ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO FOOD ADDITIVES Third Edition Revised by Victoria Emerton and Eugenia Choi This edition first published 2008 by Leatherhead Publishing a division of Leatherhead Food International Ltd Randalls Road, Leatherhead, Surrey KT22 7RY, UK and Royal Society of Chemistry Thomas Graham House, Science Park, Milton Road, Cambridge, CB4 0WF, UK URL: http://www.rsc.org Registered Charity No. 207890 Third Edition 2008 ISBN No: 978-1-905224-50-0 A catalogue record of this book is available from the British Library © 2008 Leatherhead Food International Ltd The contents of this publication are copyright and reproduction in whole, or in part, is not permitted without the written consent of the Chief Executive of Leatherhead Food International Limited. Leatherhead Food International Limited uses every possible care in compiling, preparing and issuing the information herein given but accepts no liability whatsoever in connection with it. 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FOREWORD The first edition of the Essential Guide to Food Additives was published in 2000, and its success merited the production of a second edition, which was published in 2003. The book continues to be a valuable reference tool for the food industry into the applications and legal restrictions governing food additives. Since 2003, there have been significant developments in the additives area, and this third edition sees the addition to the book of 12 new additives (including two sweeteners) and the removal of several additives such as Red 2G (E128), propyl p-hydroxybenzoate (E216) and sodium propyl p-hydroxybenzoate (E217), which are now banned from use in food due to issues with their safety. Biphenyl (E230), orthophenyl phenol (E231) and sodium orthophenyl phenol (E232) have been removed from the additives listing, as they are no longer classed as food additives, but are now plant protection products. A general discussion on the use of food additives is provided, with the addition of a section on the new trend in clean labelling, and how additives can be used to best effect to fit consumer demand for clean labels. The General Food Regulations 2004 are included which complement the Food Safety Act of 1990 and further sections within this new edition cover the genetically modified food and feed regulations and information about the food improvement agents package. As with any book containing legislation, every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided is correct at the time of going to print, but this is a fast-moving area, and readers are advised to check the current legislation on specific additives. Acknowledgements: The first edition of the Essential Guide to Food Additives was edited by Mike Saltmarsh of Inglehurst Foods Ltd, who helped to conceive the overall content of the book, and wrote many of the individual entries on additives, with other chapters and additives sections being written by experts from the food industry. Their contribution to the first edition is gratefully acknowledged. This third edition, like the second edition, was largely updated by the Regulatory Services Department, and members of the Scientific and Technical Information Unit at Leatherhead Food International. Particular thanks go to Eugenia Choi who has led the project and also to Katherine Veal, Claire King and Catherine Hill for their support. Victoria Emerton and Eugenia Choi Editors v CONTENTS 1. FOOD ADDITIVES AND WHY THEY ARE USED 1 Introduction 1 What are Food Additives and why are they Used? 3 Processing aids 4 Preservatives 6 Antioxidants 6 Emulsifiers and stabilisers 7 Colours 7 Colouring Foodstuffs 9 Sweeteners 9 Flavour enhancers 10 Flavourings 10 Other additives 11 Safety of Additives 12 Intolerance 14 Myths and Fallacies 15 Clean labels 17 Conclusions 17 References 19 2. WHAT SHOULD BE DECLARED ON THE LABEL 22 Introduction 22 Food Safety Act 1990 22 The General Food Regulations 2004 23 Trade Descriptions Act 1968 23 Weights and Measures Act 1985 23 Food (Lot Marking) Regulations 1996 24 Food Labelling Regulations 1996 24 Name of the food 24 List of ingredients 24 Appropriate durability indication 28 Quantitative Ingredients Declaration (QUID) 29 Storage conditions 30 Name and address 30 Place of origin 30 Instructions for use 31 Additional labelling 31 Allergens 31 Prescribed nutrition labelling 33 Food Additive Labelling Regulations 1992 35 Definition 35 Labelling requirements for business sale of food additives 36 Labelling requirements for consumer sale of food additives 37 vii Flavourings in Food Regulations 1992 39 Definition 39 Labelling requirements for business sale of relevant flavourings 39 Labelling requirements for consumer sale of relevant flavourings 41 Smoke Flavourings Regulations 2005 43 Definition 43 Colours in Food Regulations 1995 43 Definition 43 Sweeteners in Food Regulations 1995 44 Definition 44 Miscellaneous Food Additives Regulations 1995 44 Definition 44 Relevant Schedules 44 Extraction Solvents in Food Regulations 1993 45 Definition 45 Labelling of permitted extraction solvents sold as such 45 The Genetically Modified Food (England) Regulations 2004 46 The Genetically Modified Organisms (Traceability and Labelling) (England) Regulations 2004 48 Package of proposals for new legislation on food additives, flavourings and enzymes 48 Bibliography 55 Appendix A: Exemptions from Foods Ingredients Listing 56 Appendix B: Exemptions from Durability Indication 56 Appendix C: Permitted Extraction Solvents 57 3. SAFETY OF FOOD ADDITIVES IN EUROPE 58 Introduction 58 European Directives 58 Framework Directive on Food Additives 58 Specific Directives on classes of additives 59 Origin of ‘E’ numbers 60 Safety Testing and Evaluation of Food Additives 60 Requirements of the EC framework Directive on safety assessment 60 General approach of advisory and regulatory bodies 60 Toxicological tests required 62 Test protocols and EC submissions 65 Interpretation of toxicity tests 65 Comparing Intakes with ADIs 67 Methods for estimating food additive intake 68 Significance of exceeding the ADI 69 Conclusions 70 References 71 viii 4. LEGISLATION FOR FOOD ADDITIVES OUTSIDE EUROPE 75 Introduction 75 Labelling issues 75 Codex Alimentarius 76 Codex General Standard on Food Additives 77 JECFA 81 Specifications 83 Food Additives Legislation in Other Countries 84 USA 84 Canada 91 Japan 91 Other Far East countries 93 MERCOSUR 95 Middle East 96 Australia and New Zealand 97 References 99 5. ADDITIVES 101 ABBREVIATIONS USED IN TEXT 321 GLOSSARY 323 INDEX 327 ix 1. FOOD ADDITIVES AND WHY THEY ARE USED Introduction The role of food additives in food manufacture has been much maligned and misunderstood in recent years. Additives fell victim to bad press to the extent that, at the height of the anti-“E” numbers campaign in the 1980s, the word “additive” became almost synonymous with “adulteration”, and foods containing additives were as much to be avoided as foods containing genetically modified ingredients have become since their introduction in the late 1990s. Authors whose main objective appeared to be the denigration of the food manufacturing industry, particularly the major multinationals, found this easy meat in an atmosphere of consumer ignorance, and were guaranteed support for their cause by scaring their audience into believing that additives were responsible for a wide range of ill effects from intolerance and hyperactivity to long-term chronic diseases. Constantly prefacing the words “food additive” with “chemical” was sufficiently emotive to result in the perception of “nasty”. Alongside this was the implication that ready-prepared, processed food was inherently inferior to, and less wholesome than food prepared in the home. The catalyst for the 1980s focus on additives was a change in labelling legislation in 1986, which required the detailing of each individual additive in the ingredients list of most pre-packed products. Until that time, the use of additives had been indicated by reference to a generic functional group, such as “preservatives”, “antioxidants” and “colours”. The new labelling requirements resulted in the appearance on some food labels of some very long lists of additives, including some lengthy chemical names. Some products looked as though they were nothing more than a couple of simple ingredients held together by a dictionary of chemical substances. The “E” number system, intended to assist as a short code for some of the lengthier chemical names and to indicate common European safety approval, became the butt of the criticism against the use of additives, and consumers voted with their feet by leaving products containing long lists of “E” numbers on the shelf. The interest in, and fear of, what was being put into food spawned a number of books on additives, their use in food, potential (harmful) effects and protocols for their safety approval, along with the author’s specific treatise on the subject. Some were informative, intended to assist the consumer in understanding what additives were, how they were produced, why they were used and how to avoid them, if desired. Others were more politically motivated and used the fashionable attack on additives as an illustration of all that was bad about the food industry and the allegedly secretive systems of safety assessment of all chemicals 1 Essential Guide to Food Additives Food Additives and why they are Used and processes used in food production.