Breaking News on Supplements & Nutrition - Europe

Stakeholders meet for health claim discussions

By Stephen Daniells, 12-Jun-2007

Related topics: Regulation

Stakeholders in the new European health claims initiative have met to discuss the technical and scientific aspects the European Food Safety Authority's (EFSA) draft guidance to applicants on the submission of health claims.

Publication of guidance on submissions back in May of this year was much anticipated by the food industry, which has been mulling over how the regulation will affect their businesses ever since it was adopted in May 2006.

 

 

 

Companies have been urged to start putting systems in place to ensure they are in as strong a position as possible, both to ensure existing claims can still be made and to prepare for claims they may wish to make in the future.

 

 

 

During the meeting, held in Parma, stakeholders raised questions and made comments concerning the draft guidance document, including EFSA's role as regards consumer understanding of the wording of a claim, how claims for ingredients and for products will be assessed, how evidence will be weighted including the types of human studies, and the potential conflict between confidentiality versus transparency of data.

 

 

 

"We really had a lively discussion and I am impressed by the quality of the debate today. A number of very helpful comments have been made which will be very useful for the Panel's work. We will carefully consider all comments made in order to finalise the Guidance Document," said Albert Flynn, chair of the NDA Panel.

 

 

 

Presentations at the meeting included EFSA's deputy executive director and director of science Herman Koëter, Albert Flynn, and Sean Strain, chair of the NDA Working Group on Claims.

 

 

 

The draft guidance document is still open for consultation until the end of this week (17 June 2007).

 

 

 

Another controversial aspect of the health claims regulation is nutrient profiles - that is, the content criteria for foods that may make nutrition and health claims.

 

 

 

EFSA said today that it is "progressing with work" on this, and a scientific colloquium is planned for September.

 

 

 

European member states are presently compiling lists of claims that are well established. They must be submitted to EFSA by January 2008, and EFSA will then have two years to draw up its own list of established claims.

 

 

 

It is understood that there is considerable collaboration going on between the member states with industry groups the CIAA, EHPM and ERNA compiling generic lists.

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