“Honey from EU and non-EU countries” – such vague information should no longer be given in the future. The EU Parliament voted to tighten the “breakfast guidelines”: all countries of origin should be named on the label.
In the future, consumers in the EU should be able to read the country of origin of honey and jam on the packaging. The members of the EU Parliament voted by a large majority to tighten the so-called breakfast guidelines. Accordingly, the country of origin of the fruit used should also be stated on the front label of products such as fruit juices or jellies.
If the honey or fruit used comes from several countries, the countries of origin should be listed in descending order, depending on which country most of the ingredients come from. Honey will then no longer be labeled as “honey from EU and non-EU countries” as is sometimes the case.
Before the new requirements can come into force, the project must be finally negotiated with the EU states. In order to avoid fraud, manufacturers should be checked regularly.
“Bureaucratic nightmare for beekeepers”?
The aim must be for consumers to have “full control over what they actually buy,” explained SPD MEP Tiemo Wölken. A lot of honey is currently being imported from China, and it often does not meet European standards. “So far, the origin has been easy to conceal,” says Wölken.
“Such vague and misleading origin labels, which have been the norm so far, border on defrauding consumers,” said CSU MEP Markus Ferber. But the new regulations should not turn into a “bureaucratic nightmare for beekeepers and jam manufacturers,” he added.
MEPs in Strasbourg voted 522 in favor of the changes, 13 against and 65 abstentions. However, Wölken criticized the fact that there was no majority in the plenary session to ban labels on fruit juices such as “no added sugar”. According to EU law, adding sugar to fruit juice is prohibited. Corresponding labels gave the impression that juices were a healthy option despite having a lot of sugar.