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EFSA regulation - Health claim for olive oil polyphenols

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is an agency of the European Union that provides independent scientific advice and communication on existing and emerging risks associated with the food chain, created by European Regulation 178/2002. EFSA's work covers all matters with a direct or indirect impact on food and feed safety, including animal health and welfare, plant protection and plant health and nutrition. EFSA supports the European Commission, the European Parliament and EU member states in taking effective and timely risk management decisions that ensure the protection of the health of European consumers and the safety of the food and feed chain. EFSA also communicates to the public in an open and transparent way on all matters within its remit.

Health claims

Health claims made in relation to food products require authorisation under Regulation EC 1924/2006 before they can be used in the labelling and marketing of these products in the EU. Within the context of this authorisation procedure, EFSA’s Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition and Allergies (NDA) is responsible for verifying the scientific substantiation of the health claims.

 

There is a EFSA approved health claim on olive oil polyphenols (Commission Regulation (EU) 432/2012):

• Olive oil polyphenols contribute to the protection of blood lipids from oxidative stress. The claim may be used only for olive oil, containing at least 5 mg of hydroxytyrosol and its derivatives (e.g. oleuropein complex and tyrosol) per 20 g of olive oil. In order to bear the claim information shall be given to the consumer that the beneficial effect is obtained with a daily intake of 20 g of olive oil.

 

Olive oil comprises mainly of the monounsaturated fatty acid oleic acid (C18:1). There is also a EFSA approved health claim on the unsaturated fatty acids (Commission Regulation (EU) 432/2012):

• Replacing saturated fats in the diet with unsaturated fats contributes to the maintenance of normal blood cholesterol levels. The claim may be used only for food which is high in unsaturated fatty acids, as referred to in the claim HIGH UNSATURATED FAT as listed in the Annex to Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006.