The EU food market is the world's most regulated — and one of its most lucrative. EU General Food Law (Regulation 178/2002) sets the overarching framework, with dozens of product-specific regulations layered on top. Getting food and beverage products into European retail and food service requires navigating labelling, safety, and sometimes product registration requirements that catch even experienced exporters off guard.
Regulation (EC) 178/2002 establishes the principles applying to all food sold in the EU: food must be safe, must not be misleading, and must be traceable from farm to fork. Every food business placing products on the EU market must be registered with the competent authority of the member state where they first enter the EU. Non-EU manufacturers must designate an EU-based importer who takes legal responsibility for compliance.
EU Food Information Regulation (1169/2011) requires all pre-packaged food sold in the EU to carry: product name, ingredients list (descending by weight, with allergens in bold), net quantity, best before or use-by date, storage conditions, name and address of EU food business operator, country of origin (mandatory for certain categories), alcohol content (for drinks >1.2% ABV), nutritional declaration (energy, fat, saturates, carbohydrate, sugars, protein, salt per 100g/100ml), and any required warnings.
Labels must be in the official language(s) of the country of sale. This typically means separate label runs for each market — or a multilingual label covering your key markets.
Any food or food ingredient not significantly consumed in the EU before May 1997 is classified as 'novel food' and requires EU authorisation before it can be sold. Novel foods include: many plant extracts new to Europe, food produced from new processes (e.g. UV-treated foods), and insect-derived ingredients. The authorisation process takes 18–24 months and costs €50,000–€250,000+ in application and scientific dossier preparation. Check the EU Novel Food Catalogue before launching any ingredient with an unusual origin or processing method.
EU Regulation 1924/2006 governs nutrition and health claims on food products. Only claims from the EU Register of Authorised Health Claims are permitted. Claims must be specific to the nutrient profile conditions set for each claim — simply containing vitamin C doesn't allow every vitamin C health claim. Disease prevention claims ('reduces risk of') require disease risk reduction claim authorisation, a complex separate process. General wellbeing claims like 'part of a healthy diet' are subject to strict conditions and cannot be used as de facto health claims.
Products sold as 'organic' or 'bio' in the EU must carry EU organic certification under EU Regulation 2018/848. Non-EU producers must hold organic certification from a body accredited by the European Commission or from an equivalent third country recognised by the EU. The EU organic logo (green leaf on black/dark green background) is mandatory for packaged organic food where the product is at least 95% organic ingredients.
Common EU food import documents: Certificate of Origin, health certificates (required for many animal products, and some plant products), phytosanitary certificates (for fresh produce), and EUR.1 or REX declarations (for preferential tariff treatment under EU trade agreements). Products from certain countries or categories require pre-notification to EU border inspection posts via TRACES NT. Work with an experienced EU customs broker specialising in food imports.
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