This morning I have received a response from the EU commission

I am not sure that, the EU gov will regulate because EU nutrition laws are retained in UK nutrition laws the EU commission has emailed me this morning and so they have not permitted keto or low carb and it is likely come October 2024 these will be enforced as I had been informed by manchester law school, it seemed that the EU has moved to force the UK government to criminalise this.

I can only try with the petition to see if the uk gov will move to regulation of low carb claims because on this the uk government has retained eu law on low carb / keto claims in the UK nutrician act the government still kept us under the control of brussels with regards to aspects of food law this is not what I would regard as true #brexit as the EU made a criminal offence it seems far to convient for the UK government to move to make this a ciminal offence as the UK gov has to then obey what ever the EU sets out in this area.

So what happens now we move to present the petition to see if the government will move to regulation this could have a wider impact and put pressure on the EU to change this.

The UK government states

What NLCS legislation covers

The government wants to ensure that consumers can have confidence in the nutritional content of the food they buy. This includes a safety net of legislation that covers nutrition labelling, composition and standards which includes relevant retained EU legislation, including controls on the use of nutrition and health claims which are used on foods.

This regulation is in place to ensure that claims made about a food or drink are accurate and consumers can make informed choices and are not misled regarding the nutrient content and health benefits of the food or drink they buy. Without this regulation food labels might contain unreliable statements regarding perceived health benefits of the food which have not been scientifically assessed against supporting scientific evidence.

Nutrition and health claims should only be used if they have been authorised following scientific assessment of supporting scientific evidence and where the food meets the conditions of use which are set - for example, nutrients being present at the required level in the food to support the claim that the food has a beneficial impact on health. The use of authorised claims may also encourage consumers to make healthier choices which directly influence their total intake of foods, individual nutrients or other substances.

Kind regards

Miguel  Hayworth

Please see letter

EU Comission

Dear Mr Hayworth,

Thank you for your email.

Kindly allow us to share with you some explanations regarding the legal principles applicable in relation to food information for products marketed in the EU market.

Information concerning a food made available to the final consumer by means of a label, other accompanying material or any other means including modern technology tools or verbal communication, is governed by EU law provisions and in particular labelling, including rules of a general nature applicable to all foods.

Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 on the provision of food information to consumers (FIC Regulation), establishes the general principles, requirements and responsibilities governing food information, and in particular food labelling and it provides the basis for the assurance of a high level of consumer protection in relation to food information, providing that food information shall be accurate, clear and easy to understand for the consumer.

Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006 on nutrition and health claims made on foods (Claims Regulation) sets out the framework for using nutrition and health claims in the EU and its objective is to ensure that any claim made on a food’s labelling, presentation or advertising in the European Union is truthful, clear and reliable. Nutrition and health claims must be based on and substantiated by generally accepted scientific evidence. According to the Claims Regulation, health claims are prohibited unless they are authorised and are only authorised for use in the EU after a scientific assessment of the highest possible standard. Both health and nutrition claims may be made only in conformity with the conditions of use accompanying them and in line with the provisions of the Claims Regulation. Kindly note that the permitted health claims that may be made on foods are provided in the EU Register which is publicly available at the following webpage: EU Register of nutrition and health claims made on foods (v.3.6) (europa.eu).

Nutrition claims are defined as any claim which states, suggests or implies that a food has particular beneficial nutritional properties. The only permitted nutrition claims that may be made on foods are the ones included in the Annex of the Claims Regulation. A reference to ‘low-carb’ is not included in this list of permitted nutrition claims that may be

made on food products. Please note that FIC Regulation, requires the amount of carbohydrates contained in pre-packed foods to be declared in the nutrition declaration (Articles 4 and 9), among others particulars, in order to ensure that consumers are well-informed regarding the carbohydrate content in the foods they consume. With regard to the reference you make in your email to the use of the term ‘keto’ on the labelling of food products, kindly note that this term is not defined at EU level. 

Should this term be provided as a voluntary food information on the labelling of a food product, then the relevant applicable requirements as provided in Article 36 of the FIC Regulation, must be complied with. In particular, food information provided on a voluntary basis shall not mislead the consumer, as referred to in Article 7; shall not be ambiguous or confusing for the consumer; and it shall, where appropriate, be based on the relevant scientific data. Kindly note that the national competent authorities are responsible for enforcing food law, and for monitoring and verifying that the relevant requirements of EU legislation are fulfilled by food business operators.

In doing so, the competent authority of the EU country where a food product is to be marketed, is required to assess each case, on its own merits in order to ensure conformity with EU food labelling rules. In the case of nutrition or health claims, a food business operator shall be able to justify the use of the claims and the competent authorities of a Member State may request from the food business operator to produce all relevant elements and data establishing compliance with the Claims Regulation.

Kindly note that the ultimate responsibility for the interpretation of European Union law lies with the Court of Justice of the European Union.

With kind regards,
Food Information Portal Support

European Commission
DG Health and Food Safety