Food Control 11 (2000) 249±289 www.elsevier.com/locate/foodcont Review Suitability of traditional energy values for novel foods and food ingredients G. Livesey a, D. Buss 1, P. Coussement b, D.G. Edwards c, J. Howlett d, D.A. Jonas e, J.E. Kleiner f,*,D.Muller g, A. Sentko h a Independent Nutrition Logic, Pealerswell House, Bellrope Lane, Wymondham, Norfolk NR18 0QX, UK b ORAFTI, Aandorenstraat 1, 3300 Tienen, Belgium c RHM Technology, The Lord Rank Centre, Lincoln Road, High Wycombe, Bucks HP12 3QR, UK d Independent Consultant, 74 West Hill, Wembley Park, Middlesex HA9 9RS, UK e Independent Consultant, Wayborough Bungalow, Wayborough Hill, Minster, Ramsgate, Kent CT12 4HR, UK f ILSI Europe, Avenue E. Mounier 83, 1200 Brussels, Belgium g Procter and Gamble European Service, Industriestrasse 32-34, 65760 Eschborn, Germany h Consultant International Regulatory Aairs, Straûlerweg 13, 77830 Buhertal, Germany Received 1 July 1999; received in revised form 26 November 1999; accepted 30 November 1999 Abstract Some novel foods and ingredients provide signi®cantly less energy than traditional fats and carbohydrates. The use of energy conversion factors existing in food labelling regulations to determine the labelling requirements of foods that contain them can mislead consumers. The requirement to use factors limits the claims that can be made for such foods, even scienti®cally justi®able ones, and in turn inhibits the development of new products and processes to the ultimate detriment of both manufacturer and consumer. Where the energy value of a food ingredient lies outside the range of the variability for the traditional food ingredient, the scienti®cally determined value provides a more accurate description of the food ingredient energy value for nutrition labelling. Ó 2000 ILSI Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. Contents 1. Aim and approach . 250 2. Background . 250 2.1. Nutrition labelling in the EU . 250 2.2. Deviations between energy values. 251 2.3. Importance of speci®c energy values of food ingredients. 251 3. De®nitions of macronutrients in food legislation . 251 4. De®nitions of energy and terminology used . 251 5. The conception of energy values . 253 6. Variability and accuracy of energy value determinations . 255 6.1. Variability in energy yield of traditional fats, proteins and carbohydrates . 255 6.1.1. Introduction . 255 6.1.2. Systematic variability . 255 * Corresponding author. Tel.: +32-2-771-0014; fax: +32-2-762-0044. E-mail address: [email protected] (J.E. Kleiner). 1 Deceased, 1998. 0956-7135/00/$ - see front matter Ó 2000 ILSI Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. PII: S 0 9 5 6 - 7 1 3 5 ( 9 9 ) 0 0 108-5 250 G. Livesey et al. / Food Control 11 (2000) 249±289 6.2. Accuracy of energy value determinations on foods and food ingredients . 258 6.2.1. Summary . 258 6.2.2. Discussion . 258 6.2.3. Conclusions . 261 7. The scienti®c basis of energy values ± case studies of some novel food ingredients. 261 7.1. Fat-based fat substitutes . 261 7.1.1. Summary . 261 7.1.2. Approach . 262 7.1.3. Olestra . 262 7.1.4. Caprenin . 263 7.1.5. Salatrim . 264 7.1.6. Comparison of nutrient conversion factors for fat substitutes and conventional fats . 268 7.2. Carbohydrates . 270 7.2.1. Summary . 270 7.2.2. Approach . 271 7.2.3. Sugar alcohols, non-digestible oligosaccharides, dietary ®bre and resistant starch . 271 7.3. Proteins . 275 7.3.1. Summary . 275 7.3.2. Myco-protein . 275 8. Conclusions . 275 1. Aim and approach two elements: a `case of need' which identi®es the tech- nological, nutritional, legal and/or economic reasons for The aim of this paper is to elaborate a ®rm scienti®c a change, and a `scienti®c case' which gives the scienti®c basis that can be used to consider when, and under what and nutritional elements on which it can be concluded circumstances, deviation from energy conversion factors that the energy conversion factor of an ingredient is speci®ed in the EU Nutrition Labelling Directive (Eu- dierent from that which would otherwise be prescribed ropean Communities, 1990) is justi®ed. Article 8 of the in regulations. This paper focuses on the scienti®c and EU Regulation concerning Novel Foods and Food In- nutritional aspects. gredients (European Communities, 1997) requires that consumers should be informed of any characteristic such as, inter alia, nutritional value or nutritional eects 2. Background which render a novel food or food ingredient no longer equivalent to an existing food or food ingredient. Where 2.1. Nutrition labelling in the EU the dierence between the novel food/ingredient and the conventional food/ingredient is its energy value, there is The energy content of a food is of particular interest potential for confusion if nutrition labelling requires the to consumers, even if the food is not an energy reduced use of factors speci®ed in the Nutrition Labelling Di- food. Information on the energy provided by a food and rective. on the composition of the various nutrients provided by The approach is based on a conceptual analysis of the that food are required by national food law in many calculation of the energy values of some food ingredi- countries around the world. The requirements are either ents in current use. In each of the studies, the aim is not obligatory on all pre-packaged products (e.g., in the US) to come to a decision concerning the validity of energy or are triggered by certain nutrition claims (e.g., in the values for speci®c products nor to justify the need for a EU). Within the EU, nutrition labelling has to accord new conversion factor but to clarify the area by sum- with Council Directive 90/496 on the nutrition labelling marising the nutritional elements that may make part of of foodstus (European Communities, 1990), which the evaluation. Thus, it was necessary to review the aims to provide bene®t to consumers and avoid possible factors underlying the energy conversion factors speci- technical barriers to trade. ®ed in the EU Nutrition Labelling Directive, including The declared energy content of a food is obtained by the variation that exists within existing foods and food multiplying the amount in the food of each of the ingredients, and to consider how the regulatory au- components or groups of components and ingredients: thorities in other countries have responded to the issue. carbohydrate; fat; protein or polyol by their respective In general, the evaluation of the need for a new en- energy conversion factors and adding up. The EU Di- ergy conversion factor for an ingredient will be based on rective (European Communities, 1990) speci®es the G. Livesey et al. / Food Control 11 (2000) 249±289 251 Table 1 In response to recent changes in lifestyles, consumers Energy conversion factors speci®ed in EU Directive 90/496 are being recommended to reduce food energy intakes. Component Energy value (kcal/g) As a consequence, the importance on the market of foods bearing a `reduced calorie', `low calorie' or `light' Carbohydrate (except polyols and 4 label has increased. To achieve the energy reduction dietary ®bre) required for such products the use of correct energy Polyols 2.4 values for macronutrient replacers is essential to provide Protein 4 Fat 9 accurate information to consumers. Even small dier- Alcohol (ethanol) 7 ences in energy values can determine whether or not the Organic acid 3 reductions required for labelling purposes are achiev- able. conversion factors that should be used for this calcula- For several food ingredients, we have examined the tion as shown in Table 1. 2 A detailed comparison of the dierence between the scienti®cally based energy value conversion factors used for nutrition labelling purposes and the value speci®ed in the Nutrition Labelling Di- in the EU and elsewhere is given in Appendices A±C. rective (European Communities, 1990). In principle, when this dierence was too large to be accounted for by 2.2. Deviations between energy values natural variation, a speci®c energy conversion factor was justi®ed. The declared energy content of a food, obtained as indicated above, can dier from that determined scien- ti®cally. Any ingredient which has an energy value that 3. De®nitions of macronutrients in food legislation diers from the energy conversion factor speci®ed in the Nutrition Labelling Directive (European Communities, In order to enable manufacturers to give nutrition 1990) may cause a dierence between the declared and information to the consumer, de®nitions of various the scienti®cally determined energy value of the food in nutrients and their speci®c energy conversion factors are which the ingredient is used. laid down in food legislation. Appendix A gives the Dierences between the declared and scienti®cally de®nitions of the `traditional' macronutrients: carbo- determined energy values exist already with many tra- hydrates; protein; and fat, and their energy conversion ditional food ingredients. The energy conversion factors factors, as de®ned in Australia/New Zealand, Canada, speci®ed in the Nutrition Labelling Directive (European the European Union and the United States. Communities, 1990) were chosen because they were During the last decades, food manufacturers have considered `acceptable'. Some were averages of a range developed new ingredients and have been able to de- of values that arise from natural variation. The devia- velop a greater variety of foodstus with speci®c nutri- tions were considered small enough to allow just one tional properties. Additional de®nitions of nutrients and energy value to be used for each category: carbohydrates speci®c energy conversion factors were added to the except polyols and dietary ®bre; protein; fat; ethanol or legislation.