Product claims

Claims must never be misleading, confusing, or ambiguous and must always be understandable to the customer. Claims can be words or text, but can also appear in pictures, symbols, or for example, graphs comparing food items. Claims must be scientifically substantiated, and the mention of nutritional values is mandatory.

Before a health or nutrition claim can be used, it must be assessed, approved, and listed in the European Claims Register. This register specifies which nutrition and/or health claims are permitted under which conditions, and also which claims have been rejected.

A nutritional claim states or implies that a food item has certain nutritional value. In the annex of Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006, you can find the nutritional claims that may be used, along with their associated conditions. According to Regulation (EC) No 1169/2011, misleading food information is also not permitted. Some examples include:

• A description, presentation, or image on the item that makes it appear as if a certain food or ingredient is present when it is not.
• Information regarding the speed or amount of weight loss.
• Attributing characteristics or properties to the item, such as the absence of certain substances, when these substances are not permitted in the item anyway.

A health claim suggests a positive link between a food item (or one of its ingredients) and health. Health claims can relate to physical effects, as well as psychological effects, slimming, weight management, or reducing health risks.

Health claims are prohibited unless they comply with the general provisions of Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006 and the claim has been authorized. If authorized, it will be included in Regulation (EC) No 432/2012. When placing health claims on item photos or in the description, please consider the guidelines of the European Claims Regulation 655/2013.

Here are examples of health claims that are not allowed:

• Claims that suggest that not consuming the food item can negatively affect health.
• Claims about how quickly or how much weight you can lose.
• Claims that use recommendations from individual doctors or public health professionals and other legislation.

Coronavirus

To prevent misleading a customer, it is not allowed to mention the coronavirus in the item photo, title, and description.

Check if your claim is allowed with this handy claim database: > Go to the claim database of the Keuringsraad KOAG/KAG

For cosmetic items, you may not make claims or advertising statements on packaging and online sales pages that do not comply with Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009. Cosmetics claims must comply with all statutory rules and general agreements as described in Regulation (EC) No 655/2013.

If you make a claim, you must adhere to the following points:

• Comply with legal requirements: do not claim that items meet legal requirements.
• Accuracy: if you claim that a certain ingredient is in your item, this must actually be the case. Statements about the properties of a particular ingredient are not permitted if it makes it seem as if the final item also has those properties when that is not the case.
• Evidence: claims must be substantiated with sufficient and verifiable evidence.
• Honesty: it is not permitted to claim certain characteristics if similar types of items have similar characteristics. If an item only works in combination with another item, this must be stated. Claims may not go further than can be substantiated.
• Fairness: the claims made must be based on facts and may not be negative towards ingredients or competition.
• Informed decision-making: statements must be clear and understandable to the average buyer. Claims must also provide information that allows the buyer to make an informed choice.

In addition to these conditions, it is (also) not permitted to make medical claims for your item or to claim that cosmetics are cruelty-free. This is not allowed because it has not been permitted since 2004 and therefore does not say anything new about the item.

A medical claim is a statement about preventing, treating, or curing a disease. It is forbidden to use medical claims for food items and health products. However, they may be used for medicines and medical devices. Some examples that are not allowed are:

• ''Vitamin D prevents bone fractures"
• ''Glucosamine helps with stiff joints"