FSA Consultation letter, 2 September 2004

ADDITIVES - Consultation on draft Sweeteners in Food (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2004

Draft regulations implementing European Parliament and Council Directive 2003/115/EC amending directive 94/35/EC on sweeteners for use in foodstuffs, and Commission Directive 2004/46/EC amending Directive 95/31/EC. Responses are requested by: 25 November 2004

Consultation details

The draft Regulations will amend the Sweeteners in Food Regulations 1995 to implement European Parliament and Council Directive 2003/115/EC and Commission Directive 2004/46/EC in England. European Parliament and Council Directive 94/35/EC sets out a list of authorised sweeteners, the foodstuffs in which they may be used and their conditions of use. Commission Directive 2004/46/EC lays down specific purity criteria for two new sweeteners, sucralose (E955) and salt of aspartame-acesulfame (E962).

Directive 2003/115/EC

Directive 2003/115/EC of 22 December 2003, which was published in the Official Journal of the European Communities (L24) on 29 January 2004, amends Directive 94/35/EC for the second time. The key changes are as follows:

• the authorisation of two new sweeteners, sucralose (E955) and salt of aspartame-acesulfame (E962) throughout the European Union (EU). The European Commission's Scientific Committee on Food (SCF) has found these sweeteners acceptable for use in food. Prior to their EU approval, sucralose and salt of aspartame-acesulfame were permitted to be marketed in the UK under a temporary national authorisation. These national authorisations are permitted under Article 5 of the Food Additives Framework Directive (89/107/EEC). When the proposed Regulations come into force the authorisations for sucralose and salt of aspartame-acesulfame will be revoked. This will result in changes to the conditions of use of sucralose in some categories of foodstuffs.
• changes to the conditions of use for aspartame (E951). Aspartame can be used in additional categories.
• changes to the conditions of use of cyclamic acid and its sodium and calcium salts (E952; 'cyclamate'). Member States accepted that there was a need to reduce the maximum usable dose of cyclamate in soft drinks following the SCF's revised opinion on cyclamate (E952) published in March 2000. This opinion established an Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) for cyclamate of 0-7 mg/kg bw/day.
  

Directive 2004/46/EC

Directive 95/31/EC of 16 April 2004, which was published in the Official Journal of the European Communities (L114) on 21 April 2004, amends Directive 95/31/EC for the fourth time. Directive 2004/46/EC lays down specific purity criteria for sucralose and salt of aspartame-acesulfame.

The proposed regulations

The Sweeteners in Food Regulations 1995 have been amended six times (in 1996, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2002 and 2003) to implement amendments to Directives 94/35/EC and 95/31/EC respectively. The draft Sweeteners in Food (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2004 will implement the provisions of these Directives in England.

Member States are required to implement the provisions of Directive 2003/115/EC into national legislation by 29 January 2005 and to prohibit products that do not comply with the Directive by 29 January 2006. The provisions of Directive 2004/46/EC are required to be implemented by 1 April 2005.

Devolved administrations

Colleagues in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are drawing up their own regulations to implement the new Directives and are carrying out similar consultation exercises.