No mandatory label on carton of milk in France for 'French milk'

France may no longer require milk packaging to indicate that the milk comes from France. According to the highest French court, such a regulation was illegal because there is no link between the origin and the property of the product. The European Court of Justice (CJEU) said this earlier.

In 2017, at the urgent request of French farmers, the French government launched a two-year pilot project to label the origin of processed foods.

That trial was extended in 2019, despite protests from the EU's legal department. After a protest by the French dairy Lactalis for 'market disruption', the French label obligation has now been abolished.

French farmers strongly criticize the decision of the highest administrative judge. The French farmers association (FNSEA), the organization of young farmers (JA) and the association of milk producers (FNPL) speak of an 'unacceptable step backwards'.

The European Commission plans to expand the European origin labels for existing food products (fresh meat, fruits and vegetables) to new product categories (including milk) as part of its 'farm to farm' strategy.

Brussels is currently conducting a feasibility study into a label that does not distinguish per country, but does differentiate between “EU” and “non-EU”. There are several EU countries that are against 'national' labels of origin, if only used to favor 'own food' and to keep out foreign exports.