The Food Labelling Amendment (No. 3) (Scotland) Regulations 2005

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations, which extend to Scotland only, amend the Food Labelling Regulations 1996, which extend to the whole of Great Britain. They implement Commission Directive 2005/26/EC establishing a list of food ingredients or substances provisionally excluded from Annex IIIa of Directive 2000/13/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (O.J. No. L 75, 22.3.05, p.33) (“the first Directive”).

By Article 2 of the first Directive Member States are obliged to adopt and publish regulations necessary to comply with this Directive by 21st September 2005. This was achieved in Scotland by the Food Labelling Amendment (No. 2) (Scotland) Regulations 2005 (S.S.I. 2005/456).

Commission Directive 2005/63/EC correcting Directive 2005/26/EC concerning the list of food ingredients or substances provisionally excluded from Annex IIIa of Directive 2000/13/EC of the European Parliament and the Council (O.J. No. L 258, 4.10.05, p.3) subsequently amended the first Directive. These Regulations now give effect to the first Directive as so amended. They do so by revoking the Food Labelling Amendment (No. 2) (Scotland) Regulations 2005 (regulation 8) and remaking them with the amendments necessary to implement Directive 2005/63/EC.

The principal change made by these Regulations is to correct the entry relating to the use of fish gelatine as described in Column 2 of new Schedule 2A (the Schedule).

These Regulations–

(a) confer an exemption until 25th November 2007 from the allergen labelling requirements in regulation 34B(1) and (2)(b) of the Food Labelling Regulations 1996 in the case of certain ingredients originating from allergenic ingredients (regulations 5 and 7 and the Schedule);

(b) make some consequential amendments (regulations 4 and 6); and

(c) update the definition of “Directive 2000/13/EC” (regulation 3).

A Regulatory Impact Assessment of the effect which these Regulations will have on business costs has been prepared and placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre. Copies may be obtained from the Food Standards, Labelling and Composition Branch, Food Standards Agency (Scotland), 6th Floor, St Magnus House, 25 Guild Street, Aberdeen AB11 6NJ.