Colouring Matter in Food Regulations 1966
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | SI 1966/1203 |
| Year | 1966 |
1966 No. 1203
FOOD AND DRUGS
COMPOSITION AND LABELLING
The Colouring Matter in Food Regulations 196619thSeptember 1966
30thSeptember 1966
26thJune 1967
The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the Minister of Health, acting jointly, in exercise of the powers conferred on them by sections 4, 7 and 123 of the Food and Drugs Act 1955(a) and of all other powers enabling them in that behalf, hereby make the following regulations after consultation with such organisations as appear to them to be representative of interests substantially affected by the regulations and reference to the Food Hygiene Advisory Council under section 82 of the said Act (insofar as the regulations relate to the labelling, marking or description of food):—
Citation and commencement
1. These regulations may be cited as the Colouring Matter in Food Regulations 1966; and shall come into operation on 26th June 1967.
Interpretation
2.—(1) In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires—
"the Act" means the Food and Drugs Act 1955;
"butter" means the fatty substance intended for sale for human consumption which—
(a) is usually known as butter,
(b) is derived exclusively from cow's milk, the pH of which may have been adjusted by the addition of an alkali carbonate,
and includes whey butter;
"cheese" means the fresh or matured product intended for sale for human consumption, which is obtained as follows—
(a) in the case of any cheese other than whey cheese—
(i) by coagulating any or a combination of any of the following substances, namely milk, cream, skimmed milk, partly skimmed milk, concentrated skimmed milk, reconstituted dried milk and butter milk, and
(ii) partially draining the whey resulting from any such coagulation;
(b) in the case of whey cheese—
(i) by concentrating whey with or without the addition of milk and milk fat, and moulding such concentrated whey, or
(ii) by coagulating whey with or without the addition of milk and milk fat;
(a) 4 & 5 Eliz. 2. c. 16.
"cheese spread" means cheese which has been subjected to a process of melting and mixing with milk products other than cheese, with or without the addition of emulsifying salts;
"container" includes any form of packaging of food for sale as a single item, whether by way of wholly or partly enclosing the food or by way of attaching the food to some other article, and in particular includes a wrapper or confining band;
"food" means food intended for sale for human consumption and includes drink, chewing gum and other products of a like nature and use, and articles and substances used as ingredients in the preparation of food or drink or of such products, but does not include—
(a) water, live animals or birds,
(b) fodder or feeding stuffs for animals, birds or fish, or
(c) articles or substances used only as drugs;
"food and drugs authority" has the meaning assigned to it in section 83 of the Act;
"hard cheese" means cheese other than soft cheese, whey cheese, processed cheese or cheese spread;
"human consumption" includes use in the preparation of food for human consumption;
"permitted colouring matter" means any colouring matter described in Schedule 1 to these regulations, which complies with the specification specified in that Schedule in relation to such colouring matter, or any combination of two or more such colouring matters;
"processed" in relation to any food, includes curing by smoking and any treatment or process resulting in a substantial change in the natural state of any food but does not include boning, paring, grinding, cutting, cleaning or trimming and "unprocessed" shall be construed accordingly;
"processed cheese" means cheese which has been subjected to a process of melting and mixing with or without the addition of emulsifying salts;
"sell" includes offer or expose for sale or have in possession for sale, and "sale" and "sold" shall be construed accordingly;
"soft cheese" means cheese which is readily deformed by moderate pressure but does not include whey cheese, processed cheese or cheese spread, and any reference to soft cheese includes a reference to cream cheese or curd cheese;
"vegetable" includes pulses;
"whey cheese" means the product obtained by one or other of the processes referred to in paragraph (b) of the foregoing definition of "cheese";
AND other expressions have the same meaning as in the Act.
(2) The Interpretation Act 1889(a) shall apply to the interpretation of these regulations as it applies to the interpretation of an Act of Parliament and as if these regulations and the regulations hereby revoked were Acts of Parliament.
(3) All percentages mentioned in these regulations are percentages calculated by weight and, unless a contrary intention is expressed, are calculated on the weight of the product as sold.
(4) Any reference in these regulations to a label borne on a container shall
(a) 1889 c. 63.
be construed as including a reference to any legible marking on the container however effected.
(5) For the purposes of these regulations, the supply of food, otherwise than by sale, at, in or from any place where food is supplied in the course of a business shall be deemed to be a sale of that food.
Exemptions
3. The provisions of these regulations shall not apply in relation to any colouring matter (including any colouring matter which is an ingredient of any colouring compound or of any colouring and flavouring compound), any diluent combined with any colouring matter or any food having any colouring matter in it or on it, which is sold—
(a) for exportation to any place outside the United Kingdom; or
(b) for the purpose of scientific laboratory testing, if the container of any such colouring matter, diluent or food bears a label stating clearly that such colouring matter, diluent or food, as the case may be, is sold only for such purpose.
Sale, etc. of colouring matter and food containing colouring matter
4.—(1) No colouring matter, whether such colouring matter is an ingredient of any colouring compound or of any colouring and flavouring compound or not, shall be sold, consigned, delivered or imported into England and Wales for use as an ingredient in the preparation of food unless such colouring matter is a permitted colouring matter.
(2) No food sold, consigned, delivered or imported into England and Wales shall have in it or on it any colouring matter other than a permitted colouring matter.
(3) No food sold, consigned, delivered or imported into England and Wales shall have in it or on it any mark, however effected, in any colouring matter other than a permitted colouring matter.
(4) No person shall sell, consign, deliver or import into England and Wales, as the case may be, any food or colouring matter in contravention of this regulation.
Prohibition of the use of added colouring matter
5.—(1) Save as hereinafter provided, no meat, game, poultry, fish, fruit or vegetable, in a raw or unprocessed state, sold, consigned, delivered or imported into England and Wales for human consumption, shall have in it or on it (otherwise than for the purpose of marking) any added colouring matter:
Provided that—
(a) the husk containing any nut may have in it or on it added permitted colouring matter;
(b) the peel of any orange may have in it or on it added permitted colouring matter if—
(i) the words "colour added" are marked on the peel of such orange in permitted colouring matter, and
(ii) the said words are printed distinctly and legibly and are conspicuously visible.
(2) No tea (whether in leaf or essence form), coffee bean, ground coffee, coffee essence, white bread, soda bread, cream, condensed milk or dried milk, sold, consigned, delivered or...
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