LAW OF UKRAINE

of December 6, 2018 No. 2639-VIII

About information for consumers concerning foodstuff

This Law establishes legal and organizational basis of provision to information users about foodstuff for the purpose of ensuring high level of protection of health of citizens and satisfaction of their social and economic interests.

Section I General provisions

Article 1. Terms and their determinations

1. In this Law terms are used in such value:

1) proteins - organic substances which content in foodstuff is calculated by formula:

protein = general nitrogen across Kyeldal x 6,25;

2) carbohydrates - any carbohydrates which take part in metabolism in human body, including polyols;

3) gluten - protein fraction of wheat, rye, barley, oats or their hybrid types and derivatives from them which can cause intolerance in people who consume it, insoluble in water and 0, 5-molar solution of sodium chloride;

4) date "use to" - deadline (calendar date) consumption of foodstuff which because of the microbiological properties is perishable, determined by the operator of the market of foodstuff responsible for information on foodstuff after which foodstuff can be considered hazardous to health of the person;

5) fats - total quantity of lipids, including phospholipids;

6) the usual name - the name of foodstuff clear to the consumer without additional explanations;

7) the label (sticker) - label, text, mark, the graphical or other representation written, printed, put with use of cliche, marked, which is forced out or reflected in packaging or attached to packaging or container in which there is foodstuff;

8) ingredient - any substance or product, including nutritional supplements, fragrances and food enzymes, and any components of complex ingredient which are used during production or preparation of foodstuff and remain in ready-made product, even in the changed form. Remaining balance of veterinary medicines and pesticides is not considered as ingredient;

9) information on nutritional value - data relatively:

a) energy value or

b) energy value and content of one or several following nutrients:

fats (saturated, monounsaturated, polyunsaturated);

carbohydrates (sugar, high-molecular alcohol (polyols), starch);

salt;

food fibers;

proteins;

any of vitamins or mineral substances, the appendices No. 9 to this Law given in Item 1 of the Section I containing in foodstuff in significant amounts as it is determined in Item 2 of the Section I of appendix No. 9 to this Law;

10) information on foodstuff - information which concerns some foodstuff which is provided to the final consumer by specifying in marking, other accompanying documents and materials or in a different way (in available evident form), established for separate types of products or in separate services industries, including with use of modern means of remote communication or oral messages;

11) marking - the words, descriptions, signs for goods and services (trademarks), graphical representations or symbols concerning some foodstuff which is placed on any packaging the label (sticker), kolyeretka, and in the absence of packaging, in the document or the message accompanying foodstuff or refer to it;

12) the minimum expiration date of foodstuff - date before which characteristics of foodstuff remain invariable in the limits determined by the operator of the market of foodstuff responsible for information on such foodstuff on condition of its storage according to the requirements established by such operator of the market;

13) the place of origin - the place from where there is foodstuff which is not country of source. The name and the location of the operator of the market of foodstuff in marking is not country name of origin or the place of origin of foodstuff according to this Law;

14) monounsaturated fats - the fatty acids having one double communication in cis-form;

15) saturated fats - fatty acids without double bonds;

15-1) natural aromatic substance - the aromatic substance received as a result of the corresponding physical, enzymatic or microbiological processes of plant, animal or microbiological material in the raw or after processing, intended for consumption by the person by one or several traditional processing of foodstuff which is approved by the central executive body providing forming and realize state policy in the field of health care, natural aromatic substances correspond to substances which naturally are present or were found in the nature;

15-2) greatest surface of packaging or container - surface area depending on form of packaging or container:

for rectangular – the party having the largest area;

for cylindrical or in the form of bottle – surface area, except top, bottom, flanges, handles, mouth;

for spherical – surface area, except bottom, handles, mouth;

16) the operator of the market of foodstuff responsible for information on foodstuff, - the operator of the market of foodstuff under whose name foodstuff is entered and is in circulation, and for the imported foodstuff - the importer;

17) the descriptive name - the name which describes foodstuff which gives the chance to consumers to learn about category of foodstuff and to distinguish it from other similar foodstuff;

18) the main field of vision - zone on packaging which is most possibly seen by the consumer in case of the first view of foodstuff during purchase making. Provision in this zone of the main characteristics, category of foodstuff, sign for goods and services gives to the consumer the chance to identify foodstuff. If on packaging there are several identical main fields of vision, the main field of vision is that which was chosen by the operator of the market of foodstuff responsible for information on foodstuff;

19) the main ingredient - ingredient or ingredients of foodstuff which content in product exceeds 50 percent or which the consumer usually associates with the name of this foodstuff which require quantitative specifying;

20) the official name - the name of foodstuff established by the regulatory legal act or, in case of its absence, the national standard under which this product is offered to realization to final consumers or institutions of public catering;

21) it is excluded;

22) nutrient - proteins, carbohydrates, fats, food fibers, sodium, and also vitamins and mineral substances, are given in Item 1 of the Section I of appendix No. 9 to this Law, and any substances which are components or belong to any of the specified substances;

23) field of vision - set of surfaces of packaging from which it is possible to read information from one point of the overview;

24) polyunsaturated fats - fatty acids which have two or more double bonds;

25) polyols - the alcohols containing more than two hydroxylic groups;

26) legibility - the characteristic of physical appearance of information which determines visual availability of information of the general public which is caused by number of the elements determined by this Law, in particular the font size, interval between letters and lines, font width, color of font, font, ratio of width and height of letters, the surface of material and contrast between the printed object and background;

27) average value of nutrient - value which best of all determines content of nutrient in foodstuff, considering seasonal fluctuations, dynamics of consumption and other factors which can cause fluctuations of the actual value of this indicator;

28) salt - equivalent content of salt which size is calculated on formula:

amount of salt = amount of sodium x 2,5;

29) complex ingredient - the ingredient consisting more than of one ingredient;

30) the created nanomaterial - the material made with particular purpose which size on one or several measurements constitutes 100 nanometers or less or which consists of separate discrete functional parts, inside or on surface, many of which have the size on one or several measurements of 100 nanometers or less, including structures, accumulations, sets which have the size more than 100 nanometers, but at the same time keep the properties characteristic of the nanorange (from 1 to 100 nanometers):

a) properties which concern the big surfaces of nanomaterials, and/or

b) the specific physical and chemical properties different from those which such materials have in other (not nano) form;

31) the packed-up foodstuff - any separate unit provided to the final consumer and institutions of public catering consisting of foodstuff and packaging in which this product is placed before to offer it for sale irrespective of, fully or partially packaging covers foodstuff, but anyway so that its content could not be changed, without having opened or without having damaged at the same time packaging. The specified term does not extend to foodstuff which is packed in places of sale, including at the request of the consumer (not packed up foodstuff);

32) sugar - all monosaccharides and disaccharides containing in foodstuff except polyols;

33) food fibers - carbohydrate polymers with three or more monomeric links which are not digested and are not soaked up in human body, are divided into the following categories:

a) edible hydrocarbons polymers which naturally contain in the foodstuff consumed by the person;

b) edible hydrocarbons the polymers received from food raw materials by physical, enzymatic or chemical methods which are characterized by scientifically proved favorable physiological action;

c) edible synthetic hydrocarbons polymers which are characterized by scientifically proved favorable physiological action.

2. Other terms are used in this Law in the following values:

the term "technical regulation" - in the value given in the Law of Ukraine "About technical regulations and assessment of conformity";

the term "country of source" - in the value given in the Customs code of Ukraine;

the term "national standard" – in the value given in the Law of Ukraine "About standardization";

the terms "raw milk", "milk raw materials", "dairy products", "traditional dairy products" - in the values given in the Law of Ukraine "About milk and dairy products";

the terms "meat", "meat semifinished product", "meat products", "meat of mechanical obvalivaniye", "meat is fresher", "fish products" - in the values established by the central executive body providing forming and realizing state policy in the field of safety and separate indicators of quality of foodstuff.

3. Other terms are used in this Law in the values given in the Law of Ukraine "About the basic principles and requirements to safety and quality of foodstuff".

Article 2. Coverage of this Law

1. This Law establishes the general principles of provision and the requirement to information on foodstuff provided to consumers, in particular concerning marking of foodstuff and also obligations of operators of the market of foodstuff on bringing this information to other operators of the market of foodstuff and consumers.

2. Operation of this Law extends on:

a) operators of the market of foodstuff at all stages of food chain if their activities fall under requirements concerning provision to information users about foodstuff;

b) the foodstuff intended for the final consumer including the foodstuff realized in the field of public catering and foodstuff which is delivered in public catering.

3. Operation of this Law does not extend to the foodstuff intended (made) for private consumption, on the materials and objects intended for contact with foodstuff if other is directly not established by this Law.

Article 3. The legislation of Ukraine concerning provision to information users about foodstuff

1. The legislation of Ukraine concerning provision to information users about foodstuff consists of the Constitution of Ukraine, this Law, the laws of Ukraine "About the basic principles and requirements to safety and quality of foodstuff", "About the state control of compliance with law about foodstuff, sterns, by-products of animal origin, health and wellbeing of animals", "About information", "About access to public information" and other acts of the legislation containing regulations on provision to information users about foodstuff.

2. Other acts of the legislation containing regulations on provision to information users about foodstuff shall correspond to provisions of this Law. In case of discrepancy of the specified provisions to provisions of this Law provisions of this Law are applied.

3. The laws of Ukraine and other acts of the legislation containing regulations on provision to information users about foodstuff shall provide separate transition period which begins from the date of entry into force of the relevant act and if its introduction is provided in action - from the date of introduction of the act in action, and cannot constitute less than 36 months. Irrespective of whether such transition period in acts is established, during the separate transition period the foodstuff meeting the requirements of the legislation on provision to information users about foodstuff which was effective before entry into force of the relevant act, but does not conform to requirements of this act, can be made and/or be introduced into circulation within three years from the date of entry into force of this act and if its introduction is provided in action - from the date of introduction of the act in action. Such foodstuff can be in circulation before final date of consumption or the termination of expiration date. Action of provisions of this part does not extend in cases if introduction new or change of the existing requirements for provision of information on foodstuff are necessary for elimination or reduction of scientifically proved risk for health of the person.

4. Operators of the market have the right to apply the new or changed requirements for provision to information users about the foodstuff established by regulatory legal acts from the date of their introduction in force or from the date of their introduction in action.

5. If the international treaty of Ukraine which consent to be bound is provided by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine establishes other rules, than those that are provided by this Law, rules of the international treaty are applied.

The Section II General requirements to information on foodstuff and obligation of operators of the market of foodstuff

Article 4. General requirements To Information On Foodstuff

1. The foodstuff intended for final consumers or institutions of public catering shall be followed by information on foodstuff according to requirements of this Law.

2. Information on foodstuff shall be exact, reliable and clear for the consumer.

Disclaimer! This text was translated by AI translator and is not a valid juridical document. No warranty. No claim. More info