Control in the Label - Self-Declared, Certified, Accredited? On-Pack Consumer Communication about Compliance Control in Voluntary Food Schemes from a Legal Perspective

Abstract

In the EU, the number of voluntary food schemes has grown rampantly over the past 20 years. From a consumer perspective, what was initially praised as a solution to the information asymmetry problem of credence goods soon became a problem of itself: consumers do not know what the various food scheme labels mean. Some authors therefore propose education measures to help consumers better understand labels. In this contribution, we approach the issue from a different angle and show that on pack communication of food scheme labels offers significant opportunities for influencing consumer perceptions. We argue therefore that food businesses are under a legal duty not to mislead consumers and to ensure that information is sufficiently clear.