Novel Foods

Note: The requirements specified here are contained in EU Regulation 258/97 (as amended) and not the UK Food Labelling Regulations.

The controls apply to the placing on the market within the Community of foods and food ingredients which, at the date the controls entered into force (May 1997), have not hitherto been used for human consumption to a significant degree within the Community.

A 'Novel Food' is defined as one derived from one of these categories

• foods and food ingredients with a new or intentionally modified primary molecular structure;
• foods and food ingredients consisting of or isolated from micro-organisms, fungi or algae;
• foods and food ingredients consisting of or isolated from plants and food ingredients isolated from animals, except for foods and food ingredients obtained by traditional propagating or breeding practices and having a history of safe food use;
• foods and food ingredients to which has been applied a production process not currently used, where that process gives rise to significant changes in the composition or structure of the foods or food ingredients which affect their nutritional value, metabolism or level of undesirable substances.

Note that 'novel foods' do not include genetically modified foods as these are now covered by separate legislation (see GM food page).

Novel foods are approved under a system of controls agreed at a European level and published in the EC Novel Foods and Novel Food Ingredients Regulation 258/97. This is applicable in the UK. The Regulation contains a short statement of the requirements for the labelling of novel foods. In addition to any other legal requirements concerning the labelling of foodstuffs (such as the Food Labelling Regulations 1996 as amended), the EC Novel Foods and Novel Food Ingredients Regulation lays down requirements designed to ensure that the final consumer is informed of:

(a) any characteristic or food property such as: composition, nutritional value or nutritional effects or intended use, which render a novel food or food ingredient no longer equivalent to an existing food or food ingredient;

(b) the presence in the novel food or food ingredient of material which is not present in an existing equivalent foodstuff, and which may have implications for the health of certain sections of the population; or give rise to ethical concerns; (e.g. foods with allergenic potential, or genes from animals in plant foods)

Under item (a), "no longer equivalent" is defined in the Novel Foods Regulation as "where a scientific assessment...can demonstrate that the characteristics assessed are different in comparison with a conventional food or food ingredient, having regard to the accepted limits of natural variations...".