Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011: mandatory food information
Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011, known as the Food Information to Consumers regulation, sets out what a food product sold in the European Union must state: name, ingredients, allergens, nutrition values, and origin in certain cases.
The expected particulars
- The name of the food and the list of ingredients in descending order of weight.
- Allergens, typographically emphasised within the ingredient list.
- The net quantity, and the date of minimum durability or the use-by date.
- Storage and use conditions where they affect safety.
- The name and address of the operator responsible for the information.
- The nutrition declaration, and the country of origin in the cases the texts provide for.
Legibility and distance selling
The regulation imposes a minimum character size, so that particulars stay legible on cramped packaging. It is this physical constraint that makes dematerialisation attractive: packaging has a finite surface, a web page does not.
In distance selling, mandatory particulars — dates excepted — must be available before the purchase is concluded. A complete, up-to-date online product page answers that requirement directly.
What may be dematerialised, and what may not
The general principle of the regulation remains information carried on the packaging. Dematerialisation via QR code is not a general option: it has been opened sector by sector, wine being the first case since December 2023.
An online product page therefore complements the physical label — recipes, usage advice, commitments, batch traceability — rather than replacing it.
This page describes the general framework and is not legal advice. Labelling compliance is assessed product by product, with qualified counsel.