SAFE prepares to push for EU-wide regulations on food marketing and sustainability at 2025 annual conference

Safe Food Advocacy Europe (SAFE), a key consumer organisation dedicated to protecting European citizens in the food sector, is gearing up for its Annual Conference in 2025, which promises to address a range of pressing issues from consumer protection to sustainability and health. SAFE’s mission centres on shielding consumers from health risks linked to food, advocating for more nutritious and sustainable diets, and placing particular emphasis on vulnerable groups such as children.

One of the organisation’s enduring priorities has been to tackle the marketing of foods high in fat, sugar, and salt (HFSS), which has been conclusively linked through scientific research to a rise in non-communicable diseases (NCDs), obesity, and even mental health challenges. SAFE has voiced strong concerns about the aggressive marketing of these unhealthy products, particularly where children are targeted. Their recently published report on HFSS food marketing draws on legislative approaches from various countries—including France, Spain, Denmark, Ireland, Chile, Canada, and the UK—and highlights national-level measures like restrictions on TV and online advertising, bans on celebrity endorsements, and limitations on supermarket product placements as effective blueprints. However, SAFE underscores the urgent need for unified and mandatory EU-wide regulations to offer robust consumer protection beyond isolated national efforts.

These concerns align with the World Health Organization’s (WHO) longstanding recommendations, reinforced in recent updated guidelines. The WHO stresses the importance of comprehensive, mandatory policies to shield children under 18 from HFSS food marketing, citing the continuing exposure despite previous guidelines issued over a decade ago. The WHO advocates for global regulatory coherence to counteract marketing strategies that influence children’s dietary choices and perpetuate unhealthy eating habits, reinforcing the urgency voiced by consumer organisations like SAFE.

Transparency and clarity in food labelling constitute another cornerstone of SAFE’s advocacy. The organisation insists that consumers must have access to clear, truthful information to make informed choices—a principle enshrined in their manifesto for the 2024 European elections. However, a report from the European Court of Auditors reveals that food labelling across the EU can be misleading due to the proliferation of potentially unfounded claims, logos, and scores such as "natural," "healthy," or "organic." The Court supports SAFE’s call for stricter regulation, emphasising that marketing products as “natural” when they contain synthetic ingredients breaches existing legislation aimed at preventing consumer deception. SAFE’s campaign "We Value True Natural" is part of a broader push to halt these misleading practices and ensure all product claims are backed by independent, credible data.

The upcoming Annual Conference will also highlight innovative consumer tools designed to steer healthier dietary habits. SAFE’s EU4Health-funded Preventia project has developed a food scanning app called BiteWatch, intended to empower users by providing detailed nutritional and ingredient information. The app rates food products against dietary needs and health goals, helping consumers to make food choices aligned with their personal health profiles. Initially available in multiple EU languages, this tool reflects SAFE’s comprehensive approach to consumer education and health promotion.

Another significant aspect of SAFE’s work and conference agenda is food waste reduction, an issue that resonates deeply in the context of Europe’s ongoing food security challenges. SAFE has been actively involved in food donation initiatives and research addressing legal and logistical barriers across EU countries. It coordinates EU Horizon-funded projects such as ZeroW and SISTERS, which develop practical recommendations and innovations to cut food loss and waste throughout the supply chain. These projects aim to reduce food loss by over a quarter and cut associated CO2 emissions by around 20%, underscoring the environmental as well as social benefits of these efforts. Importantly, SAFE welcomed the EU's first legally binding food loss and waste reduction targets to be implemented by 2030, viewing them as an essential foundation for future, more ambitious goals.

The conference will also address sustainability in food packaging through SAFE's R3PACK initiative, which focuses on reducing chemical hazards and promoting the shift towards safer, more sustainable materials such as fiber-based and reusable plastic packaging. This aligns with growing concerns over food contact materials and their impact on health and the environment.

In sum, SAFE’s forthcoming Annual Conference will present an integrated agenda covering crucial consumer issues in the European food system—from combating misleading marketing practices and enhancing labelling transparency to fostering healthier diets, reducing food waste, and advancing sustainable packaging solutions. These efforts reflect SAFE’s broader commitment to confronting the food sector’s challenges by advocating for evidence-based policies that protect consumers and safeguard the environment within EU legislation.