MFDS issued the amendments of the Food Labeling Standard [1] on May 12, 2020. The updated regulation will be effective on January 1, 2022, and the major revisions are:
1. New Mandatory Label Precautions for Foods for Special Medical Purpose
MFDS requires the manufacturers to add the disclaimer “non-Medical/non-Health Functional Food” on the labels of Foods for Special Medical Purposes (FSMP).
2. Acceptable Labeling for Foods Designated Natural
The labeling items for natural foods are clarified. Specifies are as follows:
Previous Requirements | Amended Requirements |
a. Product Name; | a. Product Name or Content Name; |
b. Company Name (Manufacturer or importer's name is acceptable); | b. Company Name (Reaper/manufacturer/packer/importer's name is acceptable); |
c. Production Date. | c. Production year or date (Year or date of reap/catch/slaughter is acceptable). |
3. Simplified Labeling Requirements for “Natural Salt,” “Natural Honey,” and “Royal Jelly”
The labeling standards of “natural salt,” “natural honey,” and “royal jelly” are divided from those of their processed products to keep in conformity with the categories under the Food Code [2].
The labeling items of the foods mentioned above are simplified. Generally, 13 tags shall be labeled on the processed natural food, whilst only three comprehensive items on the “natural salt,” “natural honey,” and “royal jelly,” they are:
Product Name or Content Name;
Company Name (reaper/manufacturer/packer/ importer's name);
Production year or date (reaping or slaughtering year or date).
4. Labeling Requirement Exemptions
Two cases where exemptions are available include:
Agricultural, forestry or fishery products can be exempted from Korean labeling requirements if they are granted with quality marks of “Best,” “Most,” or “Special” (“베스트,” “모스트,” or “스페셜”) specified in Enforcement Rule of Grain Management Act [3].
When such products are sold in transparent packages as stipulated in Act on Revitalization of Direct Trade in Agricultural Products [4], Korean labels can also be omitted.
5. Amendments of Labeling Standards on Material Name
Names of aquaculture raw materials are required to be labeled in line with requirements prescribed in Food Code or with names widely acknowledged by the market. The species of the aquaculture products can be added in a bracket, followed by the material name, such as: