How the European Court of Justice’s judgement on Case 19/15 single-handedly changed the EU’s food information policy

Authors

  • Maria José Plana University of Barcelona

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1344/rbd2016.38.17049

Keywords:

food information, food safety, misleading claims, public health, Regulation 1924/2006, health claims, nutrition claims, health professionals

Abstract

The European Court of Justice is asked by the German courts to determine if the European Union’s legal framework on the use of nutrition and health claims in the advertising of food products applies to commercial communication that is directly forwarded by food business operators to health professionals. According to this ruling, because these professionals are not in a position to review all upcoming scientific studies and because of the complexity of the claims, they need to be protected from misleading claims as much as the average consumer. It is the author’s view that this Judgment opens the door for the European Commission to define clear rules on how food businesses can approach health professionals when advertising their products.

Author Biography

Maria José Plana, University of Barcelona

Lawyer. Coordinator of the Research Line “Bioethics, Food & Law” of the Bioethics & Law Observatory, University of Barcelona, Spain.

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How to Cite

Plana, M. J. (2016). How the European Court of Justice’s judgement on Case 19/15 single-handedly changed the EU’s food information policy. Revista De Bioética Y Derecho, (38), 119–129. https://doi.org/10.1344/rbd2016.38.17049

Issue

Section

Bioethics in the Courts