Law on Food (No. VIII-1608).

This Law shall lay down the requirements for food placed on the market and its handling and the competence of state institutions and public organizations for the protection of consumers' rights in ensuring food safety. It shall also regulate duties and liability of food producers, food service operators and food traders. The purpose of this Law is to ensure that food meets international requirements for free movement of goods and that food produced in Lithuania can compete more effectively on the international market.
The Law consists of 5 Chapters; General Provisions (I); Requirements for food and its handling (II); The powers of state administration institutions and public consumer rights protection organizations (III); State Food Control (IV) and Final provisions (V). There are provisions relating to requirements for consumer information (art. 5) and manufacturers liabilities (art. 7). State food control shall be performed by the food control authority established by the government and shall inspect food to ensure it is safe, correctly labelled or violate legal acts (art. 11). Administration institutions in discharging the functions of state administration in the spheres assigned to them by this Law and other legal acts of the Republic of Lithuania, aiming to ensure that only food meeting safety requirements is placed on the market, shall implement the requirements of the European Union, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Trade Organization, documents of the Codex Alimentarius Commission and other international legal instruments (art. 9).
Food and products and materials in contact with food must meet the following basic requirements: (a) food must be of such a composition and quality that it is suitable for human consumption, must not be contaminated with chemical, physical, microbial and other contaminants more than what is allowed by legal acts, must meet mandatory safety and quality requirements; (b) only food additives and nutrients permitted by legislation may be added to food, meeting the established quantity, purity, conditions of use and other requirements; (c) an authorized state management institution may establish specific composition or quality requirements for a certain food group, which do not contradict international regulations, if this is necessary from the point of view of public health or nutrition; (d) it is allowed to use only materials and products intended for that purpose, not harmful to human health, meeting the requirements established by legal acts, for packaging food and otherwise touching it; and (e) food and products and materials in contact with food must meet the labelling requirements established by legal acts. Laboratory tests of samples selected for state food control are carried out by the laboratories appointed by the director of the State Food and Veterinary Service that meet the requirements of the legal acts in the field of food.