New EU food regs will mean more claims

ACE has claimed that companies in the food and drink industry could face more claims from consumers as a result of new European food labelling regulations that come into force later this year.

The new regulation is designed to streamline and simplify the legislation on food and nutrition labelling into a single EU regulation. All food businesses will be required to provide allergy information on food sold unpackaged in catering outlets and shops.

“This important new EU legislation should help reduce the risk of accidental contamination for consumers. As the regulation is rolled out across Europe and public awareness grows, another consequence is that it may drive increased product liability exposure for a wide range of businesses involved in the food production and distribution chain,” said Connie Germano, regional technical and underwriting casualty manager for continental Europe at ACE.

“Today a contamination incident can develop into a full-blown crisis for a business almost instantly. At ACE, we believe that comprehensive insurance combined with advance risk assessment, robust food safety systems and crisis management is the best defence.”