Preservatives in Food Regulations 1975
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | SI 1975/1487 |
| Year | 1975 |
1975 No. 1487
FOOD AND DRUGS
COMPOSITION AND LABELLING
The Preservatives in Food Regulations 19758thSeptember 1975
23rdSeptember 1975
15thOctober 1975
The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the Secretary of State for Social Services, acting jointly, in exercise of the powers conferred on them by sections 4, 7, 123 and 123A of the Food and Drugs Act 1955(a) as amended by section 4(1) of, and paragraph 3(1) and (2)(a) of Schedule 4 to, the European Communities Act 1972(b) and as read with the Secretary of State for Social Services Order 1968(c), 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 after reference to the Food Hygiene Advisory Council under section 82 of the Food and Drugs Act 1955 (in so far as the regulations are made in exercise of the powers conferred by the said section 7):—
Citation and commencement
1. These regulations may be cited as the Preservatives in Food Regulations 1975, and shall come into operation on 15th October 1975.
Interpretation
2.—(1) In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires—
"the Act" means the Food and Drugs Act 1955;
"appropriate designation" means, as respects any permitted preservative or any food, a name or description or a name and description sufficiently specific, in each case, to indicate to an intending purchaser the true nature of the permitted preservative or of the food, as the case may be, to which it is applied;
"biscuits" includes wafers, rusks, crispbreads, oatcakes, matzos and chocolate-coated, chocolate-filled or chocolate-flavoured biscuits;
"bread" has the meaning assigned to it by the Bread and Flour Regulations 1963(d), as amended (e);
"canned food" means food in a hermetically sealed container which has been sufficiently heat processed to destroy any Clostridium botulinum in that food or container or which has a pH of less than 4·5;
(a) 4 & 5 Eliz. 2. c. 16.
(b) 1972 c. 68.
(c) S.I. 1968/1699 (1968 III, p. 4585).
(d) S.I. 1963/1435 (1963 II, p. 2464).
(e) There is no amendment which relates expressly to the subject matter of these regulations.
"carbohydrate" means any substance containing carbon, hydrogen and oxygen only in which the hydrogen and oxygen occur in the same proportion as in water;
"cheese" and "soft cheese" have the meanings respectively assigned to them by the Cheese Regulations 1970(a), as amended (b);
"compounded food" means food containing two or more ingredients;
"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;
"dock" includes any harbour, moorings, wharf, pier, jetty or other works in or at which food can be shipped or unshipped and any warehouse, transit shed or other premises used in connection therewith for the temporary storage or loading for despatch of food which is unshipped or to be shipped;
"flavouring" includes flavouring essence and flavouring extract and means any product consisting of a flavouring agent and such other substances, if any, the use of which in food is not forbidden and which are reasonably necessary to produce a solid, a solution or an emulsion, but no other ingredient or ingredients;
"flavouring agent" means any sapid or odorous substance capable of imparting and primarily intended to impart a specific and distinctive taste or odour to food, but does not include herbs, spices, onions, garlic, salt, fruit juices, soft drinks, fruit acids, acetic acid, any carbohydrate material, any purine derivative, any preparation of yeast, coffee or chicory or any substances prepared by the hydrolysis of protein-containing materials;
"flavouring syrup" means a solution of carbohydrate sweetening matter containing sufficient flavouring to provide, after dilution with milk or water, a drink with that flavour;
"flour confectionery" means any solid or semi-solid product complete in itself and suitable for consumption without further preparation or processing other than heating, of which the characteristic ingredient, apart from any filling, is ground cereal, whether or not flavoured, coated with or containing any carbohydrate sweetening matter, chocolate or cocoa; and includes shortbread, sponges, pastry, pastry cases, crumpets, muffins, macaroons, ratafias, meringues and petits fours, but does not include pharmaceutical products, bread, biscuits, canned puddings, Christmas puddings or any product containing a filling which has as an ingredient any meat or fish or any animal, vegetable or microbial material processed before or during the preparation of the product to resemble the texture of meat or fish;
"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 by section 198 of the Local Government Act 1972(c);
(a) S.I. 1970/94 (1970 I, p. 432).
(b) S.I. 1974/1122, 1975/1486 (1974 II, p. 4269).
(c) 1972 c. 70.
"freeze drink" means any pre-packed liquid which complies with the requirements in the Soft Drinks Regulations 1964(a), as amended(b), as to the composition of any soft drink for consumption without dilution and which is clearly and legibly labelled as intended for freezing before consumption;
"fruit juice" has the meaning assigned to it by the Soft Drinks Regulations 1964, as amended;
"human consumption" includes use in the preparation of food for human consumption;
"jam" includes fruit jelly prepared in the way in which jam is prepared, marmalade and jelly marmalade;
"the Minister" means the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food;
"permitted antioxidant" means any antioxidant in so far as its use is permitted by the Antioxidant in Food Regulations 1974(c), as amended(d);
"permitted artificial sweetener" means any artificial sweetener in so far as its use is permitted by the Artificial Sweeteners in Food Regulations 1969(e);
"permitted bleaching agent" means any bleaching agent in so far as its use is permitted by the Bread and Flour Regulations 1963(f), as amended (g);
"permitted colouring matter" means any colouring matter in so far as its use is permitted by the Colouring Matter in Food Regulations 1973(h), as amended(j);
"permitted emulsifier" means any emulsifier in so far as its use is permitted by the Emulsifiers and Stabilisers in Food Regulations 1975(k);
"permitted improving agent" means any improving agent in so far as its use is permitted by the Bread and Flour Regulations 1963, as amended;
"permitted miscellaneous additive" means any acid, anti-caking agent, anti-foaming agent, base, buffer, firming agent, glazing agent, humectant, liquid freezant, packaging gas, propellent, release agent or sequestrant in so far as its use is permitted by the Miscellaneous Additives in Food Regulations 1974(1), as amended (m);
"permitted preservative" means any preservative specified in columns 1 and 2 of Part I of Schedule 1 or, subject to the provisions of paragraph (3) of this regulation, specified in columns 3 and 4 of that Part of that Schedule which, in either case, satisfies the specific purity criteria in relation to that preservative specified or referred to in Part II of that Schedule, and, so far as is not otherwise provided by any such specific purity criteria, satisfies the general purity criteria specified in Part III of that Schedule, or any mixture of two or more such preservatives;
"permitted solvent" means any solvent in so far as its use is permitted by the Solvents in Food Regulations 1967(n), as amended(o);
"permitted stabiliser" means any stabiliser in so far as its use is permitted by the Emulsifiers and Stabilisers in Food Regulations 1975;
(a) S.I. 1964/760 (1964 II, p. 1605).
(b) There is no amendment which relates expressly to the subject matter of these regulations.
(c) S.I. 1974/1120 (1974 II, p. 4120).
(d) S.I. 1975/1486 (1975 III, p. 4932).
(e) S.I. 1969/1817 (1969 III, p. 5638).
(f) S.I. 1963/1435 (1963 II, p. 2464).
(g) The relevant amending instrument is S.I. 1972/1391 (1972 III, p. 4246).
(h) S.I. 1973/1340 (1973 II, p. 4097).
(j) The amendment does not relate to the subject matter of these regulations.
(k) S.I. 1975/1486 (1975 III, p. 4932).
(l) S.I. 1974/1121 (1974 II, p. 4227).
(m) S.I. 1975/1485 (1975 III, p. 4928).
(n) S.I. 1967/1582 (1967 III, p. 4385).
(o) S.I. 1967/1939 (1967 III, p. 5389).
"polyhydric alcohol" means an alcohol with three or more free hydroxyl groups;
"pre-packed" means made up in advance ready for retail sale in or on a container; and on any premises where food of any description is so made up, or is kept or stored for sale after being so made up, any food of that description found made up in or on a container shall be deemed to be pre-packed unless the contrary is proved;
"preparation", in relation to food, includes manufacture and any form of treatment;
"preservative" means any substance which is capable of inhibiting, retarding or arresting the growth of micro-organisms or any deterioration of food due to micro-organisms or of masking the evidence of any such deterioration but does not include—
(a) any permitted antioxidant,
(b) any permitted artificial sweetener,
(c) any permitted bleaching agent,
(d) any permitted colouring matter,
(e) any permitted emulsifier,
(f) any permitted improving agent,
(g) any permitted miscellaneous additive,
(h) any permitted solvent,
(j) any permitted stabiliser,
(k) vinegar,
(l) any soluble...
To continue reading
Request your trial