need for the consumer to be informed - the feasibility of providing the mandatory indication - analysis of the costs and benefits of the introduction - legal impact on internal market - impact on international trade Nutrition labelling Mandatory nutrition labelling on prepacked foods for: Big 7 expressed per 100 g/ml - energy -fat - saturates - carbohydrates - sugar -protein -salt Big 8 : additionally dietary fibre Nutrition facts Energy Fat of which saturated fatty acids Carbohydrates of which sugars Protein Salt in addition an expression per portion and /or per consumption unit is possible. per 100g 484 kj 118 kcal 0,2 g 0,1 g 3,1 g 3,1 g 7,8 g 0,10 g Whole or milled coffee beans (also decaffeinated), coffee extracts and chicory extracts are exempted from mandatory nutrition labelling according to Annex V of the provision! 6
Transitional measures Transitional measures (Art. 54) General declaration: Food labelling rules will become applicable three years after their publication in the official journal (until 13.12.2014). Nutrition declaration: Mandatory nutrition declaration must be applied at the latest five years after the regulation has been published in he official journal (until 13.12.2016). What may be put on the label? 7
More labels Consumer education: good cause food labelling Sustainability and organic labels Sustainability labels Sustainable labelled coffee is a growing market The word sustainability is legally not protected and can be used by everyone Labels can stand for credibility Organic labels EU organic logo is mandatory since 1 July 2010 for pre-packed packed food national and private labels can be used additionally and voluntarily 8
Other labels Geographic indications Geographic indications identify a product coming from a specificregion or locality in a country Climate Labels PCF-Labels (Product Carbon Footprint) show the climate impact of certain products Suisse Climatop label for climate friendly products PCF-Label of Carbon trust in the UK Labelling: Consumer information or confusion? Conscious buying decision for healty diet, origin, special taste Inflation of labels Indication for special social, environmental or ecologic attribute of a product Important marketing instrument Often no comparability Consumer confusion 9
Thank you for your attention! 10