Food law

Food law covers the entire body of legislation and regulation governing the production, processing, packaging, labelling, marketing and sale of food. This legal framework is broad, complex and continuously evolving. At the same time, the Food & Agri sector itself is undergoing rapid development—driven by sustainability ambitions, innovation and ever stricter food safety requirements. These dynamic regulations and market developments raise numerous legal challenges. How do you ensure the rules are applied correctly? How do you capitalise on commercial opportunity without incurring legal risks?

“Legal control over food safety, labelling and innovation: we know the rules.”

Allard Bekius

Attorney at law, Partner

Our specialists

Our lawyers combine in‑depth expertise in food law and animal feed regulations with specialised knowledge of related legal areas, including liability law, administrative law, European law and competition law. This multidisciplinary approach enables us to quickly identify the core of your legal issues and to provide pragmatic advice that works in practice.

 

For entrepreneurs and organisations in the Food & Agri sector, this means efficient, effective legal support that helps mitigate risks, ensures regulatory compliance and creates room for commercial growth and innovation.

 

We offer a wide range of services within the Food & Agri sector, including advice and litigation relating to:

  • Food safety and compliance
  • Product recalls and crisis management
  • Product liability
  • Packaging, labelling and nutrition or health claims
  • Import, purchase and sale of (raw materials for) foodstuffs and animal feed
  • Enforcement proceedings and disputes with regulatory authorities, such as the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA), the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) and the Advertising Code Committee (RCC)
  • Drafting and negotiating commercial contracts, including product development, supply and manufacturing agreements, as well as distribution and agency contracts
  • Environmental and spatial planning regulations
  • Intellectual property

Food & Agri sector

The Food & Agri sector is inherently international. Companies increasingly operate across borders, raising legal questions relating to international trade, product compliance and cross‑border contracts. We maintain close relationships with specialist food law lawyers both within and outside the European Union and are a member of TAGLaw, a global alliance of leading independent law firms.

 

Through this network, we are well positioned to support our clients with international legal matters.

Strong network

We work closely with an extensive network of specialised advisers in the Food & Agri sector, including experts in quality management, science, operations and supply chain management, laboratory research and corporate finance. This enables us not only to provide high‑quality legal advice, but also to offer practical insights and to respond swiftly to developments in the sector. Nysingh is actively involved in various industry and trade associations within the sector and is, among others, an active member of:

Contact

For further information or enquiries regarding food law (Food & Agri), please contact our specialists or complete the contact form.

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Our specialists

Marco Balhuizen

Attorney at law, Partner

Katerina Nikolaou

Attorney at law

Lars Huttinga

Attorney at law

Rob Klein

Attorney at law, Director, Partner

Thijs van Tilburg

Attorney at law

Risto Larsson

Attorney at law, Partner

Rutger Ketting

Attorney at law

Wouter Veldstra

Attorney at law

Hanneke Frijlink

Attorney at law, Partner

Allard Bekius

Attorney at law, Partner

Esther Ceulen

Attorney at law, Partner

Vera Textor

Attorney at law, counsel