FOOD SUPPLEMENTS DIRECTIVE INVALID UNDER EU LAW, SAYS ADVOCATE GENERAL
April 5, 2005
There was tremendous news today for the millions of people in Europe who choose to use food supplements. Following a landmark challenge in the European Courts of Justice (ECJ) brought by the Alliance for Natural Health and Nutri-Link Ltd to the contentious Food Supplements Directive,which ef- fectively proposed to ban 75% of vitamin and mineral forms, Advocate General Geelhoed, the senior adviser to the ECJ, gave his opinion in favour of the Alliance's case.
What does this mean?
That the chances of you being able to continue using the natural food supplements that you believe are beneficial to your health are now greatly increased. Thanks to the uproar about the proposed EU ban, including your letters, and maybe, against the odds, the consumer is going to come out on top in what is a remarkable modern day case of David and Goliath.
In a statement released in Luxembourg today at 0830 GMT, the Advocate General concluded that:
* The Food Supplements Directive infringes the principle of proportionality because basic principles of Community law, such as the requirements of legal protection, of legal certainty and of sound administration have not properly been taken into account.
* It is therefore invalid under EU law.
It should be stressed that the Advocate General's pronouncement is not a ruling. That will come from the ECJ judges, later - probably around June. But typically, in the vast majority of cases, the Court Judgment follows the recommendations of the Advocate General.
If the Advocate General's recommendations are adopted, in effect, the ban on vitamin and mineral forms not included on the EU's 'Positive list,' due to come into effect on 1 August 2005, will be declared illegal. In essence, the positive list of allowable nutrient forms will be deemed to be too narrow, too restrictive, and based on flawed science.
This would avoid the totally irrational situations that the Food Supplements Directive would otherwise create. For example, synthetically produced selenium would have been allowed on the positive list, while the natural source found in Brazil nuts would not. While such a ruling will not end the Food Supplements Directive it is likely to result in a ‘negatvie list’ system, whereby any form of vitamin or mineral can be sold, unless proven harmful and placed on a negative list. Given the safety record of nutritional supplements this is much more appro- priate.
This is great news for nutritional medicine, bad news for the pharmaceutical industry who have been trying to restrict supplement sales, and a great result for the Alliance for Natural Health. Well done ANH!
The Alliance for Natural Health (ANH) is a Europe-wide professional organisation dedicated to ensuring that good science and good law are applied to regulation affecting the leading edge of natural health. If the Advocate General's recom- mendations are endorsed by the ECJ judges, it will represent the culmination of three years dogged determination, dedication and hard work on the part of ANH and its many supporters around the world.
'It is commendable that the EU Advocate General has seen through the flawed science and law of the Food Supplements Directive and reached his recommendations today,' said Dr. Robert Verkerk, Executive Director of the ANH. 'All that ANH is campaigning and working cooperatively for is the right for consumers to have access to safe natural healthcare and for legislation to be based on good science and good law. This is a great day for the tens of millions of people who believe passionately in the benefits of natural, preventative healthcare.'