In order to avoid misleading claims and to harmonize divergent national legislation, the EU adopted in 2006 Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006 on Nutrition and Health Claims made on Foods. The Regulation covers Nutrition Claims, Generic Health Claims, Specific Health Claims, Children related Health Claims and Disease Risk Reduction Claims.
Health Claims
By mid-2011 the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has assessed the national lists of generic health claims submitted by EU Member States under Article 13.1 of the EU Claims Regulation. Based on the EFSA scientific opinions, the EU Commission issues a draft decision on which the European Parliament and the Council have the right of scrutiny. If no parties object, the draft decision is adopted.
The consolidated list of EU authorized health claims is expected to be adopted early 2012.
So far, EFSA has given positive opinions to the following health-fatty acids relationships:
- Alpha-Linolenic Acid (ALA) contributes to the maintenance of normal blood cholesterol (if product contains Source of Omega-3 fatty acids i.e. 0,3g ALA per 100g and 100 kcal, and information to the consumer that the beneficial effect is obtained with daily intake of 2g ALA)
- Eicosapentaenoic Acid (EPA) and Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA) contribute to the maintenance of normal triglyceride concentrations (if product contains Source of EPA-DHA i.e. 40 mg per 100g and 100 kcal, and information to the consumer that the beneficial effect is obtained with daily intake of 2-4g EPA and DHA)
- Linoleic Acid (LA) may help to maintain normal blood cholesterol concentrations (if product contains at least 15% of the proposed labelling reference intake of 10g LA per day, and info to the consumer that beneficial effect is obtained with daily intake of 10g LA)
- Plant sterols/stanols contribute to the maintenance of normal blood cholesterol levels
- Long chain Omega 3 fatty acids (EPA+ DHA) contribute to the normal function of the heart
- DHA contributes to the maintenance of normal brain function
- Reduction of SAFA and maintenance of normal low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol
- Replacement of saturated fatty acids (SAFA) with monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) to maintain normal blood cholesterol levels
- Antioxidant effects of polyphenols found in olive oil on LDL cholesterol
Article 14 of the EU Claims Regulation deals with claims related to reduction of disease. The authorisation procedure for so-called "risk reduction claims" is based on individual applications. Under this specific process, there currently are two cholesterol-reduction claims approved:
- Plant sterols have been shown to lower/reduce blood cholesterol.
- Plant stanol esters have been shown to lower/reduce blood cholesterol.
The Article 14 claims on cholesterol can be used under the condition that consumers are informed that the beneficial effect is obtained with a daily intake of at least 2 g plant sterols/plant stanol esters.
Nutrition Claims
As for nutrition claims, the following fatty acids-related claims were adopted in 2010:
- “Source of Omega-3” if min. 0,3g ALA or 40mg EPA-DHA per 100g and 100 kcal
- “High Omega-3” if min. 0,6g ALA or 80mg EPA-DHA per 100g and 100 kcal
- “High monounsaturated fat" (MUFA) if at least 45% of total fatty acids in the product are derived from MUFA under the condition that these provide more than 20% of energy of the product
- "High polyunsaturated fat" (PUFA) if at least 45% of total fatty acids in the product are derived from PUFA under the condition that these provide more than 20% of energy of the product
- “High unsaturated fat (UFA)” if at least 70% of total fatty acids in the product are derived from UFA under the condition that these provide more than 20% of energy of the product
- Omega-6 fatty acids and low cholesterol claims were not adopted
The Community list of all nutrition and health claims approved and rejected so far can be found here.