Food Standards Agency
Thursday 20 November 2008
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Judicial review proceedings in England and Wales on the implementation of European Union (EU) legislation on infant and follow-on formula will take place on 28 and 29 February.
The proceedings in Scotland start on 19 February. The case in Northern Ireland has been adjourned until the completion of the case in England.
New EU legislation on infant formula and follow-on formula for England and Wales was due to come into force on 11 January, but was suspended following a legal challenge by the Infant & Dietetic Foods Association (IDFA), which represents baby milk manufacturers. The equivalent regulations have also been suspended in Northern Ireland. In Scotland, the motion to suspend the regulations was turned down, and so they remain in force until a judgement is issued or another order is made.
IDFA applied for a judicial review, challenging the date by which baby milk companies need to comply with the labelling requirements in the new legislation. They believe that the labelling rules should not come into effect until the beginning of 2010.
The regulations, announced by the Department of Health and the Food Standards Agency in November, are designed to introduce stricter controls on labelling and advertising of all types of formulae to ensure that breastfeeding is not undermined by the marketing and promotion of such products.
This legislation will help parent and carers to clearly tell the difference between infant formula, which can be used for the first 6 months (and beyond) and follow-on formula, which is only to be used after the age of 6 months.
The suspension of the new regulations in England and Wales will be in place until the case has been finalised or another order granted. We will provide further updates when possible.
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