The UK’s Food Standards Agency (FSA) has confirmed it aims to introduce changes early next year to modernise the way foods like cultivated meat and precision fermentation products are brought to market.

Nonprofit and think tank the Good Food Institute (GFI) Europe has welcomed the changes – which could benefit a wider range of food sectors and consumers while ensuring rigorous safety standards are maintained – but says more ambitious measures are needed to ensure the UK does not risk falling behind as a global alternative protein leader.

The FSA announced the timetable for the initial reforms at its board meeting on 18 September, following a consultation and approval by new government ministers.

The plans, which apply to ‘regulated products’ including animal feed additives and food flavourings as well as some alternative proteins, were originally announced in March. 

The changes will see the creation of a new public register of regulated products, replacing the current system, which requires a Statutory Instrument to be laid before new products can be placed on the market – a procedure the FSA estimates can add up to six months to an approval period which currently takes around two and a half years.

It would also free up the FSA’s capacity by removing the requirement for products already on the market to be re-authorised after several years – which will also benefit other food sectors. According to the FSA, 22% of regulated product applications are reauthorisations, many of which are for animal feed.

The FSA has stressed that it will still conduct a thorough and evidence-based assessment of new products’ safety and nutritional value before they can be sold in the UK, and ministers will continue to make final decisions.

The UK uses a similar regulatory framework to that of the EU, but concerns have been raised about the increasing size of the agency’s post-Brexit work – with officials earlier this year saying ‘without urgent action, we will be unable to keep pace with this growing caseload’.

GFI Europe has called on the government to introduce more wide-ranging reforms including producing accessible guidance for alternative protein companies planning to submit applications, sharing information about risk assessments with other trusted international regulators and designing a new system for pre-market tastings. 

The nonprofit also urged ministers to approve the FSA’s bid to create a regulatory sandbox for cultivated meat in next month’s budget to ensure the body can accelerate its understanding of the food safety aspects of cultivated meat.

Linus Pardoe, UK Senior Policy Manager at GFI Europe, said: “It’s positive to see the Food Standards Agency taking much-needed steps to modernise its process while continuing to enforce one of the world’s most robust regulatory systems – but these measures should just be the start.

“Alternative proteins can play a key role in boosting food security and growing the UK’s green economy. But to deliver these benefits while ensuring consumers can have confidence in new foods, the government must urgently bring forward more ambitious proposals such as collaborating on risk assessments with international partners and establishing a regulatory sandbox for cultivated meat.”