Thirteenth MEETING
Surfers Paradise
8 October 2004
SUMMARY OF KEY OUTCOMES
Food Standards Matters
Application A433 – Phytosterols in Breakfast Cereals
The Board considered the Final Assessment Report for an Application which seeks approval for the use of phytosterol esters derived from vegetable oils as a novel food ingredient in breakfast cereals under Standard 1.5.1 – Novel Foods – in the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code. The Board agreed to the Final Assessment Report and the proposed draft variations to theAustralia New Zealand Food Standards Codeand the Board’s decision will now be notified to Ministers.
Application A434 - Phytosterols in Low Fat Foods
The Board considered the Final Assessment Report for an Application which seeks approval for the use of phytosterol esters derived from vegetable oils as a novel food ingredient in low-fat milk and low-fat yoghurt under Standard 1.5.1 – Novel Foods – in the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code. The Board agreed to the Final Assessment Report and the proposed draft variations to the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code and the Board’s decision will now be notified to Ministers.
Application A508 – Tall Oil Phytosterols in Low Fat Milk
The Board considered the Final Assessment Report for an Application which seeks approval for the use of tall oil phytosterols (TOPs) as a novel food ingredient in low-fat milk under Standard 1.5.1 – Novel Foods – in the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code. The Board agreed to the Final Assessment Report and the proposed draft variations to the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code and the Board’s decision will now be notified to Ministers.
Application A494 – Alpha-Cyclodextrin
The Board considered the Final Assessment Report for an Application which seeks to amend Standard 1.5.1 – Novel Foods of the Code to approve the use of alpha-cyclodextrin (a-cyclodextrin) as a novel food. The Board agreed to the Final Assessment Report and the proposed draft variations to the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code and the Board’s decision will now be notified to Ministers.
Application A501 – Phospholipase A2
The Board considered the Final Assessment Report for an Application which seeks to amend Standard 1.3.3 – Processing Aids - of the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code to approve the use of an enzyme, phospholipase A2 (EC number 3.1.1.4) sourced fromStreptomyces violaceoruber, as a processing aid. The enzyme is not sourced from a genetically modified organism. The Board agreed to the Final Assessment Report and the proposed draft variations to the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code and the Board’s decision will now be notified to Ministers.
Application A518 – GM Cotton Line MXB-13
The Board considered the Final Assessment Report for an Application which seeks to amend the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code to approve food derived from a genetically modified (GM) insect-protected, glufosinate ammonium-tolerant cotton, cotton line MXB-13 (cotton line MXB-13). Standard 1.5.2 – Food Produced using Gene Technology – requires that GM foods undergo a pre-market safety assessment before they may be sold in Australia and New Zealand. The Board agreed to the Final Assessment Report and the proposed draft variations to the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code and the Board’s decision will now be notified to Ministers.
Proposal P284 – Minor Amendments Omnibus No. V
The Board considered the Preliminary Final Assessment Report for a Proposal to correct errors that raised issues of minor significance or complexity in the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code (the Code). Proposal P284 is the fifth minor amendments omnibus. The proposed amendments are intended to correct minor errors such as inconsistencies and ambiguities, omissions, misspellings and grammatical errors. The Board agreed to the Preliminary Final Assessment Report and to seek public submissions in relation to the proposed draft variations to the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code.
Application A464 – Wholegrain – Definition
The Board considered the Draft Assessment Report for an Application which seeks to amend the definition of the term “wholegrain”. This application may require amendments to Standard 2.1.1 Cereals and Cereal Products. The Board agreed to the Draft Assessment Report (subject to minor amendments), which will be released in the near future for public consultation, prior to further consideration by the Board.
The Board also considered a request to extend the time limit for consideration of this Application in accordance with the requirements of the Code. The Board agreed to extend the time limit by 6 months to 16 April 2005.
Proposal P274 – Minimum Age of Infant Foods
The Board considered the Draft Assessment Report for a Proposal which seeks to review the minimum age labelling requirements for infant foods, to resolve an apparent inconsistency with the revised Australian National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC)Dietary Guidelines for Children and Adolescents incorporating Infant Feeding Guidelines for Health Workers), released in June 2003. The review was to also consider and accommodate New Zealand infant feeding guidelines. The Board agreed to the Draft Assessment Report (subject to minor amendments), which will be released in the near future for public consultation, prior to further consideration by the Board.
Application A513 – Octanoic Acid
The Board considered the Draft Assessment Report for an Application which seeks to amend Standard 1.3.3 – Processing Aids of the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code (the Code) to approve the use of octanoic acid as a processing aid in water in various formulations to be used as an antimicrobial treatment on red meat and poultry carcasses and fresh fruits and vegetables. The Board agreed to the Draft Assessment Report (subject to minor amendments), which will be released in the near future for public consultation, prior to further consideration by the Board.
Application A537 – Energy Values for Maltitol
The Board considered the Draft Assessment Report for an Application which seeks to reduce the energy factor assigned to maltitol in the Australia New ZealandFood Standards Code (the Code) from 16 kJ/g to 11.6 kJ/g. The Board agreed to the Draft Assessment Report (subject to minor amendments), which will be released in the near future for public consultation, prior to further consideration by the Board.
Application A470 – Formulated Beverages
The Board considered and agreed to a request to extend the time limit for Application A470 by six months from 9 November 2004 to 9 May 2005, in accordance with the requirements of the Australia New ZealandFood Standards Code.
Application A499 Roquefort Cheese
The Board considered and agreed to a request to extend the time limit, pursuant to section 35(2) of the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Act 1991, to extend the time limit for Application A499 by 6 months to 4 September 2005.
Application A525 –GM Sugar Beet
The Board considered and agreed to a request to extend the time limit, pursuant to pursuant to section 35(2) of the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Act 1991, for Application A525 by 6 months to 27 July 2005.
Proposal P287 – Review of Cyclamate Permissions
The Board considered the Initial Assessment Report for a Proposal which seeks to review the use of the intense sweetener cyclamate across the whole food supply. This is in light of a recent survey conducted on behalf of FSANZ on the consumption of intense sweeteners in Australia and New Zealand, which concluded that some consumers of products containing cyclamate currently available for retail sale on the market could exceed the acceptable daily intake (ADI) for cyclamate. The Board agreed to the Initial Assessment Report (subject to minor amendments), which will be released in the near future for public consultation, prior to further consideration by the Board.
Proposal P295 – Consideration of Mandatory Fortification with Folic Acid
The Board considered the Initial Assessment Report for a Proposal which, the Australia and New Zealand Food Regulation Ministerial Council (the Ministerial Council) asked FSANZ in May 2004 to investigate mandatory fortification with folic acid as a possible means of reducing the incidence of Neural Tube Defects (NTDs). The Ministerial Council also issued a Policy Guideline on Fortification of Food with Vitamins and Minerals to guide FSANZ’s consideration of the issues. The Board agreed to the Initial Assessment Report (subject to minor amendments), which will be released in the near future for public consultation, prior to further consideration by the Board
Other matters
Meeting with the Safe Food Queensland Board
The Board met with members of the Safe Food Queensland Board and the CEO of Safe Food Queensland.
Meeting with Geoffrey Podger,Executive Director, European Food Safety Authority
Mr Geoffrey Podger, Executive Director, European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), briefed the Board on his experiences as head of EFSA and former head of the UK Food Safety Authority.