The European Commission adopted two pieces of legislation to permit that flavouring substances in food will become even safer and more transparent. Used to alter the taste and/or odour of food, flavourings substances are used in a wide variety of foods, such as soft drinks, confectionery, cereals, cakes and yoghurts, and have now been evaluated at EU level. Now, only those flavouring substances featuring on the approved lists will be permitted for use by the food industry.

Two pieces of legislation have been adopted by the European Commission to clarify and harmonise the use of flavouring substances within the single market. The first Regulation provides for a new EU wide list of flavouring substances which can be used in food and will apply from 22 April 2013, giving time for the EU food industry to adapt to the new rules. All flavouring substances not in the list will be prohibited after a phasing out period of 18 months. The second Regulation concerns transitional measures for other flavourings such as flavourings made from non-food sources and will apply from 22 October 2012. In 2011, Commission banned from EU market 6 substances for carcinogenic or toxic effects in living organisms.

According to the European Commission, transparency and clarity of information is one of the main benefits of the new rules. The authorised uses of flavouring substances will be listed according to the category of food to which they may be added. Transparency will be improved as the list will also be available in an on-line database allowing consumers, food businesses and national food control authorities to easily identify which flavouring substances are authorised in food.

These substances have a long history of safe use in a wide variety of foods, such as soft drinks, confectionery, cereals, cakes and yoghurts, and have now been evaluated at EU level. The new list includes over 2,100 authorised flavouring substances. A further 400 will remain on the market until EFSA concludes its evaluation. These have been used for a long time and have already been assessed as safe by other scientific bodies.