Novel Foods Proposal Abolishes Majority Exclusivity Rights

BRUSSELS, Belgium—The proposal to revise the European Union Novel Foods (EAS-Asia.com) Regulation will allow food companies to market approved novel foods in most cases, according to European consultants that have reviewed the document.

Pieter Lagae, regulatory adviser at Brussels Food and nutrition policy consultancy EAS, said while the current procedure links authorized use of a novel food to the specific applicant, the revision will allow for more general use of approved novel foods. “At the moment only the applicant can benefit from the approval and others should put forward a separate novel foods dossier before they can market similar products,” Lagae said. “The new proposal abolishes the current exclusivity right, so all food companies would be able to market approved novel foods.” Lagae added while the proposal is for the majority of authorizations to be generic, there is still a provision for data protection for a limited period of time.