In the future, the country of origin of the meat will be easier to know.
As of June next year, the packaging will be significant on the front of the packaging, where the meat used in the product comes from. Henri Kärkkäinen
In the future, the consumer will become more aware of, for example, when buying a meat and cold pack, where the meat used in the product comes from.
In the future, foods containing more than 15 percent meat must be reported in a sufficiently large font size on the front of the package.
The regulation will take effect in June next year.
If the country of origin of meat used in food varies, it can also be expressed as an area, such as “several EU countries” or even “several non-eu countries”.
– Although such expressions confuse or even amuse consumers, there is a clear need for them. The availability and price of meat vary, and the manufacturer using import meat cannot always know where the meat will eventually come from, says the food safety director Sebastian Hielm In a news release from the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.
According to Hjelm, labels are often ordered for years to come, so a marker referring to the area of origin allows for more flexibility to purchase raw materials from more than one country.
According to the ministry, the change behind the change is that many consumers want comprehensive information about the origin of food. We want to favor domestic food.
– Until now, it has been difficult for the consumer to assess whether the product that looks like a Finn is made of domestic or imported meat, or to what extent both have been used, the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Sari Essayah says in the bulletin.
If the package has a voluntary good Finland brand, there is no need to provide the origin information separately.
The Happy Finland brand may be used in products with 100 % domestic meat.