Council Directive 2001/112/EC of 20 December 2001 relating to fruit juices and certain similar products intended for human consumption

Article 1

This Directive shall apply to the products defined in Annex I.

The products defined in Annex I are subject to provisions of Union law applicable to food, such as Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 January 2002 laying down the general principles and requirements of food law, establishing the European Food Safety Authority and laying down procedures in matters of food safety ([^E0001]), unless this Directive provides otherwise.

Article 3

Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council ([^E0002]) applies to the products defined in Annex I to this Directive, subject to the following conditions:

• 1. • (a) The product names listed in Annex I shall apply only to the products referred to therein and shall, without prejudice to subparagraph (b), be used in trade to designate them.
• (b) As an alternative to the product names referred to in subpoint (a), Annex III provides a list of particular designations. Where an operator uses the designations listed in Part I of Annex III, they shall be used in the language and under the conditions laid down therein. With regard to the designations listed in Part II of Annex III, Member States in which the product is placed on the market may stipulate that those designations are to be used in one or more of the official languages of the Union.

• 1. If the product comes from a single kind of fruit, the name of the latter shall be substituted for the word ‘fruit’.

• 1. For products manufactured from two or more fruits, except where lemon and/or lime juice are used under the conditions laid down in point 2 of Part II of Annex I, the product name shall be composed of a list of the fruits used, in descending order of the volume of the fruit juices or purées included, as indicated in the list of ingredients. However, in the case of products manufactured from three or more fruits, the indication of the fruits used may be replaced by the words ‘several fruits’ or a similar wording, or by the number of fruits used.

• 1. The statement ‘fruit juices contain only naturally occurring sugars’ may appear on the label in the same field of vision as the name of the products referred to in point 1 of Part I of Annex I.

• 1. The restoration of the products defined in part I of Annex I to their original state, by means of the substances strictly necessary for this operation, shall not entail an obligation to enter on the labels a list of the ingredients used for this purpose. The addition to fruit juice of extra pulp or cells as defined in Annex II shall be indicated on the labelling.

• 1. Without prejudice to Article 22 of Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 for mixtures of fruit juice from concentrate or reduced-sugar fruit juice from concentrate with fruit juice or with reduced-sugar fruit juice, as well as for fruit nectar obtained entirely or partly from one or more concentrated products, the labelling shall bear the words ‘from concentrate(s)’ or ‘partially from concentrate(s)’, as appropriate. That information shall be entered close to the product name, standing out well from any background, in clearly visible characters.

• 1. For fruit nectars, the labelling shall indicate the minimum content of fruit juice, fruit purée or any mixture of those ingredients, by the declaration ‘fruit content: … % minimum’. That information shall be located in the same field of vision as the product name.

Article 4

The labelling of concentrated fruit juice referred to in point 2 of Part I of Annex I, not intended for delivery to the final consumer, shall bear a reference indicating the presence and quantity of added lemon juice, lime juice or acidifying agents permitted by Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on food additives ([^E0003]). This reference shall appear on one of the following:

• — on the packaging,

• — on a label attached to the packaging, or

• — on an accompanying document.

Article 5

For the products defined in Annex I, Member States shall not adopt national provisions not provided for by this Directive.

This Directive shall apply to the products defined in Annex I which are placed on the market within the Union in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 178/2002.

Article 6

Only the treatments and substances listed in Part II of Annex I and the raw materials complying with Annex II may be used to manufacture the products defined in Part I of Annex I. Moreover, fruit nectars shall comply with Annex IV.

Article 7

Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 7b(2).

Until the adoption of the relevant implementing acts, Member States shall, whenever possible, use internationally recognised validated methods of analysis such as those approved by the Codex Alimentarius to verify compliance with this Directive.

Article 7a

The power to adopt delegated acts referred to in Article 7(2) shall be conferred on the Commission for a period of five years from 13 June 2024. The Commission shall draw up a report in respect of the delegation of power no later than nine months before the end of the five-year period. The delegation of power shall be tacitly extended for periods of an identical duration, unless the European Parliament or the Council opposes such extension no later than three months before the end of each period.

A decision to revoke shall put an end to the delegation of the power specified in that decision. It shall take effect the day following the publication of the decision in the Official Journal of the European Union or at a later date specified therein. It shall not affect the validity of any delegated acts already in force.

Article 7b

Where the Committee delivers no opinion, the Commission shall not adopt the draft implementing act and the third subparagraph of Article 5(4) of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply.

Article 7c

No later than 14 June 2027, the Commission shall present a report to the European Parliament and to the Council providing an assessment of the feasibility of the different possibilities for labelling indicating the country or countries of origin where the fruit or fruits used to manufacture a fruit juice or fruit purée have been harvested. That report shall be accompanied, where appropriate, by a legislative proposal.

Article 9

Directive 93/77/EEC is hereby repealed with effect from 12 July 2003.

References to the repealed Directive shall be construed as references to this Directive.

Article 10

Member States shall bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive before 12 July 2003. They shall forthwith inform the Commission thereof.

The measures shall be applied so as to:

• — authorise the marketing of the products defined in Annex I if they comply with the definitions and rules laid down in this Directive, with effect from 12 July 2003,

• — prohibit the marketing of products which fail to comply with this Directive, with effect from 12 July 2004.

However, the marketing of products which fail to comply with this Directive but which were labelled before 12 July 2004 in accordance with Directive 93/77/EEC may continue until stocks run out.

When Member States adopt these measures, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or shall be accompanied by such reference at the time of their official publication. The methods of making such reference shall be laid down by Member States.

Article 11

This Directive shall enter into force on the day of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities.

Article 12

This Directive is addressed to the Member States.

ANNEX I

PRODUCT NAMES, DEFINITIONS OF PRODUCTS AND CHARACTERISTICS

I. DEFINITIONS

• 1. (a) Fruit juice

The fermentable but unfermented product obtained from the edible part of fruit which is sound and ripe, fresh or preserved by chilling or freezing of one or more kinds mixed together having the characteristic colour, flavour and taste typical of the juice of the fruit from which it comes.

Flavour, pulp, and cells obtained by suitable physical means from the same species of fruit may be restored to the juice.

In the case of citrus fruits, the fruit juice must come from the endocarp. Lime juice, however, may be obtained from the whole fruit.

Where juices are processed from fruits with pips, seeds and peel, parts or components of pips, seeds and peel shall not be incorporated in the juice. This provision shall not apply to cases where parts or components of pips, seeds and peel cannot be removed by good manufacturing practices.

The mixing of fruit juice with fruit purée is authorised in the production of the fruit juice.

(b) Fruit juice from concentrate

The product obtained by reconstituting concentrated fruit juice as defined in point 2 with potable water that meets the criteria set out in Directive (EU) 2020/2184 of the European Parliament and of the Council ([^E0006]) .

The soluble solids content of the finished product shall meet the minimum Brix level for reconstituted juice specified in Annex V.

If a juice from concentrate is manufactured from a fruit not mentioned in Annex V, the minimum Brix level of the reconstituted juice shall be the Brix level of the juice as extracted from the fruit used to make the concentrate.

Flavour, pulp and cells obtained by suitable physical means from the same species of fruit may be restored to the fruit juice from concentrate.

The fruit juice from concentrate is prepared by suitable processes, which maintain the essential physical, chemical, organoleptical and nutritional characteristics of an average type of juice of the fruit from which it comes.

The mixing of fruit juice and/or concentrated fruit juice with fruit purée and/or concentrated fruit purée is authorised in the production of fruit juice from concentrate.

• 1. Concentrated fruit juice

The product obtained from fruit juice of one or more fruit species by the physical removal of a specific proportion of the water content. Where the product is intended for direct consumption, the removal shall be at least 50 % of the water content.

Flavour, pulp and cells obtained by suitable physical means from the same species of fruit may be restored to the concentrated fruit juice.

• 1. Water extracted fruit juice

The product obtained by diffusion with water of:

• — pulpy whole fruit whose juice cannot be extracted by any physical means, or

• — dehydrated whole fruit.

• 1. Dehydrated/powdered fruit juice

The product obtained from fruit juice of one or more fruit species by the physical removal of virtually all the water content.

• 1. Fruit nectar

The fermentable but unfermented product which:

• — is obtained by adding water with or without the addition of sugars and/or honey to the products defined in points 1 to 4 to fruit purée and/or to concentrated fruit purée and/or to a mixture of those products, and

• — meets the requirements of Annex IV.

Without prejudice to Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 December 2006 on nutrition and health claims made on foods ([^E0007]), where fruit nectars are manufactured without added sugars or with reduced energy value, sugars may be replaced wholly or partially by sweeteners, in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008.

Flavour, pulp and cells obtained by suitable physical means from the same species of fruit may be restored to the fruit nectar.

• 1. • (a) Reduced-sugar fruit juice The product obtained from fruit juice as defined in point 1(a) where the amount of naturally occurring sugars has been reduced by at least 30 % by using a process authorised under the conditions laid down in point 3 of Part II which maintains all the other essential physical, chemical, organoleptic and nutritional characteristics of an average type of juice of the fruit which it comes from. Reduced-sugar fruit juice may be obtained by mixing reduced-sugar fruit juice with fruit juice, fruit purée or both.

• (b) Reduced-sugar fruit juice from concentrate The product obtained from fruit juice from concentrate as defined in point 1(b) where the amount of naturally occurring sugars has been reduced by at least 30 % by using a process authorised under the conditions laid down in point 3 of Part II which maintains all the other essential physical, chemical, organoleptic and nutritional characteristics of an average type of juice of the fruit which it comes from, or the product obtained by reconstituting concentrated reduced-sugar fruit juice as defined in point 7 with potable water that meets the criteria set out in Directive (EU) 2020/2184. Reduced-sugar fruit juice from concentrate may be obtained by mixing reduced-sugar fruit juice from concentrate with one or more of the following products: fruit juice, fruit juice from concentrate, reduced-sugar fruit juice, concentrated fruit purée and fruit purée.

• 1. Concentrated reduced-sugar fruit juice

The product obtained from concentrated fruit juice as defined in point 2 where the amount of naturally occurring sugars has been reduced by at least 30 % by using a process authorised under the conditions laid down in point 3 of Part II which maintains all the other essential physical, chemical, organoleptic and nutritional characteristics of an average type of product, or the product obtained from reduced-sugar fruit juice as defined in point 6(a) by the physical removal of a specific proportion of its water content. Where the product is intended for direct consumption, the removal shall be at least 50 % of the water content.

II.   AUTHORISED INGREDIENTS, TREATMENTS AND SUBSTANCES

1. Composition

The species corresponding to the botanical name in Annex V shall be used in the preparation of fruit juices, fruit purées and fruit nectars bearing the product name for the applicable fruit or the common name of the product. For fruit species not included in Annex V, the correct botanical or common name shall apply.

For fruit juice the Brix level shall be the one of the juice as extracted from the fruit and shall not be modified, except by blending with the juice of the same species of fruit.

The minimum Brix level established in Annex V for reconstituted fruit juice and reconstituted fruit purée is exclusive of the soluble solids of any added optional ingredients and additives.

2. Authorised ingredients

Only the following ingredients may be added to the products referred to in Part I:

• — Vitamins and minerals as authorised in Regulation (EC) No 1925/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 December 2006 on the addition of vitamins and minerals and of certain other substances to foods ([^E0008]);

• — Food additives authorised in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008; however, sweeteners are not allowed in the manufacture of the products listed in Part I of this Annex, except for fruit nectars;

and in addition:

• — For fruit juice, fruit juice from concentrate, concentrated fruit juice, reduced-sugar fruit juice, reduced-sugar fruit juice from concentrate and concentrated reduced-sugar fruit juice: restored flavour, pulp and cells;

• — For grape juice: restored salts of tartaric acids;

• — For fruit nectars: restored flavour, pulp and cells; sugars and/or honey up to 20 % of the total weight of the finished products referred to in Part I of Annex IV, 15 % of the total weight of the finished products referred to in Part II of Annex IV and 10 % of the total weight of the finished products referred to in Part III of Annex IV; and/or sweeteners. A claim stating that sugars have not been added to fruit nectar, and any claim likely to have the same meaning for the consumer, may only be made where the product does not contain any added mono- or disaccharides or any other food used for its sweetening properties, including sweeteners as defined in Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008. Where such a claim is made, the following indication shall also appear on the label: ‘contains naturally occurring sugars’;

• — For products referred to in point (a), the first indent of point (b), point (c), the second indent of point (e) and point (h) of Annex III: sugars and/or honey;

• — For products defined in points 1 to 7 of Part I, in order to regulate acidic taste: lemon and/or lime juice and/or concentrated lemon and/or lime juice, up to 3 g per litre of juice, expressed as anhydrous citric acid;

• — For tomato juice and tomato juice from concentrate: salt, spices and aromatic herbs.

• — For reduced-sugar fruit juice and reduced-sugar fruit juice from concentrate: water, to the extent strictly necessary to restore the water lost due to the sugar reduction process.

3. Authorised treatments and substances

Only the following treatments may be applied and only the following substances may be added to the products referred to in Part I:

• — Mechanical extraction processes;

• — The usual physical processes, including in-line water extraction (diffusion) of the edible part of fruits other than grapes for the manufacture of concentrated fruit juices, provided that the fruit juices thus obtained comply with point 1 of Part I;

• — For grape juice, where sulphitation with sulphur dioxide of the grapes has been used, desulphitation by physical means is authorised, provided that the total quantity of SO2 present in the final product does not exceed 10 mg/l;

• — Enzyme preparations: pectinases (for breakdown of pectin), proteinases (for breakdown of proteins) and amylases (for breakdown of starch) meeting the requirements of Regulation (EC) No 1332/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on food enzymes ([^E0009]);

• — Edible gelatine;

• — Tannins;

• — Silica sol;

• — Charcoal;

• — Nitrogen;

• — Bentonite as an adsorbent clay;

• — Chemically inert filtration aids and precipitation agents (including perlite, washed diatomite, cellulose, insoluble polyamide, polyvinylpolypyrrolidone, polystyrene), which comply with Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 October 2004 on materials and articles intended to come into contact with food ([^E0010]);

• — Chemically inert adsorption aids which comply with Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004, and which are used to reduce the limonoid and naringin content of citrus juice without significantly affecting the limonoid glucosides, acid, sugars (including oligosaccharides) or mineral content;

• — Plant proteins from wheat, peas, potatoes or sunflower seeds for clarification;

• — Only for reduced-sugar fruit juice, reduced-sugar fruit juice from concentrate and concentrated reduced-sugar fruit juice: processes to reduce the amount of naturally occurring sugars, to the extent that they maintain all the other essential physical, chemical, organoleptic and nutritional characteristics of an average type of juice of the fruit which it comes from, namely membrane filtration and yeast fermentation.

ANNEX II

DEFINITIONS OF RAW MATERIALS

For the purposes of this Directive, the following definitions shall apply:

(1) Fruit

All fruits. For the purposes of this Directive, tomatoes are also considered as fruit.

The fruit shall be sound, appropriately mature, and fresh or preserved by physical means or by treatment(s), including post-harvest treatments applied in accordance with Union law.

(2) Fruit purée

The fermentable but unfermented product obtained by suitable physical processes such as sieving, grinding, milling the edible part of whole or peeled fruit without removing the juice.

(3) Concentrated fruit purée

The product obtained from fruit purée by the physical removal of a specific proportion of its water content.

Concentrated fruit purée may have restored flavour which shall be obtained by suitable physical means, as defined in point 3 of Part II of Annex I and all of which must be recovered from the same species of fruit.

(4) Flavour

Without prejudice to Regulation (EC) No 1334/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on flavourings and certain food ingredients with flavouring properties for use in and on foods ([^E0011]), flavours for restoration are obtained during the processing of the fruit by applying suitable physical processes. Those physical processes may be applied to retain, preserve or stabilise the flavour quality and include in particular squeezing, extraction, distillation, filtration, adsorption, evaporation, fractionation and concentration.

Flavour is obtained from the edible parts of the fruit; however it could also be cold pressed oil from citrus peel and compounds from the stones.

(5) Sugars

• — sugars as defined by Council Directive 2001/111/EC of 20 December 2001 relating to certain sugars intended for human consumption ([^E0012]),

• — fructose syrup,

• — sugars derived from fruits.

(6) Honey

The product defined by Council Directive 2001/110/EC of 20 December 2001 relating to honey ([^E0013]).

(7) Pulp or cells

The products obtained from the edible parts of fruit of the same species without removing the juice. Furthermore, for citrus fruit, pulp or cells are the juice sacs obtained from the endocarp.

ANNEX III

PARTICULAR DESIGNATIONS FOR CERTAIN PRODUCTS LISTED IN ANNEX I

• I.Particular designations that may be used only in the language of the designation

• (a) ‘vruchtendrank’, for fruit nectars;

• (b) ‘Süßmost’, to be used only in conjunction with the product names ‘Fruchtsaft’ or ‘Fruchtnektar’:
• (i) for fruit nectar obtained exclusively from fruit juices, concentrated fruit juices or a mixture of these products, unpalatable in the natural state because of their high natural acidity;
• (ii) for fruit juice obtained from apples or from pears, with the addition of apples where appropriate, but with no added sugar;

• (c) ‘succo e polpa’ or ‘sumo e polpa’, for fruit nectars obtained exclusively from fruit purée and/or concentrated fruit purée;

• (d) - (i) ‘æblemost’, synonym of apple juice;
• (ii) ‘æblemost fra koncentrat’, synonym of apple juice from concentrate;

• (e) - (i) ‘sur … saft’, together with the name (in Danish) of the fruit used, for juices with no added sugar obtained from blackcurrants, cherries, redcurrants, whitecurrants, raspberries, strawberries or elderberries,
• (ii) ‘sød … saft’ or ‘sødet … saft’ together with the name (in Danish) of the fruit used, for juices obtained from this fruit, with more than 200 g of added sugar per litre;

• (f) ‘äppelmust/äpplemust’, synonym of apple juice;

• (g) ‘mosto’, synonym of grape juice;

• (h) ‘smiltsērkšķu sula ar cukuru’ or ‘astelpaju mahl suhkruga’ or ‘słodzony sok z rokitnika’, for juices obtained from seabuckthorn berries with no more than 140 g of added sugar per litre.

• II.Particular designations that may be used in one or more of the official languages of the Union

• (a) ‘coconut water’, for the product which is directly extracted from the coconut without expressing the coconut meat, as a synonym of coconut juice.

ANNEX IV

SPECIAL PROVISIONS RELATING TO FRUIT NECTARS

Fruit nectars made from	Minimum juice and/or purée content (% by volume of finished product)
I. Fruits with acidic juice unpalatable in the natural state	I. Fruits with acidic juice unpalatable in the natural state
Passion fruit	25
Quito naranjillos	25
Blackcurrants	25
Whitecurrants	25
Redcurrants	25
Gooseberries	30
Seabuckthorn berries	25
Sloes	30
Plums	30
Quetsches	30
Rowanberries	30
Rose hips	40
Sour cherries	35
Other cherries	40
Bilberries	40
Elderberries	50
Raspberries	40
Apricots	40
Strawberries	40
Mulberries/blackberries	40
Cranberries	30
Quinces (Cydonia oblonga L.)	50
Lemons and limes	25
Other fruits belonging to this category	25
II.  Low-acid, pulpy or highly flavoured fruits with juice unpalatable in the natural state	II.  Low-acid, pulpy or highly flavoured fruits with juice unpalatable in the natural state
Mangoes	25
Bananas	25
Guavas	25
Papayas	25
Lychees	25
Azeroles (Neapolitan medlars)	25
Soursop	25
Bullock’s heart or custard apple	25
Sugar apples	25
Pomegranates	25
Cashew fruits	25
Spanish plums	25
Umbu	25
Other fruits belonging to this category	25
III.  Fruits with juice palatable in the natural state	III.  Fruits with juice palatable in the natural state
Apples	50
Pears	50
Peaches	50
Citrus fruits except lemons and limes	50
Pineapples	50
Tomatoes	50
Other fruits belonging to this category	50

ANNEX V

MINIMUM BRIX LEVELS FOR RECONSTITUTED FRUIT JUICE AND RECONSTITUTED FRUIT PURÉE

Common Name of the Fruit	Botanical Name	Minimum Brix levels
Apple (*)	Malus domestica Borkh.	11,2
Apricot (**)	Prunus armeniaca L.	11,2
Banana (**)	Musa x paradisiaca L. (excluding plantains)	21,0
Blackcurrant (*)	Ribes nigrum L.	11,0
Coconut (*)	Cocos nucifera L.	4,5
Grape (*)	Vitis vinifera L. or hybrids thereof Vitis labrusca L. or hybrids thereof	15,9
Grapefruit (*)	Citrus x paradisi Macfad.	10,0
Guava (**)	Psidium guajava L.	8,5
Lemon (*)	Citrus limon (L.) Burm.f.	8,0
Mango (**)	Mangifera indica L.	13,5
Orange (*)	Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck	11,2
Passion Fruit (*)	Passiflora edulis Sims	12,0
Peach (**)	Prunus persica (L.) Batsch var. persica	10,0
Pear (**)	Pyrus communis L.	11,9
Pineapple (*)	Ananas comosus (L.) Merr.	12,8
Raspberry (*)	Rubus idaeus L.	7,0
Sour Cherry (*)	Prunus cerasus L.	13,5
Strawberry (*)	Fragaria x ananassa Duch.	7,0
Tomato (*)	Lycopersicon esculentum, Mill.	5,0
Mandarin (*)	Citrus reticulata Blanco	11,2
For those products marked with an asterisk (), which are produced as a juice, a minimum relative density is determined as such in relation to water at 20/20 °C. For those products marked with two asterisks (*), which are produced as a purée, only a minimum uncorrected Brix reading (without correction of acid) is determined.	For those products marked with an asterisk (), which are produced as a juice, a minimum relative density is determined as such in relation to water at 20/20 °C. For those products marked with two asterisks (*), which are produced as a purée, only a minimum uncorrected Brix reading (without correction of acid) is determined.	For those products marked with an asterisk (), which are produced as a juice, a minimum relative density is determined as such in relation to water at 20/20 °C. For those products marked with two asterisks (*), which are produced as a purée, only a minimum uncorrected Brix reading (without correction of acid) is determined.

[^E0001]: OJ L 31, 1.2.2002, p. 1.

[^E0002]: Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2011 on the provision of food information to consumers, amending Regulations (EC) No 1924/2006 and (EC) No 1925/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council, and repealing Commission Directive 87/250/EEC, Council Directive 90/496/EEC, Commission Directive 1999/10/EC, Directive 2000/13/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, Commission Directives 2002/67/EC and 2008/5/EC and Commission Regulation (EC) No 608/2004 (OJ L 304, 22.11.2011, p. 18).

[^E0003]: OJ L 354, 31.12.2008, p. 16.

[^E0004]: Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 laying down the rules and general principles concerning mechanisms for control by Member States of the Commission’s exercise of implementing powers (OJ L 55, 28.2.2011, p. 13).

[^E0006]: Directive (EU) 2020/2184 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2020 on the quality of water intended for human consumption (OJ L 435, 23.12.2020, p. 1).

[^E0007]: OJ L 404, 30.12.2006, p. 9.

[^E0008]: OJ L 404, 30.12.2006, p. 26.

[^E0009]: OJ L 354, 31.12.2008, p. 7.

[^E0010]: OJ L 338, 13.11.2004, p. 4.

[^E0011]: OJ L 354, 31.12.2008, p. 34.

[^E0012]: OJ L 10, 12.1.2002, p. 53.

[^E0013]: OJ L 10, 12.1.2002, p. 47.