Voluntary Beef Labelling Scheme

In general, all fresh, frozen or minced beef marketed in the EU (with the exception of offal) is subject to a mandatory system of origin traceability and origin labelling. The purpose of these rules is to ensure that beef on sale can be traced back to the animal or group of animals from which it came.

The beef labelling regime, under EU Parliament and Council Regulation 1760/2000 and S.I. No. 435 of 2000, which applies to all parts of the supply chain, includes a compulsory system which requires food business operators to label their beef products (unless cooked or processed) with certain prescribed information up to and including the point of sale to the consumer.

The regulations also provided for voluntary beef labelling provisions whereby operators wishing to provide supplementary information on beef labels could only do so subject to the approval of the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. However, these requirements were rescinded from 13 December 2014.