Sweeteners (Hansard, 14 June 1991)

§ Mr. Bowis
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list the sweeteners approved for consumption in the United Kingdom, giving the acceptable level of daily intake; and if he will make a statement on the role of the Committee on the Toxicity of Foodstuffs in such approvals and the criteria used in such approvals.
708W

§ Mr. Maclean
Under the Sweeteners in Food Regulations 1983, as amended, the following sweeteners have been approved for use; the intense sweeteners Acesulfame K, Aspartame, Saccharin and Thaumatin; and the bulk sweeteners hydrogenated glucose syrup, Isomalt, Mannitol, Sorbitol, Xylitol and Lactitol. All have been cleared for need by the Food Advisory Committee and for safety by the Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment (COT), which has allocated an acceptable daily intake (ADI) of 0–5 mg per k bodyweight per day for saccharin. The COT takes account of all available toxicological evidence from the manufacturers of the additives and elsewhere including any evidence that some people may suffer adverse reactions from eating a particular substance. The criteria for this are set out in the guidelines for the testing of chemicals for toxicity produced by the committee and published by Her Majesty's Stationery Office. A copy is in the Library. Similar guidelines have been produced for mutagenicity and carcinogenicity testing.

§ Mr. Bowis
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what information he has about the views of other European Community countries and the European Community Scientific Committee for Food on the acceptability of cyclamate and neohesperidine as sweeteners; what advice he has received from the Committee on the Toxicity of Foodstuffs on these; and if he will make a statement.

§ Mr. Maclean
On cyclamate, France, Greece and the United Kingdom have reserved their position pending discussion of a further review of the safety data by the Scientific Committee for Food which the United Kingdom requested as a result of advice from the Committee on Toxicity. No objections have been raised to the inclusion of neohesperidine in the draft directive of sweeteners.