Source: European Parliament
Question for written answer E-001812/2025
to the Commission
Rule 144
Emmanouil Fragkos (ECR)
Powdered milk for babies aged 1-3 years is considered a ‘general food’ by the EU. Therefore, there are no EU-wide rules on its composition and the level of protection for babies consuming this product is lower than the high level of protection for infants up to one year of age. The same reference values as for adults apply to the nutrition labelling of baby milk.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA)[1] states that fortified formulas, including baby milk, are a means of providing babies and young children with omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, iron, vitamin D and iodine. Internationally, a Codex Alimentarius standard published in early 2024[2] sets out compositional requirements for the same group of products, including strict criteria on sugar content.
In view of the above:
- 1.Will the Commission implement the relevant Codex Alimentarius standard for baby formula in order to prevent unsuitable high-sugar products being placed on the European market?
- 2.If so, by when and how will it do so?
- 3.If not, could it explain its reasoning for not complying with the global food safety standard?
Submitted: 6.5.2025
- [1] Scientific Opinion on nutrient requirements and dietary intakes of infants and young children in the European Union, 2013: https://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/efsajournal/pub/3408.
- [2] STANDARD FOR FOLLOW-UP FORMULA FOR OLDER INFANTS AND PRODUCT FOR YOUNG CHILDREN: https://www.fao.org/fao-who-codexalimentarius/sh-proxy/en/?lnk=1&url=https%253A%252F%252Fworkspace.fao.org%252Fsites%252Fcodex%252FStandards%252FCXS%2B156-1987%252FCXS_156e.pdf.