Country of origin

Grouchy

I've been trying to figure out the rules on this and all I can find is 'guidelines' for foodstuffs.
I find especially Lidl products (where I buy a fair bit of shopping) such as jam, honey etc often doesn't have a Made In .... or Product of .... Although normal branded items have this.
I do find this frustrating as I always check for origin before buying, though obviously with Lidl you can't. Or can you? I have searched for the barcode country identifiers and checked a few items but cannot determine country of origin still.

Anyone figured this out?
Thanks

VfM4meplse

You could stick to St Michael's or Waitrose if providence is that important to you?

A._Badger

Grouchy wrote: »

I've been trying to figure out the rules on this and all I can find is 'guidelines' for foodstuffs.
I find especially Lidl products (where I buy a fair bit of shopping) such as jam, honey etc often doesn't have a Made In .... or Product of .... Although normal branded items have this.
I do find this frustrating as I always check for origin before buying, though obviously with Lidl you can't. Or can you? I have searched for the barcode country identifiers and checked a few items but cannot determine country of origin still.

Anyone figured this out?
Thanks

I haven't figured it out and I don't understand why it happens. I used to believe that the country of origin had to be shown in most instances but clearly this can't be the case. No doubt there's some EU loophole that's being exploited.

geordie_joe

A._Badger wrote: »

I haven't figured it out and I don't understand why it happens. I used to believe that the country of origin had to be shown in most instances but clearly this can't be the case. No doubt there's some EU loophole that's being exploited.

I think that for most things you only need the country of origin if it was produced outside the EU. Or if not having the country of origin would mislead people.

e.g. A stick of rock with the word "Blackpool" running through the middle and a picture of the Blackpool Tower on it, would have to have the country of origin if it was made in Germany. Otherwise people could be mislead into thinking it was made in Blackpool.

Not that it matters, the country of origin only refers to the last country in which it was processed or treated. So you can have pork from Poland imported into the UK, add salt to it and call it salted pork and have the country of origin as the UK. The salt doesn't have to come from the UK either!

Grouchy

Thanks A Badger and geordie joe for your interesting comments.
It seems country of origin on products is only a guideline, so that is where the problem lies. And the EU is somehow lumped in together. And SMs have codes of their own. And as mentioned ingredients can be assembled from far and wide and where something is bottled can be shown as Country of Origin. Unsatisfactory to say the least in so many ways.

A concern, for me at least, as some coutries (even EU ones) have somewhat dubious reputations for sub-standard or substituted ingredients even on mundane things like lemon curd and toothpaste.

I shall write a few stiff letters, it is the least I can I suppose, though to what effect ...

Thanks again

maman

VfM4meplse wrote: »

You could stick to St Michael's or Waitrose if providence is that important to you?

I wouldn't advise that it would be way past it's sell by date!:rotfl:

antrobus

Grouchy wrote: »

...It seems country of origin on products is only a guideline, so that is where the problem lies..

Depends on the exact product.
http://www.fdf.org.uk/keyissues.aspx?issue=641

browneyedbazzi

This isn't an EU loophole that's being exploited - some EU member states (including the UK I believe) have been pushing to make country of origin labels on products compulsory but other member states don't like the idea.

From 13th December there will be a requirement to mark food products with the country of origin if failure to do so may lead to consumers being misled about the origin of the product (ie if the packaging has a Union Jack on it but the product doesn't originate in the UK).

From 13th December there will also be additional requirements for labelling of all fresh meats - they will have to show the country where the animal was reared (as opposed to the old rules which allowed meat to be labelled as a product of a country if it was packaged there, meaning that your 'product of the UK' pork chops may really be from a pig reared and slaughtered in Denmark if the meat was shipped to the UK to be packaged for sale).

Grouchy

browneyedbazzi wrote: »

This isn't an EU loophole that's being exploited - some EU member states (including the UK I believe) have been pushing to make country of origin labels on products compulsory but other member states don't like the idea.

From 13th December there will be a requirement to mark food products with the country of origin if failure to do so may lead to consumers being misled about the origin of the product (ie if the packaging has a Union Jack on it but the product doesn't originate in the UK).

From 13th December there will also be additional requirements for labelling of all fresh meats - they will have to show the country where the animal was reared (as opposed to the old rules which allowed meat to be labelled as a product of a country if it was packaged there, meaning that your 'product of the UK' pork chops may really be from a pig reared and slaughtered in Denmark if the meat was shipped to the UK to be packaged for sale).

Thanks for that, interesting. I have done a bit of searching about and have read various announcements etc from the EU etc about the December 2014., and the new rules appear to be clear on meat (which I don't eat anyway) but mandatory country of origin labelling seems much more vague on other foodstuffs.

For instance http://ec.europa.eu/food/food/labellingnutrition/foodlabelling/proposed_legislation_en.htm where some of the wording on non-meat products seems rather like it has not been totally defined, doesn't it? Bit confusing anyway.

antrobus

Grouchy wrote: »

Thanks for that, interesting. I have done a bit of searching about and have read various announcements etc from the EU etc about the December 2014., and the new rules appear to be clear on meat (which I don't eat anyway) but mandatory country of origin labelling seems much more vague on other foodstuffs.

For instance http://ec.europa.eu/food/food/labellingnutrition/foodlabelling/proposed_legislation_en.htm where some of the wording on non-meat products seems rather like it has not been totally defined, doesn't it? Bit confusing anyway.

As far as I can establish, country of origin labelling;

- was mandatory for fresh beef and veal , honey, fruit, vegetables, fish and olive oil
- will soon also be mandatory for fresh pork, lamb and poultry meat
- is being considered by the EU for other products

browneyedbazzi wrote: »

..... From 13th December there will be a requirement to mark food products with the country of origin if failure to do so may lead to consumers being misled about the origin of the product (ie if the packaging has a Union Jack on it but the product doesn't originate in the UK).....

That has been the case for some time. (See, for example, this FSA guidance dating back to 2008 - http://www.food.gov.uk/sites/default/files/multimedia/pdfs/originlabellingguid0909.pdf)

That's why (for example) all those Carte d'Or TV ads flash up a 'manufactured in the UK' message if you pay enough attention. Just to make it clear that there is nothing actually 'French' about the product in question, you understand.:)