ABOUT FEDIMA
History
The Federation of European Union Manufacturers and Suppliers of Ingredients to the Bakery, Confectionery and Patisserie Industries, (previously called The European Federation of the Intermediate Products Industries for the Bakery and Confectionery Trades), FEDIMA, was established on 20th May 1969. The earliest part of FEDIMA's existence was governed by the recipe-craze of the Seventies. European law would define Euro-bread, Euro-rolls, Euro-croissants up to the final, smallest ingredient and processing temperature.
The historical changes of 1978, the Cassis-de-Dijon decision, and 1985/86, the Commission's White Paper and the Single European Act, imposed on all players, including FEDIMA, a shift away from vertical legislation, recipes, towards a horizontal approach: general rules for the whole of the industry, combined with the mutual recognition principle. Then FEDIMA grew into an authoritative voice in the area of two major horizontal topics: labelling and food additives.
Activities
When first confronted with European legislative initiatives, these were concentrating around the detailed definition of standardised food products, identical for the whole of the then European Community. In those days of vertical "recipe" legislation, FEDIMA played an active role in the discussions concerning bakery products. With the move to the horizontal approach of the eighties, FEDIMA became inordinately influential in the area of food additives regulations.
Another achievement of major importance for FEDIMA's member-companies was the result of lengthy negotiations with all other partners of the bakery chain. These resulted in a European-wide agreement on the frequency and planning of international exhibitions for the bakery sector.
FEDIMA published its E.U. Code of Good Hygiene Practice which was later followed by its Code of Good Behaviour on Claims.
More recently, FEDIMA has taken the lead in an area of great importance to all people actively involved in the production of the bakery chain. Launching an ambitious programme of broad scientific collaboration, the FEDIMA Workshop on Dust and Allergies, identified the issues and interests at stake. As a consequence FEDIMA formulated a collaborative study with AMFEP, the European Association of Enzyme Producers, with a view to identifying the best, most reliable, but also feasible methods of measurement for the dustiness of products used in the bakery chain. This led to the joint Amfep-Fedima publication in December 2003 of "Measuring levels of dust in baking ingredients using the Heubach method".
FEDIMA is a partner with the European authorities, primarily the European Commission, and an active contributor to the CIAA proceedings. FEDIMA is and remains the voice of its members vis-à-vis all public instances and professional partners, suppliers and clients.
To ensure that the users of FEDIMA member's products may develop a large variety of quality goods in complete confidence and safety with the necessary information, so that the ultimate consumer may be correctly informed, FEDIMA member associations have at their disposal:
- the technical support necessary for the development of the bakery/pastry sector
- the knowledge of the different raw materials, ingredients and processing aids,
- the complete understanding of bread making, fine bakery wares, pastry and confectionery.
This know-how is based on the significant scientific and technical facilities available to FEDIMA through its members:
- their 170 laboratories for research, development and quality control;
- their 160 experimental bakeries;
- and the 1.000 researchers and technicians;
- their 100 centres for training and demonstration;
- thousands of experienced salesmen and promoters many of whom are fully qualified bakers.
Objectives
FEDIMA has set its full following objectives:
- To be the spokesman for its members before any international organisation, particularly in Europe
- To contribute, on behalf of its members, to the setting up of European legislation directly affecting their industrial activities.
- To promote the interests of its members and of their customers at a EU level.
- To permit the exchange of information between national associations at a technical and legislative level.
- To represent its members, within other trade associations and other European groups
AGEP s.a.