The EU Commission confirmed EFSA’s scientific opinion and authorizes the first edible insect, dried yellow mealworm, to be placed on the European market.
The authorisation will provide for the product to be sold in whole, dried form or to be used as an ingredient in other foods and is the first authorisation of its kind.
What are the legal pathways that creators of innovative new protein foods need to tread in Europe?
On February 25, the European Commission published a study on new opportunities for the EU plant protein market, write Katia Merten-Lentz and Thais Payan of international law firm Keller & Heckman. The study concluded that the increased consumer
Keller and Heckman food law attorney Katia Merten-Lentz was interviewed for the Le Monde article (in French) “Des insectes dans notre assiette, en toute légalité?” which reported on the recent European Commission decision on insect-based food for human consumption confirming that prior authorization is required. Keller and Heckman’s Food and Drug Practice has
Edible insect legislation
Traditional sources of protein are sometimes controversial for a number of reasons; therefore, in recent years insects have been touted as a potential replacement to meat products. The human consumption of crickets and other insects was last clarified in late 2015, when the European rules on novel foods were updated. In the
This article was published at Foodnavigator.com.
Edible insects are covered by the EU’s novel food regulation – but none have yet made it to the list of authorised novel foods. Legal experts from Keller and Heckman Katia Merten-Lentz and Caroline Commandeur weigh in on the the legal status of edible insects in Europe.