Following on from the Food Information to Consumers’ (FIC) regulations that came into force on the 13th December 2014, there are now further mandatory requirements to comply with.
From the 1st April 2015 it is a mandatory requirement to label the country of origin or place of provenance for unprocessed fresh, chilled and frozen meat of swine, sheep, goats and poultry.
It is now a mandatory requirement to display on the label the country in which an animal was reared and slaughtered. The rearing periods differ by species and can be defined as follows:
Poultry
If the animal is older than six months and slaughtered, the rearing period is classed as –
- If the term Origin is to be used, then all three stages of production, i.e. born, reared and slaughtered must be within one country
- The use of other more visible marketing terms such as ‘British’, or flags for example will be voluntary
Swine
If the animal is older than six months and slaughtered, the rearing period is classed as –
- The last rearing period of at least four months or, If the animal is slaughtered younger than six months, and with a live weight of at least 80 kgs., , the rearing period is classed as –
- The rearing period after the animal has reached a live weight of 30 kilograms, but In the situation where the animal is slaughtered younger than six months, the rearing period is classed as –
- The whole rearing period if the animal is slaughtered with a live weight of less than 80 kilograms
Sheep and goats
The whole rearing period in the case where the animal is slaughtered younger than six months or the last rearing period of at least six months.
These rules currently do not apply to processed meats or meat preparations however with a proposal being put together, the need to track and manage these new requirement’s has never been stronger.
Authenticate has been working with some of the world’s largest food companies to build a collaborative network which provides their business’s and customers with transparency throughout their supply chains. The Pyramid network connects members to allow them to collaborate and share sensitive and confidential data allowing food business to provide the information required to document and protect against new FIR legislations.
It is now a mandatory requirement to display on the label the country in which an animal was reared and slaughtered