The law on poultry is one of a series of regulatory measures by Italy that has raised questions about whether the country is using the EU's food safety rules to batter down the foreign competition.

The law in essence pushed Italy's processors to source their poultry from the country's producers. Processors generally source their ingredients from the cheapest country.

Italy has a history of using country-of-origin labelling laws as a means of instilling food patriotism among consumers, and to give its producers an advantange. The Commission decision foreshadows further action on similar legislation in Italy and in other countries.

Under legislation adopted in August 2005, Italian producers and the first recipients of poultry meat are obliged to indicate the member state of origin of the meat. The labelling must also state the date of import for poultry meat and products coming from other member states and non-EU countries.

"This measure contravenes EU rules on food labelling and the marketing of poultry, and could cause market discrimination and hamper the internal market and other trade," the Commission stated in announcing the decision.

The Italian government defends the law on the ground that the labelling measures were taken so that, in the event of an avian flu outbreak, poultry meat could be rapidly traced and withdrawn from the market.

"However, the Commission finds no justification for the Italian rules," the notice stated. "Strict EU veterinary legislation ensures that any poultry meat placed on the EU market is safe, while there are also harmonised rules on food labelling which ensure that consumers are properly informed and not misled."

Under EU regulation 1906/90 on the marketing of poultry products, member states can only require the labelling of origin when the absence of such information could mislead or confuse the consumer.

The Italian government has two months to reply to the Commission's decision. If the government fails to comply with the ruling the Commission can refer the issue to the Court of Justice.

Italy has previously made similar country-of-origin labelling mandatory on some tomato products and chocolate. The country's regulators have also banned Canadian wheat and some foreign milk products based on what they said were breaches of food safety.