§ Mr. Gordon BrownTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many additives appear on his Department's list of food additives including flavourings and colours at present in use in Britain; and whether he has any plans to add to this list.
§ Mr. RyderThere are about 300 additives, including colours listed in United Kingdom regulations and about 3,000 flavourings in use which are subject to the provisions of the 1984 Food Act. I have recently circulated proposals on preservatives and emulsifiers and stabilisers which would add three new substances and delete four substances from the permitted list. New regulations will also be required to implement the EC directive on extraction solvents. In addition, I have announced our intention to ban the use of mineral hydrocarbons in food as soon as possible. Applications to use new food additives may be reserved from time to time and would be subject to careful evaluation by two independent expert advisory committees, the food advisory committee and the Department of Health's committee on toxicity.