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The Times, 9 July 2006
Crumbs, now home-made cake is dangerous - An EU directive may force full ingredients lists on all food retailers. If baking for the school or church fête was not onerous enough, the government could soon ban home-made cakes from sale unless they carry a special label declaring whether they contain nuts.
The truth
New EU rules will require pre-packaged food sold in, for example, supermarkets, to be properly labelled with full ingredients lists. This will enable those who suffer from allergies to avoid the often very unpleasant consequences - even death - that can ensue after eating the wrong thing.
However, Directive 2003/89/EC does not force full ingredients lists on food sold in places like restaurants and fast-food vans. Food sold loose or packaged on the premises for direct sale may be exempted from these strict labelling requirements, provided the consumer or customer receives "sufficient information". How this is done is left up to individual member states, providing legislative leeway to avoid this type of over-regulation The Times erroneously suggests this will affect home-made cakes sold at school fêtes.
