Foods exempt from nutrition labelling

There is a defined list of foods exempt from nutrition labelling within the EU. Companies providing nutrition information on a voluntary basis or where a nutrition/health claim is made, must comply with the new format from 13 December 2014. However, companies not currently providing nutrition information must comply from 13 December 2016.

A brief outline of the requirements:

• Mandatory nutrition information on processed foods;
• Mandatory origin labelling of unprocessed meat from pigs, sheep, goats and poultry. Beef, fish, honey, olive oil, fresh fruit and vegetables already require this;
• Highlighting allergens e.g. peanuts or milk in the list of ingredients;
• Better legibility – minimum size of text, the height of the lowercase letter ‘x’ in the chosen font must not be less than 1.2mm on the labelling;
• Requirements on information on allergens also cover non pre-packed foods including those sold in restaurants and cafés.

We have a detailed article about all of the requirements here.

Foods exempt from Nutrition Labelling

However, if you produce these foods, you are in luck! The following are foods exempt from nutrition labelling and do not need any nutritional information on the labels:

1. Unprocessed products that comprise a single ingredient or category of ingredients;
2. Processed products which the only processing they have been subjected to is maturing and that comprise a single ingredient or category of ingredients;
3. Waters intended for human consumption, including those where the only added ingredients are carbon dioxide and/or flavourings;
4. A herb, a spice or mixtures thereof;
5. Salt and salt substitutes;
6. Table top sweeteners;
7. Products covered by Directive 1999/4/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 February 1999 relating to coffee extracts and chicory extracts (1), whole or milled coffee beans and whole or milled decaffeinated coffee beans;
8. Herbal and fruit infusions, tea, decaffeinated tea, instant or soluble tea or tea extract, decaffeinated instant or soluble tea or tea extract, which do not contain other added ingredients than flavourings which do not modify the nutritional value of the tea;
9. Fermented vinegars and substitutes for vinegar, including those where the only added ingredients are flavourings;
10. Flavourings;
11. Food additives;
12. 12. Processing aids;
13. Food enzymes;
14. Gelatine;
15. Jam setting compounds;
16. Yeast;
17. Chewing-gums;
18. Food in packaging or containers the largest surface of which has an area of less than 25 cm squared;
19. Food, including handcrafted food, directly supplied by the manufacturer of small quantities of products to the final consumer or to local retail establishments directly supplying the final consumer.

Therefore, they do not need to supply any nutritional information on their labelling. However, if you do need to meet the new regulations, we can supply labels to fit the new regulations from December 2014 onwards. These regulations must be met otherwise it can lead to prosecution. Therefore, buying new labels is a MUST!

If you would like PID to create a labelling solution for your labelling problems, then don’t hesitate to call us on 01332 864895. Alternatively, fill in the contact form below: