A pair of Forza Italia MEPs suddenly take action to propose a ban on writing ‘palm oil-free‘ on food labels. Funny mystery in Strasbourg.
Consumer information on food products is subject to a set of rules contained in the Food Information Regulation. Which contemplate the possibility of communicating voluntary claims, including those pertaining to the absence of certain ingredients and substances. ‘Without…‘ o ‘Free from‘. (1) In compliance with some basic rules, the ABCs of which have just been stated .
The annual competition report, on the other hand, is the dossier in which Italy’s creative palmarians-at the Economic and Monetary Affairs Commission-have inserted a clause that aspires to amend EU Regulation 1169/11. This is a distinctive tactic of Italian politicians and lobbyists, who often package ‘ad personam‘ clauses and mini-reforms on technical regulations within the framework of financial laws or otherwise.
I
palmarians
Italians would like to obtain a ban on ‘Free from‘ type claims on food labels because, they say, they would be misleading. Referring specifically, ça va sans dir, to the claims ‘palm oil-free‘ and ‘GMO-free.’
Those that garner the most interest from European consumers. And yet they disrupt Nutella’s empire. The millions dissipated in advertising and lobby have not in fact served to alter public sentiment toward palm-related horrors. (2)
Land robbery, deforestation
and greenhouse gas emissions
, slavery including child slavery
, use of neurotoxic pesticides
firstly. Without neglecting the burden of tropical fat saturated
and palmitic acid, shown to cause, among other things, inflammation of cell membranes and other serious diseases
.
Tropical fat paladins
Made in Malaysia
& Indonesia
(85 percent of global production)-which takes the market away from non-GMO sunflower, corn and soybean oils grown in Italy-are:
– Alberto Cirio, from Cuneo, MEP, Forza Italia, designated candidate for the presidency of the Piedmont Region in 2019, signer of the amendment described in this article,
–
Fulvio Martusciello
, MEP, Forza Italia, distinguished co-signer of the said amendment. Celebrated even by the political area press
and geographical
,
– Andrea Olivero, slated candidate Popular Civic in the Chamber of Deputies, who has already distinguished himself as deputy minister of agriculture policy for his strenuous defense of thepalm oil,
–
Gian Luca Galletti
, outgoing minister for the environment, a palmocrats ‘ merit badge for underwriting their theoretical sustainability programs on our behalf.
Names we should all keep in mind, and so should Coldiretti. With best wishes that the next employment of these people may come dedicated full-time to their passion toward palmistry, perhaps locally, instead of representing the values at the heart of citizens, consumers and voters in this way.
‘
‘No palm oil’ banned?
Definitely not!
Simply, in the event that Parliament passes the amendment of its Italian members in plenary session – and the lobby of Ferrero will carry on a battle in this regard – the Commission will be asked to prepare a proposal for a regulation to amend the Food Information Regulation.
The outcome of the Funny Mystery Is uncertain to say the least. Since beyond the investments of
Big Food
and Ferrero, the freedom often invoked by their own lobbyists
also includes the freedom to communicate the integrity of the supply chain
. And restrictions on that freedom, insofar as they lack logic and justification at the level of Codex Alimentarius, are therefore enforceable in the WTO or CETA. (3)
Dario Dongo
Notes
(1) See reg. EU 1169/11, Article 36
(2) Certainly also
Big Food
Will be able to appreciate this initiative. While the
biotech
no longer seems to worry big industry, which will be able to hide new GMOs thanks to the EU Court of Justice
(3) The European Parliament crippled itself by approving the all-encompassing agreement with Canada, CETA, on 15.2.17. In fact, thanks to CETA, any economic operator who considers its
business
hindered by EU or individual member state regulations, may take legal action against them for damages
Dario Dongo, lawyer and journalist, PhD in international food law, founder of WIISE (FARE - GIFT - Food Times) and Égalité.
