G/TBT/N/JPN/648  
15 January 2020  
(20-0428) Page: 1/2 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade  Original:  English  
 
  
NOTIFICATION  
The following notification is being circulated in accordance with Article 10.6  
 
1. Notifying Member:  JAPAN   
If applicable, name of local government involved (Article 3.2 and 7.2):   
2. Agency responsible:  Consumer Affairs Agency (CAA)  
Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers , email and website 
addresses, if available) of agency or authority designated to handle comments 
regarding the notification shall be indicated if different from above:   
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [X], 2.10.1 [   ], 5.6.2 [   ], 5.7.1 [   ], other :  
4. Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicable, otherwise national tariff 
heading. ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where applicable):  Foods 
containing designated ingredients or substances that r equire specific cautions, raw buffalo 
milk, agricultural product pickles, rice, nutrient content claims  
5. Title, number of pages and language(s) of the notified document:  Summary of the 
amendment of the Food Labelling Standards regarding labelling of foo ds containing 
designated ingredients or substances that require specific cautions, raw buffalo milk 
labelling, net weight labelling of agricultural product pickles, cleaning/polishing date 
labelling of rice, and nutrient content claims  
6. Description of c ontent:  (1) Labelling of foods containing designated ingredients or 
substances that require specific cautions  
Pursuant to Article 8 of the amended Food Sanitation Act (Act No. 233 of 1947) based on 
the Act to Partially Amend the Food Sanitation Act (Act No. 46 of 2018), the Food Labelling 
Standards shall be partially amended so that the foods containing designated ingredients 
or substances that require specific cautions are to be labelled with their designated 
ingredients or substances in order to en sure the safety and autonomous or rational choice 
of consumers.  
(2) Raw buffalo milk labelling  
The Food Labelling Standards shall be partially amended to add raw buffalo milk to the 
category "Milk" in accordance with the amendment of the Ministerial Ordina nce concerning 
the Ingredient Standards for Milk and Dairy Products (Ordinance of the Ministry of Health 
and Welfare No. 52 of 1951).  
(3) Net weight labelling of agricultural product pickles  
The Food Labelling Standards shall be partially amended in accord ance with the 
amendment of the measuring methods of agricultural product pickles under the 
Measurement Act (Act No. 51 of 1992) reflecting the practical situation of those products.  
(4) Cleaning/polishing date labelling of rice  
The Food Labelling Standards  shall be partially amended to resolve the problem of 
logistics/sales and waste caused by unsold rice labelled with old cleaning/polishing date, G/TBT/N/JPN/648  
 
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  which was requested by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan (MAFF) 
based on the discuss ion in the Rice Section Meeting of the Working Group regarding 
Logistics Rationalization of Rice.  
(5) Nutrient content claims  
Currently, the nutrients and energy may be  indicated to be low when they are less than 
the standard values.  The Food Labelling Sta ndards shall be partially amended to make it 
possible to  indicate low nutrients and energy when they are equal to the standard values 
from a viewpoint of practical situation of distribution and international harmonization.   
7. Objective and rationale, inc luding the nature of urgent problems where 
applicable:  To provide the information for consumers to ensure the safety of ingestion 
of Food and to secure the opportunity to make an autonomous and rational choice of 
Food.; Consumer information, labelling  
8. Relevant documents:   
The Food Labelling Standards (Ordinance of the Cabinet Office No.10 of 2015), The Food 
Labelling Act (Act No. 70 of 2013)  
9. Proposed date of adoption:  To be determined (Upon publication in "KANPO" (Official 
Government Gazette))  
Proposed date of entry into force:  To be announced in the Official Government Gazette  
10. Final date for comments:  60 days from notification  
11. Texts available from:  National enquiry point [X] or address, telephone and fax 
numbers and email and website addresses, if available , of other body:   
Japan Enquiry Point  
International Trade Division  
Economic Affairs Bureau  
Ministry of Foreign Affairs  
Fax: +(81 3) 5501 8343  
E-mail: enquiry@mofa.go.jp