An overview on Novel Food

Novel foods are foods or food ingredients that were not consumed, to a significant extent (rare or non-existent), by humans in the European Union (EU) before 15 May 1997. Traditional foods from third countries, which have no history of consumption in at least one third country, for at least 25 years, as part of the usual diet of a significant number of people, also fall within the definition of Novel food..

The first provisions on Novel foods came into force in the EU in 1997, in the form of Regulation (EC) n.º 258/97, now repealed, and the general criteria for defining novel foods remain unchanged, even with the new diploma. , adopted in 2015, Regulation (EU) n.º 2015/2283, applicable since January 2018.

“Novel foods” can be newly developed innovative foods or foods produced using new technologies and production processes (such as high-pressure pasteurized fruit preparations), as well as foods traditionally consumed outside the EU (exotic products from third countries, such as chia seeds, dried pulp from Coffea arabica L. cherries), newly produced nutrients (synthetic zeaxanthin), extracts from existing foods (rapeseed protein), or even insects (frozen, dehydrated and powdered forms of Locusta migratória - migratory grasshopper, and dehydrated larvae of Tenebrio molitor).

Only authorized new foods and traditional foods from third countries that have been successfully notified and are included in the EU list can be placed on the market. As such, a food operator wishing to market a new food or a traditional food from a third country, for the first time in the EU, must submit an application directly to the European Commission, using the Commission's platform: e-submission. Requests will have to be prepared in accordance with Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/2469 or Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/2468, as applicable.

The European Commission processes all requests and grants authorizations, and upon request, EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) issues its opinion on the safety of the food, and whether it is likely to affect human health.

The EU publishes and regularly updates a list of novel foods, namely the “Novel Food Catalog”, established by Regulation (EU) 2017/2470, which includes all products of animal and plant origin and other substances subject to the Novel Food Regulation, based on information provided by EU Member States.

If you have questions about the classification of food ingredients, whether they are classified as already approved Novel food, or whether they require notification and approval by the European Commission, talk to us.