Cocoa and Chocolate Products Regulations 1976
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | SI 1976/541 |
| Year | 1976 |
1976 No. 541
FOOD AND DRUGS
COMPOSITION AND LABELLING
The Cocoa and Chocolate Products Regulations 19762ndApril 1976
14thApril 1976
Regulations 2 and 225thMay 1976Remainder5thMay 1977
The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the Secretary of State for Social Services, acting jointly, in exercise of the powers conferred on them by sections 4, 7 and 123 of the Food and Drugs Act 1955(a) as amended by section 4(1) of, and paragraph 3(1) of Schedule 4 to, the European Communities Act 1972(b) and as read with the Secretary of State for Social Services Order 1968(c), and of all other powers enabling them in that behalf, hereby make the following regulations, after consultation with such organisations as appear to them to be representative of interests substantially affected by the regulations and after reference to the Food Hygiene Advisory Council under section 82 of the Food and Drugs Act 1955 (in so far as the regulations are made in exercise of the powers conferred by the said section 7):—
Citation and commencement
1. These regulations may be cited as the Cocoa and Chocolate Products Regulations 1976, and shall come into operation as respects regulations 2 and 22 on 5th May 1976 and as respects the remainder on 5th May 1977.
Interpretation
2.—(1) In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires—
"the Act" means the Food and Drugs Act 1955;
"appropriate designation" has the meaning assigned to it by the Labelling of Food Regulations 1970(d), as amended(e);
"chocolate product" means any food specified in column 2 of Part II of Schedule 1 as read with paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of that Part, but does not include any product specially prepared for diabetics or to which a slimming claim is lawfully applied and which has been specially prepared in connection with that claim by the addition of any ingredient other than an edible substance;
"cocoa product" means any food specified in column 2 of Part I of Schedule 1 as read with paragraph 1 of that Part, but does not include any product specially prepared for diabetics or to which a slimming claim is lawfully applied and which has been specially prepared in connection
(a) 4 & 5 Eliz. 2. c. 16.
(b) 1972 c. 68.
(c) S.I. 1968/1699 (1968 III, p. 4585).
(d) S.I. 1970/400 (1970 I, p. 1383).
(e) The relevant amending instrument is S.I. 1972/1510 (1972 III, p. 4441).
with that claim by the addition of any ingredient other than an edible substance;
"cocoa solids" means the constituents of cocoa nib, whether or not containing minor proportions of shell or germ;
"the Community" means the European Economic Community;
"container" includes any form of packaging of food for sale as a single item, whether by way of wholly or partly enclosing the food or by way of attaching the food to some other article, and in particular includes a wrapper or confining band, but does not include any crimp case used to support the base or the base and sides of any chocolate product;
"edible substance" means any substance suitable for use as food, which is wholly a natural product, whether or not that substance has been subjected to any process or treatment, or any vitamin or mineral, or any flavouring substance which does not impart the flavour of chocolate or milk fat, but does not include—
(a) any food specified in column 2 of Part I of Schedule 1 as read with paragraph 1 of that Part,
(b) any food specified in column 2 of Part II of Schedule 1 as read with paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of that Part, or
(c) any permitted acid, permitted base or permitted emulsifier of a description specified in column 2 or paragraph 1 of Part I of Schedule 2;
"extracted cocoa butter" means press cocoa butter, expeller cocoa butter, refined cocoa butter or any combination of two or more of these cocoa products;
"expeller process" means a process using pressure resulting from the shearing action of a press;
"fancy chocolate product" includes any chocolate product in the form of figurines, cigarettes or eggs or enclosed in a Seasonal selection pack;
"flavouring substance" means any substance which is capable of imparting, and is generally used to impart, taste or odour, or both, to food;
"food" means food intended for sale for human consumption and includes drink, chewing gum and other products of a like nature and use, and articles and substances used as ingredients in the preparation of food or drink or of such products, but does not include—
(a) water, live animals or birds,
(b) fodder or feeding stuffs for animals, birds or fish, or
(c) articles or substances used only as drugs;
"food and drugs authority" has the meaning assigned to it by section 198 of the Local Government Act 1972(a);
"germ" means the embryo of the cocoa bean;
"human consumption" includes use in the preparation of food for human consumption;
"ice cream" has the meaning assigned to it by the Ice Cream Regulations 1967(b);
"instant preparation", in relation to any cocoa product, means a product capable of rapid dispersal in milk or water;
"milk" means cows' milk;
"milk solids" means all the constituents of milk other than water whether or not in their natural proportions;
(a) 1972 c. 70.
(b) S.I. 1967/1866 (1967 III, p. 5056).
"non-fat cocoa solids" means the constituents of cocoa solids other than permitted cocoa butter and cocoa fat;
"permitted acid" means any acid in so far as its use is permitted by the Miscellaneous Additives in Food Regulations 1974(a), as amended(b);
"permitted base" means any base in so far as its use is permitted by the Miscellaneous Additives in Food Regulations 1974, as amended;
"permitted cocoa butter" means fat in parts of cocoa beans having a level of unsaponifiable matter not exceeding 0.5 per centum determined using petroleum ether and an acidity of not more than 1.75 per centum expressed as oleic acid, with or without, in relation to any chocolate product, any extracted cocoa butter;
"permitted emulsifier" means any emulsifier in so far as its use is permitted by the Emulsifiers and Stabilisers in Food Regulations 1975(c);
"pre-packed" means made up in advance in or on a container ready for sale by retail; and where any food made up in or on a container is found on any premises where such food is so made up or is kept or stored for sale, that food shall be deemed to be pre-packed unless the contrary is proved, and it shall not be sufficient proof of the contrary to show that the food had not been labelled in accordance with the provisions of these regulations;
"reserved description", as respects any cocoa product or chocolate product, means a description specified or referred to in relation to that product in column 1 of Part I or II of Schedule 1, and the use of any such description in these regulations shall be construed as meaning any cocoa product or chocolate product specified in relation to that description in column 2, as read with paragraph 1, of Part I of Schedule 1 or column 2, as read with paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of Part II of that Schedule;
"seasonal selection pack" means a pack wholly or mainly enclosing, in an outer container decorated with seasonal designs, a selection of chocolate products individually pre-packed and labelled for sale by retail in accordance with these regulations;
"sell" includes offer or expose for sale or have in possession for sale and "sale" and "sold" shall be construed accordingly;
"sell by retail" means sell to a person buying otherwise than for the purpose of re-sale, but does not include selling to a caterer for the purposes of his catering business or to a manufacturer for the purposes of his manufacturing business; and "sale by retail" and "sold by retail" shall be construed accordingly;
"shell" means the outer covering of the cocoa bean;
"slimming claim" means any words, device or description referred to in regulation 24 of the Labelling of Food Regulations 1970, as amended (which imposes restrictions on claims that foods are starch-reduced or can aid slimming);
"spirits" has the meaning assigned to it by the Customs and Excise Act 1952(d);
"swiss roll" means a food consisting of a layer of sponge cake spread with preserve, fruit spread, cream, imitation cream or buttercream or with preserve or fruit spread and cream, imitation cream or buttercream and rolled into a cylindrical shape, whether or not flavoured with any flavouring substance;
(a) S.I. 1974/1121 (1974 II, p. 4227).
(b) There is no amendment which relates expressly to the subject matter of these regulations.
(c) S.I. 1975/1486 (1975 III, p. 4932).
(d) 1952 c. 44.
"winnowing" means the separation by mechanical processes and air classification of cocoa nib from shell;
AND other expressions shall have the same meaning as in the Act.
(2) The Interpretation Act 1889(a) shall apply to the interpretation of these regulations as it applies to the interpretation of an Act of Parliament.
(3) Any reference in these regulations to a label borne on a container shall be construed as including a reference to any legible marking on the container however effected.
(4) All proportions mentioned in these regulations are proportions calculated by weight, and unless the context otherwise requires, are calculated on the total weight of the product.
(5) For the purpose of these regulations, the supply of food, otherwise than by sale, at, in or from any place where food is supplied in the course of a business shall be deemed to be a sale of that food, and references to purchasing and purchasers shall be construed accordingly.
(6) Any reference in these regulations to any other regulations shall be construed as a reference to such regulations as amended by any subsequent regulations.
(7) Any reference in these regulations to a numbered regulation or schedule shall, unless the reference is to a regulation of or schedule to specified regulations, be construed as a reference to the regulation or schedule bearing that number in these regulations.
Exemptions
3. The following provisions of these...
To continue reading
Request your trial