Directive 2009/10 - Amendment of Directive 2008/84/EC laying down specific purity criteria on food additives other than colours and sweeteners - Main contents

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 44/62

Commission Directive 2008/84/EC of 27 August 2008 laying down specific purity criteria on food additives other than colours and sweeteners (2) sets out the purity criteria for the additives mentioned in European Parliament and Council Directive 95/2/EC of 20 February 1995 on food additives other than colours and sweeteners (3).

The European Food Safety Authority (hereinafter EFSA) concluded in its opinion of 20 October 2006 (4) that nisin produced through a modified production process using a sugar-based medium is equivalent with respect to health protection to the one produced by the original milk-based medium process. On the basis of that opinion, the existing specifications for E234 nisin should be amended in order to adapt the definition and the purity criteria set out for that additive.

Formaldehyde is used as a preservative during the manufacture of alginic acid, alginate salts and esters of alginic acid. It has been reported that residual formaldehyde, up to 50 mg/kg, may be present in the final gelling additives. At the request of the Commission, EFSA assessed the safety in use of formaldehyde as a preservative during the manufacture and preparation of food additives (5). EFSA in its opinion of 30 November 2006 concluded that the estimated exposure to gelling additives containing residual formaldehyde at the level of 50 mg/kg of additive would be of no safety concern. Therefore the existing purity criteria for E400 alginic acid, E401 sodium alginate, E402 potassium alginate, E403 ammonium alginate, E404 calcium alginate, and E405 propane-1,2-diol alginate should be amended in such a way that the maximum level of formaldehyde is set at 50 mg/kg.

Formaldehyde is not currently used in the processing of seaweeds for the production of E407 carrageenan and E407a processed eucheuma seaweed. However, it may be naturally occurring in marine algae and be consequently present as an impurity in the finished product. It is therefore appropriate to fix a maximum level of adventitious presence of the above substance in those food additives.

Guar gum is authorised as a food additive for use in foodstuffs by Directive 95/2/EC. In particular, it is used as thickener, emulsifier, and stabiliser. A request to use a partially depolymerised guar gum as a food additive, produced from native guar gum by one of the three manufacturing processes consisting of heat treatment, acid hydrolysis or alkaline oxidation, was submitted to the Commission. EFSA assessed the safety in use of that additive and, in its opinion of 4 July 2007 (6), estimated that partially depolymerised guar gum has been shown to be very similar to native guar gum with respect to the composition of the final product. It also concluded that partially depolymerised guar gum is of no safety concern for its use as thickener, emulsifier or stabiliser. However, in the same opinion, EFSA recommended that the specifications for E412 guar gum should be adjusted to take into account the increased level of salts and the possible presence of undesirable by-products that may result...