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58
The Lead in Pood Regulations, 1961. brought into force the proposals made by the
Pood Standards Committee in 1959 The maximum quantity of lead permitted in a ready to
drink non alcoholic beverage is 0.2 parts per million and for other foods 2.0 parts per
million with the exception of certain foods. These are divided into two classes, those
for which a larger amount of lead will be permitted for a limited time only and those
which contain larger quantities of lead naturally and can never be kept to the low limit
proposed for ordinary foods. Such foods include apples, pears, concentrated fruit
juices and tomato puree or paste, fish and canned fish, raw sugars, including liquid or
solid glucose, cocoa powder, tea. yeast and yeast products, dried onions, herbs, ground
spices flavourings, and pectin. The quantity permitted in these foods is based on the
amounts likely to be present from natural causes
The Labelling of Pood (Amendment) Regulations. 1961. exempts wines prepared from
preserved or concentrated grape juice from declaring the fruit juice from which they have
been prepared, even though they have not been obtained from the fermentation of the
freshly expressed juice. The Ministers of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food: Health:
and Scotland, and the Home Secretary have asked the Pood Standards Committee to undertake
a review of the existing labelling of food provisions of the Labelling of Pood Order and
other food regulations relating to labelling and the Food Standards Committee have asked
for the views of any interested parties.
The Food Standards Committee issued a supplementary Report on Preservatives in Pood
together with proposals for new Regulations The problem of preservatives, food
additives, and similar substances is becoming so complex that one cannot but sympathise
with any committee advising a government at the present time In the opinion of your
analyst, moreover, the time has now arrived when no country of importance can afford to
make laws governing such additions without considering carefully the existing and possible
legislation of other countries of similar development Your analyst will be the opening
speaker next September at an International Symposium called to explore the matter of food
regulations. In the meantime one can only consider legislation as it affects this
country and agree that the Committee have made a brave attempt to cope with the position
as it is. It is unfortunate that many substances, such as salt, glycerin, propylene
glycol, acetic acid, and others should not be defined as preservatives, when they are the
most efficient and commonest preservatives in use. When advising the Government on
legislation the Committee have also to consider the possibility of its implementation and
one can only state that many experts are in grave doubt about the implementation of food
legislation now and in the future. It is suggested that sulphur dioxide and benzoic
acid shall continue as permitted preservatives for certain foods and it is interesting to
note that it is suggested that sulphur dioxide shall be recognised as a preservative in
unfermented grape juice to be used for sacramental purposes, provided that not more than
70 parts per million are employed, while ordinary fruit juices to be used for other
purposes may contain up to 350 parts per million. As an alternative 2,000 parts per
million of benzoic acid, or methyl- or propyl-p. hydroxybenzoate may be employed The
existing regulations have caused immense difficulties owing to an uncertainty which was
never intended Methyl- or propyl p. hydroxybenzoate will be permitted also in liquid
coffee or tea extracts, drinking chocolate concentrate, pickles and sauces, tomato pulp
or liquid rennet. Here it is noted that liquid tea extract is given official notice for
the first time in proposed British legislation and that permission will be given to use a
preservative in a drinking chocolate concentrate, but there is no mention of chocolate
syrups used on a very large scale for pouring over ice creams, puddings, etc. By
definition these last are not flavouring syrups because they are not to be diluted with
milk or water to make a drink with distinctive flavour nor can they be described as
flavouring emulsions. It is proposed that bread shall be permitted to contain up to
3,000 parts per million, i.e. 0.3 per cent of propionic acid and that flour confectionery
shall be permitted 1,000 parts per million of either propionic acid or sorbic acid
Sorbic acid and nisin are to be permitted in cheese and nisin is also to be permitted in
canned foods. Benzoic acid or sorbic acid are to be permitted in solutions of permitted
food colours or in silicone anti-foam emulsions It will be difficult for an analyst
to say whether a trace of sorbic acid in a food has been introduced by reason of the
inclusion of a small amount of a silicone anti-foaming agent. Sodium nitrite and