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Beef and veal labelling: guidance

You must label beef, veal, mince and trimmings according to compulsory rules; extra information must meet food labelling legislation.

• From: Rural Payments Agency
• Published: 1 April 2014
• Last updated: 1 January 2021 — See all updates

View this document collection in Cymraeg (Welsh)

Anyone who supplies fresh or frozen beef or veal must comply with the regulations on traceability and beef labelling.

Premises licensed to slaughter cattle and/or cut beef by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) - abattoirs, cutting plants or catering butchers - are inspected by the Rural Payments Agency (RPA).

Other premises (eg most cold stores, repackaging centres, butchers’ shops, mobile shops, market stalls, supermarkets or farm shops) are inspected by local authorities.

Compulsory labelling

The Compulsory Beef Labelling Scheme is a system to give buyers clear, reliable information about beef on sale. An important aim of the system is to enable consumers to know where beef on sale originated.

Voluntary information

You can add extra information to your beef labels voluntarily, but you must make sure that any information added meets the requirements of the current food labelling legislation. You can find more information about this under ‘food labelling and packaging’.

Read old guidance on the National Archives website

Relevant regulations

The Beef and Veal Labelling (England) Regulations 2010 (SI 2010/983)

The Beef and Veal Labelling (Wales) Regulations 2011 (SI 2011/991 (W. 145))

Regulation EUR 2000/1760

Regulation EUR 2000/1825, as amended by Commission Regulation (EC) 275/2007

Regulation 2013/1308

The Single Common Market Organisation (Consequential Amendments) Regulations 2013 (SI 2013/3235)

The Single Common Market Organisation (Consequential Amendments) (Wales) Regulations 2013 (SI 2013/3270) (W.320)

Contact

If your business is an approved red meat establishment with the FSA you should contact the Meat Technical Schemes team at RPA if you have questions about the scheme:

Meat Technical Schemes

Rural Payments Agency
Eden Bridge House
Lowther Street
Carlisle
Cumbria
CA3 8DX

Email MTS.Carlisle@rpa.gov.uk

Telephone 03300 416508

Traceability

• Set up a traceability system for beef and veal
  • 1 April 2014
  • Guidance

Compulsory labelling

• Comply with the Compulsory Beef Labelling Scheme
  • 22 January 2021
  • Guidance

Voluntary labelling

• Add non-compulsory information to beef and veal labelling
  • 1 April 2014
  • Guidance

Inspections and enforcement

• Beef and veal labelling inspections
  • 1 January 2021
  • Guidance
• Beef and veal labelling: what happens if you don't comply
  • 6 May 2016
  • Guidance

Published 1 April 2014
Last updated 1 January 2021 + show all updates

1. 1 January 2021

   Regulation (EC) No 1760/2000 changed to Regulation EUR 2000/1760 Regulation (EC) No 1825/2000 changed to Regulation EUR 2000/1825 Regulation (EC) No 1308/2013 changed to Regulation EUR 2013/1308

2. 1 April 2014

   First published.