Food Law News - UK - 2007
FSA Consultation, 10 April 2007
ADDITIVES - Update on implementation in England of European directives on food additives
European Commission Directive 2006/129/EC amending and correcting Directive 96/77/EC laying down specific purity criteria on food additives other than colours and sweeteners and Directive 2006/128/EC amending and correcting Directive 95/31/EC laying down specific purity criteria for sweeteners used in foodstuffs.
Responses are requested by: 30 April 2007
Consultation details
The Agency previously sought comments on the draft Miscellaneous Food Additives and the Sweeteners in Food (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2007, which will amend the Miscellaneous Food Additives Regulations 1995 and the Sweeteners in Food Regulations 1995 to implement European Parliament and Council Directive 2006/52/EC into English law.
Since the publication of Directive 2006/52/EC, two new European Commission Directives, 2006/129/EC and 2006/128/EC, have been adopted which amend Directives 96/77/EC and 94/31/EC, to set out purity criteria (specifications) for the seven newly approved additives that have been permitted by way of Directive 2006/52/EC, and which also amend the purity criteria for a number of the currently permitted miscellaneous additives and sweeteners. Details of these directives are available on the EU website.
These directives, which were agreed at the Standing Committee meeting in Brussels on 6 October 2006, have to be implemented into Member States' national legislation by 15 February 2008. Products which do not comply with the legislation will be prohibited by this date.
In addition, a corrigendum to Directive 2006/52/EC has been published in the Official Journal of the European Communities (L 78 of 17 March 2007).
It is therefore necessary to amend the draft regulations, circulated with the previous consultation document, to implement the provisions of the Commission Directives, and to correct the wording, in accordance with the Corrigendum to Directive 2006/52/EC. A copy of the revised regulations are attached below for information. The proposed date that the new legislation in England comes into force during June 2007, remains unchanged.
Amendments to Directive 96/77/EC
Directive 2006/192/EC of 8 December 2006, which was published in the Official Journal of the European Communities (L 283) on 9 December 2006, amends Directive 96/77/EC in order to:
- establish purity criteria for six newly approved food additives (4-Hexyresorcinol, soybean hemicellulose, starch aluminium octenyl succinate, ethyl cellulose, pullulan and TBHQ) authorised under Directive 2006/52/EC
- withdraw the purity criteria for substances (E 216 and E 217), which are no longer permitted for use as food additives
- amend purity criteria for other additives in the light of technological developments
- establish the requirement that the presence of dioxins in the raw kaolinitic clay used in the production of E 559 aluminium silicate should be restricted to the lowest possible level
- correct some mistakes which have been found in different linguistic versions of this directive and which require rectification
Amendments to Directive 95/31/EC
Directive 2006/128/EC of 8 December 2006, which was published in the Official Journal of the European Communities (L 346) on 9 December 2006, amends Directive 95/31/EC in order to:
- set purity criteria for a new sweetener (erythritol) authorised under Directive 2006/52/EC
- amend current specifications for other sweeteners in the light of technical developments
- correct some mistakes which have been found in different linguistic versions of this directive and which require rectification
For the draft Statutory Instrument, see: Miscellaneous Food Additives and the Sweeteners in Food (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2007 Draft Statutory Instrument
See also, UK News Item: 16 January 2007 ADDITIVES - Implementation in England of European directive on additives