Food safety law and regulatory framework for artisan and small scale producers. Injurious food, inspection, detention, seizure, additives, alerts, recalls.

In March 2012 the Board of the Food Standards Agency (FSA) met to review controls over the distribution of raw drinking milk. The fact that there had then been no reported illness associated with raw drinking milk for 10 years (and none since) and no other problem reported made the decision to proceed with the review somewhat contrary to the FSA’s much vaunted reliance on evidence-based risk assessment.

In January 2013 the European Commission launched a public consultation on the future of organic agriculture. Artisan Food Law raised the hope that questions around the presence of GMOs in organic food “… do not become a precursor to proposals that would permit higher levels of contamination or, worse still, the deliberate inclusion of GM ingredients in organic products.”

When serving food in a community setting confusion often arises when considering the extent to which domestic and EU food law applies and so must be followed. Do I need to register as a food business operator? Do the food hygiene rules have to be met in full? If not, what are my obligations? The questions go on … and on. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has made a brave attempt to answer some of these questions in recently published new guidance: Community and Charity Food Provision – Guidance on the Application of EU Food Hygiene Law.

It is rare for a case on food law to reach the Supreme Court. We have followed closely the case of Torfaen County Borough Council v Douglas Willis Limited which raised a point of law of public importance in relation to 'use by' dates on food and judgement was finally handed down last Wednesday, 31 July 2013.

Torfaen County Borough Council v Douglas Willis Limited came before The Supreme Court, the highest in the land, last Tuesday, 9 July 2013, by way of an appeal from the Divisional Court. The issues for the Court to consider were the construction of regulation 44(1)(d) of The Food Labelling Regulations 1996. In particular, whether the offence of selling food with an expired ‘use by’ date requires proof that the food was at the time of the offence highly perishable and likely to constitute an immediate danger to human health; and whether a ‘use by’ date ceases to have effect once the food has been frozen.

In 2011 Torfaen County Borough Council brought a prosecution against Douglas Willis Limited for a number of offences, all similar in nature, contrary to regulation 44(1)(d) of the Food Labelling Regulations 1996. This is the regulation that makes it an offence where any person “sells any food after the date shown in a ‘use by’ date relating to it”. Torfaen alleged that Willis had sold frozen pigs’ tongues after their ‘use by’ date. Artisan Food Law covered the case in early 2012.

May be that headline should have read: Westminster insists burgers must be indigestibly tough or incinerated prior to consumption?

Over the last few weeks Westminster City Council has come in for a lot of stick for a reported crack down by environmental health officers on sales of medium rare and rare burgers.

The EU appears fond of lists these days. Not long ago we had a long list of permitted health claims. Now the European Commission has adopted legislation providing for a list of over 2,100 flavourings for use in food in the EU, plus another 400 which can be used pending evaluation by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).