Significant changes to food labels and restaurant menus

The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has implemented a comprehensive update to food legislation. With these changes, aimed at ensuring consumers have access to accurate information, notable rules have come into effect for food packaging and restaurant menus.

In line with the new rules, the names and quantities of products on supermarket shelves will now be much more visible. Ingredients such as alcohol, sweeteners, and sugar content, in particular, will be written much more prominently on packaging. While the use of 189 new food ingredients approved by the European Union has been added to the legislation, a ban has been placed on 32 different substances containing genetically modified organisms (GMOs), pork, or insects.

It will no longer be possible to use the actual image of a product on packaging for foods produced with flavorings; it must be clearly stated that the product is "flavored." Descriptions such as "... flavored" or "... taste" have been completely removed on the grounds that they may mislead the consumer. Furthermore, the use of olive imagery on liquid oils other than olive oil and the labeling of products in a way that creates a false perception, such as "village product" or "domestic/imported," have also been banned.

The regulation is not limited to packaged products. In mass consumption venues and restaurants, the contents of all products must now be specified on menus with the full names of the raw materials used (for example, distinguishing between peanuts and pistachios in "pistachio" products), and calorie values must also be clearly presented.

In addition to these, notable bans have been introduced regarding the shape and marketing methods of food products. It will no longer be permitted to market food products in shapes such as weapons, skulls, or brains.

It was emphasized that all these innovations aim to prevent the misleading of consumers and to create a fair competitive environment.

News Source: 12punto