Packaging

Packaging has been defined in Directive 91/493/EC as: "the procedure of protecting fishery products by a wrapper, a container or any other suitable device".

Packaging, therefore, may be a carton, a box or other kinds of wholesale packaging, a sealed inner packaging or pre-packaging.

Inner packaging must be labelled only if it is completely sealed, implying that the sealing has to be broken or the packaging torn in order to open to the products. All sealed inner packaging must be identification labelled, irrespective of whether it is a vacuum packaging, protecting atmosphere packaging, etc. or packaging material offering strictly physical protection.

The terms "inner packaging" and "outer packaging" are not explicitly defined in the legislation.

For all practical purposes, the outermost layer of packaging material is the outer packaging (furthest from the product). If several layers of packaging material protect the product, the innermost layer is the inner packaging (closest to the product).

Identification labelling of unpackaged products
The identification labelling for unpackaged products must appear in the accompanying documents.

Frozen fishery products in bulk for canning is an example of unpackaged products.

Exception
In the case of pre-packaged products destined directly to the consumer, there is no requirement on the identification labelling of the inner packaging material.