Tag: Europe
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German Groups Convene Nanotechnology Symposium in Berlin
The Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) and the Fraunhofer Nanotechnology and Food Chain Management alliances have organized a two-day public event on March 5-6, 2015, in Berlin to discuss a range of risk-related issues related to the use of nanomaterials. Symposium topics will include (i) European Food Safety Agency guidance on nanomaterials, (ii) the NanoDefine…
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Italian Winemakers Threaten Legal Action Against British Pubs for Selling Prosecco on Tap
A consortium of prosecco manufacturers has reportedly contacted the United Kingdom’s Food Standards Agency and Intellectual Property Office to threaten legal action under EU trading regulations against British wine bars and pubs that refuse to stop serving the sparkling wine from a keg. Prosecco sales apparently surpassed those of its rival, champagne, for the first…
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Swiss Tribunal Rules “Absinthe” Is Generic, Not Tied to Place of Origin
Ruling against Val-de-Travers absinthe producers, the Swiss Federal Administrative Tribunal has reversed a 2010 Federal Office of Agriculture decision confirming the “protected geographical indications” registration of the terms “absinthe,” “fée verte”—the green fairy and “la bleue.” Guignon v. Ass’n interprofessionnelle de l’Absinthe, No. B-4820/2012 (Tribunal administratif fédéral, decided August 13, 2014). The court said in a…
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Shook Attorneys Discuss France’s Class Action Expansion with Food Navigator
Shook, Hardy & Bacon Partner Marc Shelley and Associate Emily Fedeles recently spoke with Food Navigator about a proposal contained in French Minister of Health Marisol Touraine’s National Health Bill that would extend class actions to claims involving injuries to health. According to the August 7, 2014, article, the bill seeks to expand a new…
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Study Identifies 175 “Chemicals of Concern” in Food Contact Materials
A study published this week by researchers associated with the Zurich, Switzerland-based Food Packaging Forum has sounded the alarm about the number of allegedly hazardous substances contained in food packaging or those that may contaminate food during production, processing, storage and transportation. Birgit Geueke, et al., “Food contact substances and chemicals of concern: a comparison…
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EFSA Issues Opinion on Bacillus Species in Animal Feed
The European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA’s) Panel on Additives and Products or Substances used in Animal Feed (FEEDAP Panel) has issued an opinion on Bacillus species used in animal production as microbial feed additives or as the source of other feed additives, mainly enzymes. Noting that the main “concern for humans, and, to a lesser extent…
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Report Aims to Clear Up Confusion in the GMO Debate
The European biotech firm EuropaBio has published a new report titled “Science Not Fiction: Time to think again about GM” that provides an overview of the debate in Europe over genetically-modified organisms (GMOs). The report urges Europeans to take a new look at evidence for GM safety, to confront some of the “misleading tactics” used by some…