Further UK Provisions Required for Ceramic Food Contact Products

The Ceramic Articles in Contact with Food (England) Regulations 2006 entered into force on 20th May 2006, along with Regulations for the devolved administrations. These Regulations are made under the Food Safety Act 1990 and transpose European Council Directive 84/500/EEC, as amended by European Commission Directive 2005/31/EC.

Everyone within the supply chain of ceramic products should be made aware that from 20 May 2007 further provisions to these UK Regulations will come into force, namely:

• Producers and distributors will be obliged to ensure that the ceramic product is accompanied at all stages of marketing (up to and including retail) by documentation stating that it complies with the applicable requirements.

This means:

• The identity of the manufacturer and importer along with the appropriate declarations will have to accompany every consignment on the entry into the European Union. These requirements will also apply to subsequent distributions up to the last seller.

• Performance criteria will be introduced for the analytical method employed to test compliance, therefore allowing for a wider range of testing methodologies. According to DTI guidance the test method described in BS 6748:1986 remains a valid test method.

[April 2007]