Barbara Klaus, Antonia Corini

European Food and Feed Law Review, Volume 10 (2015), Issue 6, Page 454 - 455

Barbara Klaus, Antonia Corini

European Food and Feed Law Review, Volume 10 (2015), Issue 4, Page 266 - 274

The use of health food aimed to integrate and “enrich” the diet with vitamins and minerals and/or other substances with a nutritional or physiological effect, including botanicals and preparations based on plants, algae, fungi or lichens, is continuously increasing. Unlike other jurisdictions (e.g., Canada), in the European Union and in the Member States no homogeneous legislation exists that specifically regulates food with health-functional effects on the basis of their components of plant origin. Rather, these foods are regulated, both at the European and National levels, by various regulations adopted, inter alia, over the past years. As a matter of fact, since a total harmonisation is missing, the Member States, with regard to non-harmonized aspects, are “free” to establish further rules on food supplements. The present article gives an overview of the Italian specific provisions, as well as their interpretation and application in the legal practise through Ministerial Guidelines and case law, concerning the use of food supplements containing botanicals and the indications that may be made with regard to their beneficial effects on human health.

Barbara Klaus, Antonia Corini

European Food and Feed Law Review, Volume 9 (2014), Issue 6, Page 408 - 410

On 9 September 2014 the Italian Antitrust Authority (Autorità Garante della Concorrenza del Mercato; hereinafter, “Authority”) issued a decision (Decision No. 25087 of 9 September 2014, Official Bulletin No. 37 of 24 September 2014) against the company Named S.p.A. by reason of unfair (misleading) commercial practices pursuant to the Italian Consumer Code (which transposed Directive 2005/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 May 2005 concerning unfair business-to-consumer commercial practices in the internal market and, in particular, pursuant to art. 20, paras. 2, 21, para. 1, letter b), 22 and 23 letter s) of the Italian Consumer Code).