The European Commission announced the 'farm to fork strategy for a fair, healthy and environmentally-friendly food system' on 20 May 2020, as part of the European Green Deal. The strategy aims to reduce the environmental and climate footprint of the EU food system and facilitate the shift to healthy and sustainable diets. The strategy targets the entire food chain and envisages to further empower consumers through labelling information. A Commission report on front-of-pack nutrition labelling (FOPNL) was accompanying the 'farm to fork' strategy in May 2020.

The aim behind FOPNL is to improve consumers' understanding of the nutritional value of foods, as well as stimulating food reformulation towards healthier foods and facilitating consumers' healthier food choices. EU measures in the food information area would reduce market fragmentation and facilitate a harmonised single market with incentives for healthy and sustainable food across the whole EU. The increased harmonisation may be in particular beneficial for SMEs as they would not need to comply anymore with different national labelling schemes (such as the Nutri-Score or the Keyhole) and could apply the same FOPNL scheme across the EU.

A public consultation run between December 2021 and March 2022. A total of 3 225 responses were received, of which 65% from EU citizens. The option to provide 'information on a product's overall nutritional value through a graded indicator' was considered by multiple stakeholder groups the most likely to encourage changes in food purchasing behaviour, reaching 83% among academic institutions, 72% among consumer organisations, 69% among citizens, 54% among NGOs and 62% among public authorities. Interestingly, a majority of respondents (59%) believe it is 'very likely' or 'likely’ that food businesses whose products were bearing claims before the new criteria were introduced, but whose products do not meet the new criteria, will change the recipe of their products to make them healthier so that they can keep health and nutrition claims on their products.

The Commission proposal was expected in 2023. However, it is mentioned neither in the Commission work programme for 2024 nor in the tentative agenda for forthcoming Commission meetings. It remains uncertain when this proposal will be tabled.

During the latest meeting of the Agriculture and Fisheries Council on 24 June 2024, the Belgian Presidency briefed Member States on the results of the symposium it organised on 25 April 2024 on FOPNL systems. The aim of this symposium was to explore diverse perspectives on the currently existing FOPNL systems already introduced in some EU countries, to allow an open dialogue amongst all the stakeholders involved.

Speaking at the meeting, EU Health and Food Safety Commissioner Stella Kyriakides told the Council that views on FOPNL systems among Member States were too polarised for the European Commission to come forward with a proposal. In addition, Kyriakides highlighted that it was "clear that for such a proposal to land well, we need more evidence and data, in particular on the impact of food labelling on consumer behaviour before proposing solutions that can generate consensus and live up to our stated objectives." The Commissioner concluded by underscoring that FOPNL is a "sensitive topic where Member States and stakeholders have very strong and often diverging views" and stressed "further preparatory work is needed, and we consider that it is key that we to continue to work together to find this common way forward, because ultimately we need to work towards making the shift easier for healthier diets for European citizens."

Several ministers that spoke before Kyriakides proved her point, showing strong division among Member States on both a harmonised mandatory European FOPNL and the fact that it should take the form of the colour-coded Nutri-Score.

On 3 October, the EU Ombudsman made public a decision on the European Commission's refusal to give public access to documents concerning an impact assessment and the related opinion by the Regulatory Scrutiny Board on the revision of the Food Information to Consumers Regulation. The EU Ombudsman ruled that the refusal to grant public access to the documents at issue, even in part, constituted maladministration.

In his answers to MEPs' written questions ahead of the hearing scheduled for 4 November 2024, Commission-designate for Health and Animal welfare, Olivér Várhelyi, argued that "Mandatory food information, including nutrient content, and front-of-pack nutrition labelling can help consumers to make healthier food choices". He therefore unveiled his intention "to work with Member States and stakeholders on a comprehensive approach to promote healthier food choices, addressing issues including food information, food reformulation and the marketing of unhealthy food". In addition, Várhelyi pointed out that "Work should continue on food labelling, with particular attention on minimising any related burdens and finding balanced, pragmatic solutions which facilitate the functioning of the internal market."

References:

• European Parliament, Commission hearings, Olivér Várhelyi, 23 October 2024
• European Ombudsman, Decision on the European Commission's refusal to give public access to documents concerning an impact assessment and the related opinion by the Regulatory Scrutiny Board on the revision of the Food Information to Consumers Regulation, 3 October 2024
• European Council, Agriculture and Fisheries Council, Background note, 12 June 2024
• European Commission, Tentative agenda for forthcoming Commission meetings
• European Commission, Commission work programme 2024, 17 October 2023
• European Commission, Public consultation results, March 2022
• European Commission, Timeline of Farm to Fork actions, April 2022
• European Commission, Food labelling - revision of rules on information provided to consumers, roadmap
• European Commission, Report from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council regarding the use of additional forms of expression and presentation of the nutrition declaration, May 2020
• Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the provision of food information to consumers

Further reading:

• European Parliament, EPRS, Nutrition labelling schemes used in Member States, Briefing, July 2020

Author: Ivana Katsarova, Members' Research Service, legislative-train@europarl.europa.eu