Understanding the impact of European Regulation on the substantiation and use of claims on food and drinks: Design of the REDICLAIM project and initial results

The European Regulation on nutrition and health claims on foods (Nutrition andHealth Claims Regulation: European Commission No. 1924/2006) establishes,for the first time, a common framework for the regulation of such claims acrossthe European Union (EU). The opportunities for product innovation arising fromthis new legislation combined with protection of consumer interest in respect ofcontrolling misleading advertising, while at the same time promoting publichealth, are noteworthy. But such opportunities need to be evaluated against theburden on industry of the need to undertake significant research activity intothese claims and to present a scientific substantiation to satisfy the procedure for approval. Whether this legislation is driving product innovation and thedevelopment of healthy and nutritional food or whether it is a barrier to suchdevelopments is an area in need of investigation. The EU-funded projectREDICLAIM is currently considering these issues and the impact of theNutrition and Health Claims Regulation especially in relation to ‘reduction ofdisease risk’ claims. This article establishes the issues surrounding the commonframework of health legislation and sets out the work programme forREDICLAIM.