Request a Demo1. Definition and Product Classification
According to Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 on food additives, beverages in the EU are divided into two broad categories: non-alcoholic (Product category 14.1) and alcoholic (Product category 14.2). The scope excludes products covered by “Category 1 Dairy products and analogues.”
In this pedia, ChemLinked will focus on the regulations for non-alcoholic beverages.
Product category No. | Product name |
14. | Beverages |
14.1 | Non-alcoholic beverages |
14.1.1 | Water, including natural mineral water as defined in Directive 2009/54/EC and spring water and all other bottled or packed waters |
14.1.2 | Fruit juices as defined by Directive 2001/112/EC and vegetable juices |
14.1.3 | Fruit nectars as defined by Directive 2001/112/EC and vegetable nectars and similar products |
14.1.4 | Flavoured drinks (including water-, dairy-, cereal-, seed-, nut- ,vegetable- or fruit-based drinks, and the so-called "sport", "energy" or "electrolyte" drinks) |
14.1.5 | Coffee, tea, herbal and fruit infusions, chicory; tea, herbal and fruit infusions and chicory extracts; tea, plant, fruit and cereal preparations for infusions, as well as mixes and instant mixes of these products |
14.1.5.1 | Coffee, coffee extracts |
14.1.5.2 | Other (e.g., Flavoured instant coffee) |
Read more at: Guidance document describing the food categories in Part E of Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 on Food Additives
2. Competent Authority
Competent authority | Responsibility |
European Commission (EC)* | Developing and implementing laws, authorizing the use of a substance in food, etc. |
European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) | Evaluating product safety and providing scientific advice & support |
Member States | Developing national rules in the absence of EU-level legislation |
*Notes: The European Parliament and the Council, representing EU citizens and governments respectively, participate in the decision-making process with the European Commission. However, the European Commission, which includes departments like the Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety, is the main executive body. | |
3. Main Regulations
3.1 General Regulations
All non-alcoholic beverages must comply with a framework of general EU food laws.
Key covered aspect | Regulation name |
Fundamental law | Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 (the General Food Law) laying down the general principles and requirements of food law |
Food hygiene & contaminant limit |
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Vitamins and minerals | Regulation (EC) No 1925/2006 on the addition of vitamins and minerals and of certain other substances to foods |
Food improvement agents |
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Novel food |
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Labeling & claim |
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Food packaging |
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3.2 Additional Harmonized Product-Specific Regulations
Certain types of beverages are subject to additional, specific EU-wide rules.
Specific product | Regulation name |
Natural mineral waters | Directive 2009/54/EC on the exploitation and marketing of natural mineral waters |
Natural mineral waters and spring waters | Commission Regulation (EU) No 115/2010 laying down the conditions for use of activated alumina for the removal of fluoride from natural mineral waters and spring waters |
Commission Directive 2003/40/EC establishing the list, concentration limits and labelling requirements for the constituents of natural mineral waters and the conditions for using ozone-enriched air for the treatment of natural mineral waters and spring waters | |
Fruit juice | Council Directive 2001/112/EC relating to fruit juices and certain similar products intended for human consumption |
Fruit nectars | |
Coffee, chicory extracts | Directive 1999/4/EC relating to coffee extracts and chicory extracts |
4. Market Access Approval
The EU enforces strict import rules to ensure that all imported food meets the same high standards for consumer safety and hygiene as products originating from the EU. Regulation (EU) 2017/625 is the key legal basis providing requirements on official controls and other official activities performed to ensure the application of food law, rules on animal health and welfare, plant health and plant protection products.
Current approach to import controls varies according to the sector. Generally speaking, official controls at ports include documentary check, identity checks and physical checks. Detailed official control measures can be found in Regulation (EU) 2017/625. Affected soft drinks can be found in the table below.
No. | Food type | Measures | Example of soft drinks |
1 | Live animals, products of animal origin, plants and plant products | These products require mandatory channeling to Border Control Posts (BCPs) for checks. | Products listed in the Annex to Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/632 shall be subject to official controls at border control posts in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2017/625:
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| Phytosanitary certificate | ||
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2 | The vast majority of other products (for example feed and food which are of non-animal origin - including certain composite products, additives and other substances that might impact on the characteristics of food and feed, or materials intended to enter into contact with food) | Not channelled through specific border entities and doesn't need to undergo mandatory checks prior to their entry into the EU | E.g., Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2021/630 provides a list of composite products exempted from official controls at border control posts:
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3 | Certain foods of non-animal origin that are listed under Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/1793 | Temporarily subject to mandatory border controls due to the existence of an identified risk:
| N.A |
5. Product Compliance
General food rules, such as those for labeling, safety, and hygiene, are harmonized across the EU. Some products, like fruit juice and coffee extracts, must also follow additional product-specific EU rules.
For non-harmonized food products without specific EU rules (e.g., many sports drinks), compliance with general horizontal regulations is required. These include:
Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 (General Food Law)
Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 (Food information to consumers)
Regulation (EU) 2015/2283 (Novel food)
Regulation (EC) No 1925/2006 (Fortified food)
Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006 (Nutrition and health claims, voluntary)
…
For non-harmonised foods, Member states may also be able to introduce their own national rules for these products. National rules on these products are subject to an EU notification procedure to make sure they do not create unnecessary barriers to trade. Non-harmonised food products can circulate freely on the EU market under mutual recognition rules. Therefore, enterprises shall pay special attention to the national legislations before entering the market.
6. Ingredient
6.1 General Rules
6.1.1 Basic Food Safety Requirements by General Food Law
Under the General Food Law, food cannot be placed on the market if it is unsafe. A food is considered unsafe if it is injurious to health or unfit for human consumption. Read more at General Food Law to view the conditions in determining whether any food is unsafe, injurious to health, unfit for consumption, deemed to be safe, etc.
If any food within a batch is found to be unsafe, the entire batch is presumed to be unsafe unless a detailed assessment proves otherwise. Additionally, principles of precaution and traceability must be followed at all stages of production, processing, and distribution.
6.1.2 Other Horizontal Requirements
Then stakeholders shall follow the horizontal regulations regarding the use of vitamins and minerals, food improvement agents specified in Part “3. Main Regulations”, which are with Union Lists:
Regulation 1333/2008 on food additives
Regulation 231/2012 specifications for food additives listed in Annexes II and III to Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008
Regulation 1334/2008 on flavorings and certain food ingredients with flavoring properties for use in and on foods
Regulation (EC) No 2065/2003 on smoke flavorings used or intended for use in or on foods
Regulation (EC) No 1332/2008 on food enzymes
Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/2470 establishing the Union list of novel foods [Please note that only the applicant may place the corresponding novel food on the market, with a protection period of five years. A subsequent applicant can obtain authorization for that novel food either without reference to the protected scientific data or with the agreement of the initial applicant.]
Recommended tool developed by ChemLinked:
FoodCheck tool for checking food additive, labeling, claim and contaminant compliance
6.1.3 New Substance/Food Authorization
To use a new food improvement agent or novel food, an application must be submitted to the European Commission through the e-submission food chain platform.
Application dossiers are summarized as below.
Type | Legal basis & guidance | Application dossiers |
New food improvement agents (food additives, food enzymes and flavourings) |
| An application (“dossier”) may contain:
|
Novel food application |
| 1. Administrative data
2. Summary data A short summary of the dossier must be provided. This document will be made available to the public through the OpenEFSA portal once the application is considered valid along with the non-confidential version of the application dossier. It must not contain any confidential information.
3. Technical dossier It should be compiled according to relevant EFSA’s scientific guidance documents. Required information include production process, compositional data, specifications, proposed uses and use levels and anticipated intake of the novel food, toxicological information, etc. |
6.2 Product-Specific Regulations
In addition to horizontal rules, products must comply with any specific regulations that apply to them. For example,
Specific product | Major content |
Fruit juice | Annexes of Council Directive 2001/112/EC provides the definition of products, authorized ingredients, treatments, substances, etc.. For example,
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Fruit juice from concentrate | |
Concentrated fruit juice | |
Water extracted fruit juice | |
Dehydrated/powdered fruit juice | |
Fruit nectars | |
Coffee, chicory extracts (including Coffee extract, soluble coffee extract, soluble coffee or instant coffee; Chicory extract, soluble chicory or instant chicory) | Directive 1999/4/EC provides the ingredient requirements for coffee, chicory extracts, for example:
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7. Labeling
To determine the labeling requirements for a specific food category, stakeholders shall refer to the general labeling requirements and the provisions stipulated in product-specific rules. To help enterprises deal with the labeling issues, the EU has issued a food labeling information system. After selecting food categories, the system will generate the labeling results for enterprises’ reference.
Most non-alcoholic beverages need to display the following mandatory labeling items.
Product name
Ingredient list
Allergen information
Quantity information
Date marking: "best before", or the "use by" date
The name or business name and address of the responsible food business operator
The country of origin
Nutrition declaration
Lot indication
Special labeling requirements for different products (E.g., Coffee extracts should label the minimum coffee-based dry matter content, etc.)
Mandatory when applicable/added: statement on ingredients and additives (e.g., QUID, etc.), any special storage conditions and/or conditions of use, instruction for use, GMO information
Check the labeling example for beverage in ChemLinked’s FoodCheck tool regarding labeling.
8. Claims
EU has three types of claims, including
Nutrition claims, which can be further divided into
a Nutrition claim and
b Comparative claim
Health claim, which can be further classified into
a Health claim referring to reduction of disease risk
b Health claim referring to children’s development and health
c Health claim other than those referring to the reduction of disease risk and to children’s development and health
Ingredient content claim
Detailed definition, application scope, requirements or permitted claims can be found in ChemLinked’s FoodCheck tool regarding claims.
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