Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential benefits of allowing the term probiotic to be used on food labels.

The term ‘probiotic’ can be used on food labels where it is accompanied by a relevant authorised health claim for the specific strain used, to avoid misleading consumers. Applications to authorise a new health claim on food are assessed by the UK Nutrition and Health Claims Committee (UKNHCC) in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006. In discussions with industry, we have indicated that the UKHNCC could provide a scientific opinion on criteria needed for the use of the term ‘probiotic’.

To date, the Department has received no applications either for considering claims on specific strains or for the assessment of the term ‘probiotic’, nor were any relevant claims authorised by the European Union prior to the United Kingdom’s exit.