December 09, 2014 Opinion piece
What were the main obstacles encountered when achieving compliance?
Chris Binge, Fairway Foodservice plc: “The main issue regarding labelling compliance has been around timing- although the legislation was passed by the EU legislative body some time ago, many businesses started their compliance work late as industry bodies in the UK sought government clarification on a number of points and my understanding is that ‘clarification’ wasn’t forthcoming until relatively recently and consequently ‘everyone’ is looking for packaging re-design and packaging production which is causing a bottleneck.”
Karl Goodwin, Commercial Director, Creed Foodservice: “Obtaining data from the brand owners – clearly most are ready for the labelling element of the legislation but the loose foods element has caught many napping.”
Do you think the introduction of FIC is a positive move for customers?
Chris Binge: “In the long run the introduction of FIC will be advantageous to customers and indeed to our industry- the forced change will be the catalyst for suppliers to recognise the need, the efficiency and desirability of data pools and electronic transmission of product data. The timing of the introduction of legislation ie December – one of the busiest times of year for all of us - could have been better considered and clearer, definitive advice given earlier but eventually the industry will benefit as well as consumers.”
Karl Goodwin: “For our customers, the caterers, the legislation is going to add cost into their operation, which ultimately will mean increases for consumers.”
What processes have you put in place to ensure compliance is maintained?
Chris Binge: “Labelling compliance is undertaken locally ie by us for all of our own-brand products and we have a timetable for new packaging introduction. We expect branded manufacturers to manage their own packaging update and to ensure their products are legally labelled.”
Karl Goodwin: “Our data integrity processes have been updated to ensure any changes are captured, however there is no doubt the uptake of global data would help all involved in the supply chain.”
Further information
You can find out more about the introduction of FIC here.