evaluation of certain food additives - libdoc.who.int - World Health ...

Finally, the forty-first session of CCFA agreed to a priority list of compounds
for evaluation/re-evaluation by JECFA and also agreed to revise the text of
the Circular Letter on Priority List of Food Additives Proposed for Evaluation
by JECFA to allow an indication of the names of the country either where the
compound is legally traded or where it has been approved and to include more
details on data to be submitted by JECFA.
2.3 Principles governing the evaluation of compounds on the agenda
In making recommendations on the safety of food additives, the Committee
took into consideration the principles established and contained in Environmental
Health Criteria, No. 70 (EHC 70), Principles for the safety assessment
of food additives and contaminants in food (Annex 1, reference 76), as well
as the principles elaborated subsequently at a number of its meetings (Annex
1, references 77, 83, 88, 94, 107, 116, 122, 131, 137, 143, 149, 152, 154,
160, 166, 173, 176, 178, 184, 187 and 190), including the present one. EHC
70 contains the most important observations, comments and recommendations
made, up to the time of its publication, by the Committee and associated
bodies in their reports on the safety assessment of food additives.
2.3.1 Codex GSFA-related questions
The Committee received two questions from the United States of America
(USA), which arose when the USA was preparing a paper on the Codex GSFA
for the next session of CCFA.
Sodium and potassium sulfates
The Committee was asked whether the ADI for sodium sulfate also applied
to sodium hydrogen sulfate and whether the ADI for potassium sulfate also
covered potassium hydrogen sulfate. The Committee had previously evaluated
sodium and potassium sulfate; the sulfate ion was allocated an ADI “not
specified” at the twenty-ninth meeting (Annex 1, reference 70). In evaluating
sodium hydrogen sulfate at the present meeting, the Committee considered
that the principles elaborated at the twenty-ninth meeting for fully ionizable
salts were applicable. It further considered that this approach could also be
used in evaluating other fully ionizable sulfates, including food-grade potassium
sulfate and potassium hydrogen sulfate. In conclusion, the ADI “not
specified” for potassium sulfate is also applicable to potassium hydrogen
sulfate.
Nisin and nisin preparation
In response to the question as to whether the ADI refers to nisin or nisin
preparation, the Committee noted that when the name had been changed from
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