§ Mr. BakerTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what monitoring the Food Standards Agency has undertaken of the number of people suffering an adverse reaction to aspartame; and how many cases have so far been reported of such a reaction, broken down by symptoms suffered. [124085]
§ Ms StuartI have been asked to reply.
The Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products, and the Environment will be publishing shortly a review of adverse reactions to food and food ingredients, including food additives. Their report discusses the difficulties in establishing the true incidence and prevalence of these reactions and attributing an adverse reaction to a specific food or food ingredient. Additionally, the Food Standards Agency has recently commissioned a feasibility study of methods to monitor potential adverse reactions to novel foods and the outcome of this will help to establish whether, and if so in what form, a practical monitoring system might be established. A copy of the COT's report will be placed in the Library as soon as it becomes available.