S.P. Savage
Assistant Director (Public Safety and Regulation)
Civic Centre, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 8QH
Tel: (0191) 2116121
Email [email protected] www.newcastle.gov.uk
FOOD IMITATING PRODUCTS ADVICE SHEET
Introduction
This Advice Sheet has been put together to provide detailed guidance to small businesses
including home producers of certain food imitating products, who sell directly to
consumers. It is the businesses responsibility to know about their trade in order that they
stay within the law, but this is a very difficult and technical area of law for a new entrant to
the industry.
Background
Due to the increase of social networking and popularity of flea-markets and farmers’
markets there is a prevalence of home-based hobbies that turn into small scale
businesses. As these emerge we need to ensure consumers are adequately protected,
and that hobbyists realise they are operating a business with trading laws that apply,
whether a profit is made or not. The law relating to food imitating products is complex and
technical, but exists to ensure consumers are protected from these types of products.
Trading Standards Services are looking for high standards across all product safety and
we take the view that legislation helps smaller businesses to operate securely within a
‘level playing field’, free from unfair competition. Trading Standards wish to support and
assist businesses with compliance.
General Product Safety
Product safety legislation is not new, since the 1980’s the law has required producers and
distributors to place only safe products on the marketplace, provide information and
warnings as to the risks their products pose (where these risks were not obvious), and to
provide consumer instructions as to the safe operation and use of the product.
Food Imitating Products
This guidance focuses on products that look like or imitate food but are not food. It is an
offence to provide products that look like food and can cause injury or a health risk
because of this.
Injury can include choking, cutting, poisoning, or even causing a child to vomit.
The legislation
A number of laws prevent the sale of potentially dangerous food imitating products, and
these are listed below:

Food Imitations (Safety) Regulations 1989
Services Provided:
Animal Health
Building Control
Contaminated Land
Dog Warden
Food Safety
Gambling Licensing
Health and Safety
Liquor Licensing
Parking Services
Pollution Control
Private Sector Housing
Resilience Planning
Street Scene Enforcement
Taxis and Street Trading
Trading Standards


EU Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 on classification, labelling and packaging of
substances and mixtures
EU Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 on cosmetic products (enforced by trading
standards in the UK by the Cosmetic Product Enforcement Regulations 2013)
Main provisions
FOOD IMITATIONS (SAFETY) REGULATIONS 1989
These Regulations prohibit the marketing, import and manufacture of products that look
like foodstuffs but that are not in fact edible. In particular they prohibit the supply of goods
that have one or more of the following:
 form
 odour
 colour
 appearance
 packaging
 labelling
 volume
...that children could confuse with food and put in their mouth or suck or swallow, which
may cause death or injury.
EC REGULATION NO. 1272/2008 ON CLASSIFIACTION, LABELLING AND
PACKAGING OF SUBSTANCES AND MIXTURES
Under this Regulation, dangerous preparations such as detergents, drain and oven
cleaners, glues, polishes etc. must not be suppled in a shape that:






attracts the active curiosity of children
misleads consumers
looks like packaging for:
food (for animals or humans)
medicines
cosmetics
EU REGULATION (EC) NO 1223/2009 ON COSMETIC PRODUCTS
This European Regulation states that a cosmetic product made available on the market
must be safe for human health when used under normal or reasonably foreseeable
conditions of use, taking account, in particular, of the following, which should not endanger
health and safety of consumers due to confusion with foodstuffs:




presentation (and in particular its form, odour, colour, appearance, packaging)
labelling
volume
size
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TRADE MARKS ACT 1994
Businesses must also be aware of the various statutes that cover intellectual property of
businesses generally. Specifically the Trade Marks Act 1994, as amended is the current
law that covers:
 the registration of trade marks and
 the protection of registered trade-marks in the UK
How to assess whether a product is safe or not?
In order to assess whether a product can cause injury or a risk to health any appropriate
harmonised European standards could be used. For example, the EN 71 series of
standards covers the safety properties of toys and would be suitable to assess for example
whether a food imitation releases a small part which could cause a choking hazard.
The following are examples of products that are deemed to be food imitating products that
are deemed to be food imitating and which cause injury or harm to health.
Relevant
Standard
Product
EN71-1: 2011.
Safety of toys.
Mechanical
and physical
properties
EN71-3:2013
Safety of toys.
Migration of
certain
elements.
EN71-1: 2011.
Safety of toys.
Mechanical
and physical
properties
Wooden Apple
Hazards and
examination
points
Choking
hazard,
Toxicity –
paints.
Choking
hazard.
Candle
EN71-1: 2011.
Safety of toys.
Mechanical
and physical
properties
EN71-3:2013
Safety of toys.
Migration of
certain
elements.
Christmas decoration – polystyrene lollipop
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Choking
hazard.
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Relevant
standard
Product
EN71-1: 2011.
Safety of toys.
Mechanical
and physical
properties
Decorative ‘I Love Chocolate’ magnets
EN71-1: 2011.
Safety of toys.
Mechanical
and physical
properties
Decorative candle
Grapes break
off- choking
hazard.
EN71-3:2013
Safety of toys.
Migration of
certain
elements
Cooling element resembling ice cube bags. The
translucent cubes contain distilled water and ethylene
glycol.
The product
causes a
chemical risk
because the
liquid
contains
ethylene
glycol, which
can be toxic if
swallowed.
Food Imitating Products Advice Sheet. Version 1. August 2016
Hazards and
examination
points
Choking
hazard.
Magnets
easily be
detached
because they
attract each
other, can
cause serious
damage
when passing
through the
intestine
(blockages,
perforation of
the intestine).
4
Relevant
standard
Product
EN71-1: 2011.
Safety of toys.
Mechanical
and physical
properties
Decorative candles
EN71-1: 2011.
Safety of toys.
Mechanical
and physical
properties
EN71-3:2013
Safety of toys.
Migration of
certain
elements.
Christmas decoration in the form of a cupcake made of
expanded polystyrene.
Choking
hazard.
EN71-1: 2011.
Safety of toys.
Mechanical
and physical
properties
EN71-3:2013
Safety of toys.
Migration of
certain
elements.
Decorative candle in the shape of a chocolate cake
topped with cream and blackberries, packaged in a box
with a cardboard base and a clear plastic cover, tied
around with a brown ribbon.
Choking
hazard.
EN71-3:2013
Safety of toys.
Migration of
certain
elements.
Shower and bath gel, wild strawberries.
Product’s
detergent
content
represents a
serious
health risk
(toxic
pneumonia).
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Hazards and
examination
points
Choking
hazard.
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Relevant
standard
Product
EN71-1: 2011.
Safety of toys.
Mechanical
and physical
properties
Lip glosses packed in plastic mini pots in the form of little
tarts (chocolate and strawberry sprinkle, cherry feast
etc.).
EN71-1: 2011.
Safety of toys.
Mechanical
and physical
properties
Fragrant novelty soaps, in the shape of a cake slice, in
plastic wrapping.
Hazards and
examination
points
Choking
hazard.
Choking
hazard.
Key legislation
 Food
Imitations (Safety) Regulations 1989
 EU Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 on classification, labelling and packaging of
substances and mixtures
 EU Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 on cosmetic products
 Cosmetic Product Enforcement Regulations 2013
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Contact Point
Trading Standards Service
Public Safety and Regulation
City of Newcastle upon Tyne
Civic Centre
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE1 8QH
Telephone: (0191 2116121)
Email:
[email protected]
Please note: This information has no legal force and is not
an authoritative interpretation of the law, which is a matter
for the Courts. It is intended to help suppliers of food
imitating products to understand in general terms, the main
features of the legislation. The information is not a
substitute for the legislation and you should refer to the text
of the legislation for a full statement of legal requirements
and obligations. Where appropriate, you should seek your
own independent legal advice.
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