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8 Eur. Food & Feed L. Rev. 187 (2013)
Project BELFRIT: Harmonizing the Use of Plants in Food Supplements in the European Union: Belgium, France and Italy - A First Step

handle is hein.journals/effl2013 and id is 203 raw text is: EFFL 312013 Project BELFRIT I 187 Project BELFRIT Harmonizing the Use of Plants in Food Supplements in the European Union: Belgium, France and Italy - A first Step Guillaume Cousyn,* Stefania Dalfrd, Bruno Scarpa,** Joris Geelen,*** Robert Anton,* Mauro Serafini and Luc Delmullec0. European legislation for food supplements with botanicals is not harmonized and not adapted to meet the particular challenges of these heterogeneous ingredients. Faced with this situation, the Belgian, French and Italian authorities, each assisted by a renowned scientific expert, have decided to develop a common approach for the evaluation of botanicals in the 'BELFRIT' project. A first step in this initiative is the compilation of a list of plants whose use in food supplements could be possible, provided that the necessary measures to ensure consumer safety are respected. It provides a precise identification of the plants, indicates some key points in the production to be controlled, while also taking traditional knowledge into account. This harmonized list can be a pragmatic tool for risk managers and operators and an important piece of the puzzle for harmonization of this field. Nevertheless, it is not a legally binding instrument and cannot be opposed to legal provisions, including those of the Member States involved in the project. I. General Context Ten years after the publication of Directive 2002/46 the progress made in the field of food supplements is concrete but seems to be insufficient to meet the multiple challenges of the common market. The * Direction g6ndrale de la concurrence, de la consommation et de la rdpression des fraudes (DGCCRF), Nutrition et information sur les denrdes alimentaires, Paris, France. ** Both Ministero della Salute, Dipartimento Sanith pubblica veterinaria, Sicurezza alimentare e Organi collegiali per la tutela della salute, Direzione Generale Igiene, Sicurezza Alimenti e Nutrizione, Rome, Italy. Federale overheidsdienst (FOD) Volksgezondheid, Veiligheid van deVoedselketen en Leefmilieu, DG Dier, Plant en Voeding, DienstVoedingsmiddelen, Dierenvoeders en Andere Consumptie- producten, Brussels, Belgium. * Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Strasbourg, Illkirch, France. ** Department of Environmental Biology, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy. - IFAO Proform education, Troisvierges, Luxembourg. 1 Report from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on the use of substances other than vitamins and minerals in food supplements, COM(2008) 824 final, at p. 11. regulatory framework applicable to these products was greatly expanded and renewed to ensure the marketing of quality products. These provisions, whether specific or cross-disciplinary, apply equally to the composition of the products as to their production, labeling and advertising. However, very often their marketing in the European Union depends more on the application of the principle of free movement of goods than on the application of homogeneous provisions based on objective criteria and designed to provide optimum protection of consumers. This paradox stems from the absence of provi- sions that would be appropriate to manage the specific questions that have arisen from the use of ingredients for nutritional and physiological pur- pose. The objective mentioned in Directive 2002/46 to establish minimum and maximum levels of nutrients has not yet been reached. With regard to other substances the harmonization is neither con- sidered a priority, nor realistic.1 Nevertheless, the health concerns are real and must be taken into account to achieve the high level of protection imposed by the Treaty on the Func- EFFL 3|12013 Project BELFRIT | 187

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