Council Press Release, 15 July 2013

ADDITIVES / PARNUTS - Authorisation of food additives and follow-on formulae: Council discussions

The following is an extract from the minutes of the Agriculture and Fisheries Council meeting on 15 July 2013

The Council decided not to oppose the adoption of the following Commission's regulations and directive:

• regulation amending annex II to regulation 1333/2008 authorising stigmasterol-rich plant sterols as a stabiliser in ready-to-freeze alcoholic cocktails and assigning E 499 as an E-number to that food additive (10037/13);
• regulation amending annex III to regulation 1333/2008 authorising the use of Sucrose esters of fatty acids (E 473) as a food additive in flavourings for water based clear flavoured drinks (10040/13);
• regulation amending annex II to regulation 1333/2008 authorising the use of neutral methacrylate copolymer and anionic methacrylate copolymer in solid food supplements (10042/13);
• regulation amending annex II to regulation 1333/2008 authorising the use of several additives in seaweed based fish product analogues (10044/13);
• directive amending directive 2006/141/EC authorising follow-on formulae based on hydrolysed whey protein with a protein content of 1.9 g/100 kcal (0.47g/100 kJ) (10126/13);
• regulation amending annex II and III to regulation 1333/2008 and the annex to regulation 231/2012 authorising the use of octenyl succinic acid modified gum arabic in the food categories applied for and to assign number E 423 to that food additive (10043/13).

The Commission regulations and directive are subject to the so called regulatory procedure with scrutiny. This means that now that the Council has given its consent, the Commission may adopt them, unless the European Parliament objects.