13 November 2015

The British Retail Consortium (BRC) and the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) with the support of Anaphylaxis Campaign and Coeliac UK have launched a guidance document which provides food manufacturers, retailers and enforcement authorities with essential advice on what must be considered before making a ‘free-from' claim on a product.

At present, with the exception of ‘gluten-free', there are no specific rules at either UK or EU level governing the use of ‘free-from' claims, neither is there any publically available guidance for businesses on making such claims. For this reason the BRC and FDF have pooled their expertise to produce an easy-to-use guidance for food business operators, large and small, with the aim of ensuring that ‘free-from' claims are applied both accurately and consistently across the whole food industry. All food labels, including ‘free from', must be substantiated and reliable if they are to be safe for consumers.

The guidance is available on the BRC website.