@article{2630,
  keywords = {entomophagy, novel food regulation, European Union, microbiological  criteria},
  author = {N Grabowski and B Ahlfeld and K Lis and W Jansen and C Kehrenberg},
  title = {The current legal status of edible insects in Europe},
  abstract = {Consuming insects is an ancient food habit that is practised by approx. 2.8 billion  humans in most areas of the world. In Western culture, this food habit has been  largely abandoned, but its recent promotion by the FAO lead to a novel approach  in Europe with the intention to establish food insect production under modern circumstances. Running a food business requires legal framework, and the aim  of this survey was to document the current legal status of edible insects in all European countries. Data was obtained by contacting corresponding authorities  directly or via their embassies in Germany. For EU members, the amendment of the novel food regulation (2015/2283) is the  only legal document that mentions insects as foodstuff directly. It merely sets the  base on how to apply for a given insect species to be included in the Union’s list  for allowed foodstuffs. So far, a specific section in Regulation (EC) 853/2004 (as for other foodstuffs) has been missing. Yet, some EU (Austria, Belgium, Denmark,  Finland, and the Netherlands) and non-EU countries (Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland) have issued national guidelines which are presented and discussed  in this survey. They basically intend to incorporate a given set of insect species into ordinary food legislation, pointing out differences to respectively adding specifics  not contained in the latter. These guidelines are characterised by a strong degree of heterogeneity, e.g. in relation to insect species and microbiological  criteria. Special situations were documented for Spain and Portugal. Croatia, Estonia, Ireland, Luxembourg, and Slovenia only allow insect business to the extent  of EU laws, while Sweden does not allow it at all. Albania, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Kazakhstan, Monaco, Romania, Russian Federation,  Slovakia, and Turkey failed to answer. The rest of the countries is characterised by a legal uncertainty, converting entomophagy into a legal grey zone. However, the  present paper is conceived as a snapshot of a process that is constant development. The national guidelines can provide a valuable source for any enhancement of the EU regulation. },
  year = {2019},
  journal = {Berliner und Münchener Tierärztliche Wochenschrift},
  volume = {132},
  month = {04/2019},
  publisher = {Schlütersche Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG},
  address = {Hannover},
  issn = {0005-9366},
  doi = {10.2376/0005-9366-18087},
  language = {English},
}