| OTO No. | 638 | Classification | MHW-261 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of Acceptance | December 13, 2000 | Ministry/Agency Receiving Complaint | Cabinet Office (Economic Planning Agency) | |
| Responsible Ministries | Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (Ministry of Health and Welfare) | Related Laws | Food Sanitation Law | |
| Complainant | German Chamber of Commerce in Japan (Proxy complaint) | Exporting Countries | Germany | |
| Subject | Review of standards for food additive quantity used (ethyl acetate) | |||
| Description of Complaint | Under Article 7-1 of the Food Sanitation Law, the government has set up the "Standards for Foods and Additives" (a notification by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare) including standards (for use, manufacturing and components), from the viewpoint of public sanitation. The imports and sales of products failing to meet the standards are banned under Article 7-2 of the law.
When attempting to import decaffeinated coffee from Germany, the complainant found that the product could not be imported into Japan since the ethyl acetate used for decaffeinating coffee cannot be used for purposes other than flavoring under the standards for use of food additives. However, ethyl acetate has been used as a safe solvent in Europe and the United States, and decaffeinating technologies have been developed to meet the characteristics of ethyl acetate. Ethyl acetate has originally existed in the natural world and is contained in fruits, vegetables, wine, etc. Ethyl acetate contents in some of them are occasionally higher than in decaffeinated coffee. In Japan, water has reportedly been used for decaffeinating. But water alone has difficulties in effective decaffeinating and can remove coffee's features (including flavor and acidity) as well as caffeine from coffee. Decaffeinating with water has many processes including use of activated charcoal and is not necessarily more excellent in safety than the ethyl acetate-based method. For the above reasons, Japan's rejection of ethyl acetate for decaffeinating without scientific grounds amounts to a barrier to imports of decaffeinated coffee. Accordingly, the complainant makes the following requests to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare: (1) To review the standards for use of food additives to allow ethyl acetate-using caffeineless coffee into Japan. (2) To specify scientific grounds for the standards for use of food additives to limit the use of ethyl acetate to flavoring. |
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| Details of Measures | The ministry replied as follows:
Article 7-1 of the Food Sanitation Law entitles the minister of health, labour and welfare to set up standards for food manufacturing methods, based on recommendations by the Pharmaceutical Affairs and Food Sanitation Council. Revisions to the standards for food additives must be made in accordance with a guideline (Environmental Health Bureau Director-General's Food Chemistry Notice No. 29, March 1996). If those hoping for revisions make relevant requests to the minister in line with the guideline, the requests will be duly addressed. Ethyl acetate is not admitted for decaffeinating only because the Pharmaceutical Affairs and Food Sanitation Council has never scientifically assessed the safety or necessity of ethyl acetate for decaffeinating in the absence of requests for such use based on the guideline. |
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| Status of Processing | Processed (April 10, 2001) | Classification | D | |
| Remarks |
A written reply was made on December 20, 2000.
An additional written reply was made on January 24, 2001. |
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