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The number of food and drink products being removed from shelves as a result of unreported allergens on packaging has grown 60% in the UK in the last year, highlighting a growing pressure on food manufacturers to conform to rigorous EU food reporting standards.
The new statistics are according to research from EMW, the commercial law firm. It said that 96 products were withdrawn in 2015 due to unlisted allergens on packaging – up from the 60 withdrawals recorded in 2014.
New EU legislation, which came into force in December 2014, has significantly toughened up allergen labelling requirements in pre-packaged products, driving the increase in the number of products withdrawn. The new regulation states that allergens must be emphasised in the ingredients list.
Prior to the legislation being introduced, manufacturers carrying out product risk assessments for allergens may have considered the amount of allergens in a product so small that the risk was negligible – but retailers and supermarkets, concerned about contravening EU laws, had put greater scrutiny on the items being provided to them by their suppliers.
EMW explained that there are potential losses “running into the hundreds of thousands” for every recall, covering the cost transport and logistics, communications, product destruction, customer reimbursements and legal fees – in addition to any damage on brand reputation.
EMW consultant Sebastian Calnan said: “Public scrutiny on food manufacturing has intensified greatly in recent years, often with good reason.”
“However, the recent and seemingly heavy-handed crackdown on food manufacturers regarding allergen labelling has undoubtedly put a massive strain on the industry.”
“With a large upswing in the number of food items being removed, food producers have to be extremely aware of the tough EU criteria to ensure they do not fall foul of the legislation and suffer from any subsequent losses to revenue.”
“Loss of market share during withdrawal is a growing issue that companies have to face. Businesses increasingly have to put contingency strategies in place to be able to respond quickly and efficiently to allergen withdrawals, which in addition to the direct costs, can be extremely expensive and burdensome.”
© FoodBev Media Ltd 2024