LEGAL REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN UNION POLICY IN THE FIELD OF CONSUMER RIGHTS IN THE FOOD MARKET

Abstract

The article is devoted to research of the historical retrospective of the legislation of the European Union in the field of health and safety of consumers. Methods for improving the quality of EU law-making and law enforcement activities in the field of consumer health and safety are considered. Regulations and directives adopted by the European Commission became the first EU documents in which consumer protection was defined as a separate area of EU competence. In the European model, the policy of consumer protection in the field of health and safety is not only the establishment and protection of the right to receive quality goods, works and services, but also the protection of health and safety of consumers; providing sufficient information about the product and its manufacturer, granting additional rights when concluding consumer agreements and guaranteeing the realization of these rights. The EU food law system includes general and special parts. The general part includes Regulation (EU) № 178/2002, which in our opinion is the only legal act that establishes the basic principles of EU food law in general. In general, product safety legislation regulates the protection of the health and safety of consumers in the production, placing on the market and consumption of non-food products. EU member states pursue a coordinated policy in the field of consumer protection, taking into account the legislation of the member states, by concluding international agreements, developing recommendations and other methods adopted in international practice. We can conclude that the development of EU legislation in this area is due to many factors, among which we consider it necessary to highlight the scientific and technological progress and change in the general approach of the European Union to the implementation of legal regulation. There is a need to implement the concept of full harmonization, which has a significant impact on new and revised legal acts. This approach to the approximation of legislation is explained by the need to achieve uniform legal regulation of products entering the domestic market, which in the opinion of the legislator will help improve the overall level of product safety and consumer health.