ABSTRACT
Traditionally in the UK, the enforcement of food law has involved two basic principles: the need to ensure food safety and to protect food from any microbiological, toxic or other contamination that can render it unfit for human consumption; and the need to ensure that consumers of food are not fraudulently treated, and that, when purchased, food is of a nature, substance and quality demanded by the purchaser. In July 1989, the government issued a white paper, Food Safety: Protecting the Consumer [1], in which it set out its commitment to a food safety strategy for the future. The white paper stated that new legislation (the Food Safety Act 1990) would be enacted to:
• ensure that modern food technology and distribution methods are safe
• ensure that food is not misleadingly labelled or presented
• reinforce present powers and penalties against law breakers
• ensure that new European Union (EU) directives on food can be implemented
• streamline future legislation by combining the Acts that apply in England, Wales and Scotland.
