Welcome to the Retail, Food & Hospitality Regulatory & EU round-up. Week ending 09 November 2025

This week’s regulatory developments in order of importance, so you can ensure you're up to date with the latest changes impacting your business. 

Retail, Food & Hospitality Important updates

Scottish Government publish climate change action plan: The Scottish Government has published a draft 150-point action plan for up to 2040 for consultation. The plan has been welcomed by the independent Government sponsored Climate Change Committee. Key elements of the plan are to set a target to decarbonise building heat systems by 2045, to phase out new diesel and petrol cars by 2030, increase woodland creation so that by 2029/30 18,000 hectares are planted every year, with 21% woodland cover in Scotland by 2032 and increasing peatland restoration by 10% each year to 2030. The five-year carbon budget targets are intended to reduce emissions to 57% by 2030, 69% by 2035, 80% by 2040 and 94% by 2045 compared to 1990 levels. Responses to the consultation are requested by 29 January 2026.

News > Climate Change Committee >

UK Strategy for future retail payments infrastructure published: A headline strategy setting out the requirements to be met by a new retail payments system for the UK developed by the Payment vision delivery committee has been published jointly by the Treasury, Bank of England, Financial Conduct Authority and the Payment Systems Regulator. Key elements of the strategy are:

• Consumers and businesses have a great choice of innovative and cost-efficient payment options that meet their needs.
• Payment systems operate seamlessly as part of a diverse multi-money ecosystem with interoperability between new and existing forms of digital money.
• Consumers and businesses can trust that their payments are protected from fraud and wider financial crime.
• Participant firms have fair, transparent, non-discriminatory access to the infrastructure – maximising competition and scope for innovation across the payment systems
• The payments system is operationally and financially resilient.

The Bank of England has convened a ‘Retail Payments Infrastructure Board to take the strategy forward over the coming years. View >

DEFRA Publish proposals to go faster and further on reduction in use of HFC refrigerants: DEFRA has launched a consultation proposing achieving an almost full phase-out of Hydrofluorocarbon refrigerant chemicals by 2048, a 98.6% cut with changes being introduced from 2027. This goes much further than the current target of cutting the amount coming onto the market by 79% by 2030. A range of options are put forward for the phase out process. Responses are requested by 17 December. News > Consultation >

EU updates

EU Commission DG Agriculture and Rural Development publish a guide to Protected Geographical Indications: The detailed guidance sets out how to apply for protection under the EU Protected Designation of Origin (PDO), Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) schemes for food and drink and the Geographical Indication scheme for Spirits. View >

EU Commission secures commitments from major airlines to refrain from ‘greenwashing’. Twenty-one airlines have committed to change their practices regarding environmental claims that were considered misleading by the Consumer Protection Cooperation (CPC) Network. All these airlines have committed to stop claiming that the CO₂ emissions of a specific flight could be neutralised, offset, or directly reduced by consumer financial contributions to climate protection projects or for the use of alternative aviation fuel. Press release > BEUC >

NGO’s launch legal challenge to proposed development of Europe’s largest plastics production plant:

Client Earth has set out the basis of legal action being taken against development by Ineos of an industrial facility in Belgium. The legal challenge is on the basis that the environmental impact assessment for the development in terms of climate change is an underestimate by five times the projected emissions if scope 3 supply chain emissions are included. View >

EU Regulations:

• On biocides: hypo-chlor product family > IPA Family 1 >
• On food supplements: monosodium salt of L-5-methyltetrahydrofolic acid > magnesium L-threonate >
• Rejecting food product health claims: LDL Cholesterol > memory >
• Authorising novel food: Clostridium butyricum >
• Maximum residue levels for plant protection product: zoxamide >
• Transitional period for use of plastics manufactured with: salicylic acid or untreated wood flour or fibres >

European Food Safety Authority opinions:

• Rejecting novel food application: View >
• Peer review of pesticide risk assessment: phenmedipham >

Developments to watch

DEFRA: Publish update on Avian flu outbreak: 8 November. View >

DAERA: Impose mandatory housing requirement for poultry in Northern Ireland. View >

Department of Health and Social care: Respond to latest obesity statistics published by the National Child Measurement Program. View >

DEFRA: Publish family food data sets for 2024. View >

Sentencing Council: Respond to Sentencing Bill 2025 which will require ministerial approval for the issue of definitive guidelines. View >

Competition and Markets Authority: To approve Greencore takeover of Bakkova subject to undertakings on divestment of soups business. View >

Pubs Code Adjudicator: Publish strategy for 2025-2027. View >

For your information

Non-food product safety alerts: Office for Product Safety and Standards > US Consumer Product Safety Commission > EU Safety Gate >

Northern Ireland Executive: Issue press release on plans to ban four wheels on pavement parking. View >

Office for Product Safety and Standards: Publish report on small business attitudes to product safety. View >

Chartered Trading Standards Institute: Publish review of 2024-5. View >