- 28/09/2017
- Posted by: Marta
- Categories: Questions and Answers, News
Dear Dario good morning,
my eye fell on a bag of vegan biscuits with the words “may contain traces of eggs and milk“. I thought vegans were strict, no animal foods. Does this seem correct to you?
thank you
Fabio
The lawyer Dario Dongo, Ph.D. in food law, answers
Dear Fabio good morning to you,
I understand your perplexity but I do not think it is appropriate to tear your clothes or to dramatize.
Foods suitable for a vegan diet They still lack a legal definition and harmonized criteria at European level. Although the Commission has begun to address this issue, at the instigation of the interested social partners (the so-called stakeholders) as well as on the basis of a specific mandate given to it by the European legislator. (1)
Pending uniform and binding rules, vegan food is associated - in the perception of the average consumer - with respect for the principles established at European Vegetarian Union. That is to say, refraining from the use - in its preparation - of any ingredient, enzyme additive or technological adjuvant of animal origin. (2)
The voluntary declaration the suitability of a food for the vegan diet must therefore be considered admissible and lawful when the operator has not deliberately employed anything of an animal nature.
In compliance, of course, with fair information practices. (3) Where it is forbidden, for example, to attribute to a food characteristics common to the category of products to which it belongs. The claim '100% vegan' on a drink based on water, sugar and orange juice is therefore reprehensible, in the humble opinion of the writer.
The wording 'may contain' (5) - followed by the specific indication of one or more allergenic ingredients - is in any case a duty. Whenever the responsible operator, following the correct application of the self-control, (6) is unable to exclude the risk of accidental contamination of the product with one or more allergens.
Information relating to allergens, moreover, it has a markedly sanitary relief. It is therefore a priority, fundamental, indispensable.
It is moreover possible that a vegan food is made on the same production line where in other shifts products that contain ingredients of animal origin are processed. Such as milk and eggs, widely used in confectionery and baking. The two terms 'vegan' and 'may contain milk, eggs' can therefore coexist.
Vegan in intentions, commitment and its implementation. But if you fail to rule out the risk of X contamination from allergens, it is better to expose a vegan to philosophical reflection than to expose an allergic consumer to the risk of anaphylactic shock.
There is therefore not in the face of any violation of the law or sacrilege. Primum vive, deinde philosophari!
Cordially
Dario
Note
(1) See reg. EU 1169/11, article 36.3.b
(2) Perhaps the best known certification, Vegan OK, incorporates the aforementioned concepts. While the more rigorous one, developed by DNV, comes to consider the hypothesis of accidental contamination with ingredients of animal origin. See https://foodagriculturerequirements.com/category/approfondimenti/etichette-alimentari-per-cibi-vegani-o-vegetariani-i-due-schemi-esistenti
(3) EU Regulation 1169/11, article 7.1.c
(4) NB: the reference to 'traces' is not allowed ('May contain traces'). See https://foodagriculturerequirements.com/category/notizie/può-contenere-tracce-di…-allergeni-indizio-di-crimine
(5) GMP, HACCP
