Scotland has confirmed a technical tidy‑up of food law. From 15 January 2026, the Food Safety Act 1990 in Scotland will use the term “assimilated” instead of “EU” in section 17, aligning enforcement wording with the post‑Brexit legal framework. The change applies only in Scotland. legislation.gov.uk lists the coming‑into‑force date as 15 January 2026. ([legislation.gov.uk](Link

What actually changes is the text of section 17 (the provision that enables ministers to make regulations so that directly applicable rules are administered and enforced under the Act). References to “EU obligations” become “assimilated obligations”, and “directly applicable EU provision” becomes “provisions of assimilated direct legislation”. That is the extent of the amendment. ([legislation.gov.uk](Link

Why now? The UK’s Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023 rebadged ‘retained EU law’ as ‘assimilated law’ from 1 January 2024 and removed the supremacy of EU law in most areas. Scotland’s update is therefore a language clean‑up so statute matches the new terminology. House of Commons Library and the Law Society of England and Wales explain the shift and timing. ([commonslibrary.parliament.uk](Link

For food producers and retailers, this does not introduce fresh duties. Food Standards Scotland’s consultation described the change as purely consequential, with no policy or operational impact on food law requirements. In short: your hygiene, allergen and labelling obligations stay the same. ([foodstandards.gov.scot](Link

Enforcement arrangements are unchanged. Local authorities remain the front‑line enforcers in Scotland under the Food Law Code of Practice, with Food Standards Scotland oversight. Expect inspection reports and guidance to adopt the new “assimilated” wording over time, but the inspection regime and risk ratings are unaffected. ([foodstandards.gov.scot](Link

For businesses operating across Great Britain, the Food Standards Agency has proposed parallel, technical corrections to legislation in England and Wales. Those proposals are also presented as mechanical fixes with no additional burdens, which should help keep internal compliance registers consistent across sites. ([food.gov.uk](Link

Practical steps this week are administrative: update compliance manuals, HACCP training slides and legal registers where they quote section 17 or refer to “directly applicable EU provisions”. If suppliers or site approvals guidance still cite “EU” in an enforcement context, refresh the wording to “assimilated” so documents mirror current law. Where dates matter, signpost 15 January 2026 as the switch‑over. ([legislation.gov.uk](Link

For those who like to read the source text, section 17 of the Food Safety Act is the provision being retuned. The underlying mechanism-allowing regulations so that directly applicable rules are administered and enforced under the Act-remains in place; it is the labels that change. The REUL Act also updated the Interpretation Act so “retained direct EU” reads “assimilated direct”. ([legislation.gov.uk](Link

One final point on process. The draft regulations were scrutinised by the Scottish Parliament’s Health, Social Care and Sport Committee in December 2025, before being made and scheduled to commence on 15 January 2026. For finance directors and compliance leads, this is a tidy‑file‑and‑move‑on moment rather than a redesign of controls. ([parliament.scot](Link