UK Prepares for Major Alignment with EU Marketing and Labelling Standards

The United Kingdom government is reportedly preparing new legislation that could grant ‘sweeping powers’ to align with European Union rules, particularly through a new Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) agreement. This significant move is expected to reshape labelling and marketing standards across various sectors, including food, feed, and drink businesses.

The proposed alignment is set to introduce changes to hygiene rules, food law, regulations on additives, pesticide maximum residue levels, marketing standards, and labelling requirements. Furthermore, rules concerning food contact materials are also anticipated to be affected. For retailers and wholesalers, the legislative shift would bring about new requirements for consumer information, compositional standards, traceability, labelling, and sourcing. The government’s rationale behind this potential deal is to save businesses money by simplifying ‘complex paperwork at the border’ and to foster an increase in trade.

This push for alignment comes as the UK government recently updated its guidance for exporting or moving plants and plant products from Great Britain and Northern Ireland. This guidance already includes information on marketing standards for fruit and vegetables, as well as plant propagation and seed marketing licensing. The updated guidance also clarifies that even small amounts of plant products sent in parcels from Great Britain to Northern Ireland require a phytosanitary certificate and must be clearly labelled as containing sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) goods, often with a green ‘SPS’ label. Such specific labelling requirements highlight the existing complexities that the broader SPS agreement aims to streamline.

On the EU side, agencies like verksamt.se, the Swedish government agency, have provided updated information on importing food products, emphasizing EU marketing standards. These standards serve as crucial quality and product descriptions, particularly for fishery products. The impending UK-EU SPS agreement suggests a convergence towards these established EU benchmarks, potentially harmonizing trade practices and reducing friction for businesses operating across the Channel.