| OTO No. | 633 | Classification | MHLW-(3) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of Acceptance | February 5, 2001 | Ministry/Agency Receiving Complaint | Cabinet Office | |
| Responsible Ministries | Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare | Related Laws | Food Sanitation Law | |
| Complainant | Belgian Chamber of Commerce in Japan (Proxy complaint) | Exporting Countries | Belgium | |
| Subject | Request for identification of food additives (magnesium stearate, methylene chloride) | |||
| Description of Complaint |
Under Article 7-1 of the Food Sanitation Law, the government has set up specifications and standards for food additives, etc. (for use, manufacturing and components) in the "Specifications and Standards for Food and Food Additives, etc." (Notification by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare) from the viewpoint of public sanitation. Imports and sales of products failing to meet the standards are banned under Article 7-2 of the law. (1) Belgian confectionary contains magnesium stearate that is banned under the standards, and therefore cannot be imported into Japan. But the confectionary in question is in distribution throughout the world including Europe and the United States. Japan's ban on the product amounts to an import barrier. Accordingly, the government should identify magnesium stearate as an additive for confectionary to allow Belgian confectionary to be imported into Japan. (2) Belgian caffeineless coffee contains methylene chloride that is banned under the standards, and therefore cannot be imported into Japan. But caffeineless coffee manufactured with the methylene chloride method is distributed widely in Europe. Japan's ban on the product amounts to an import barrier. Accordingly, the government should identify methylene chloride as an additive that can be used for manufacturing caffeineless coffee to allow Belgian caffeineless coffee to be imported into Japan. |
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| Details of Measures |
The ministry replied as follows: The use of additives is banned in principle unless the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare identifies them as doing no harm to human health, based on recommendations by the Pharmaceutical Affairs and Food Sanitation Council. Imports of foods containing additives that have not been identified as such are banned. The minister is also entitled to set up standards for the use of additives, from the viewpoint of public sanitation. Imports of foods failing to meet the standards are banned. Identification of new additives must be made in accordance with a guideline (Environmental Health Bureau Director-General's Food Chemistry Notice No. 29, March 1996). If those who hope for such identification make relevant requests to the minister in line with the guideline, appropriate measures will be taken. |
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| Classification of Processing | D | Directions | I-a | |
| Remarks | A written reply was made on February 14, 2001. | |||