Feasibility study for a dedicated database containing all Union and domestic labelling rules and providing a simple way to identify concrete mandatory labelling requirements per product

This study presents a detailed analysis of the overall feasibility of an electronic storage system (the "database") containing all Union and domestic labelling rules and providing a simple way to identify concrete mandatory labelling requirements per food product. It responds to Action 9 of the European Retail Action Plan (ERAP) that invites the European Commission to examine the feasibility of such a database and builds on preliminary discussions that took place in the context of the revision of Directive 2000/13/EC relating to the labelling, presentation and advertising of foodstuffs, to be replaced by Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 as of 13 December 2014. It first maps out all categories of stakeholders that are concerned by labelling of foodstuffs, and then carries out research to identify and describe the scale of issues that they encounter. Subsequently, it analyses how the establishment of the database could help addressing these problems and lists opportunities and benefits that its creation may provide. From there the study proposes a step-by-step approach (options) for the creation and the implementation of the database, and providing analytical conclusions (i.e. technical approach, content management, overall governance and associated costs of the system) on the different options to set up the database.