The Emerging Interests of Consumers: Answers from the Agri-Food Regulation

This chapter introduces the part dedicated to answers from agri-food regulation to emerging interests of consumers. The essays contained in this part are focused on the relationship between tradition and innovation in food production and highlight the controversial coexistence of these two (apparently) opposed faces of the food chain. The author of this introduction underlines that the “image” of the consumer is a guiding thread (or a common element) to different aspects of this issue, considering that the consumer is the final target of information and safety rules. In fact, the lack of a clear definition of the characteristics of consumer as contracting party in transnational commercial relationships and the high level of abstraction on this subject in EU law determines juridical uncertainty, taking into account the increase in business of consumer international trade. The author concludes his essay by recommending a solution at the international level, which needs to be more consistent with the effective dynamics of consumption.