Singapore Unveils Amended Food Regulations

On Jan. 30, 2019, Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) publicized Food (Amendment) Regulations 2019^[1], announcing changes to standards for food additives, contaminants and health claims. Food products available for sale on or after 1 February 2019 shall comply with the new requirements. Major changes are:

Health claim of oat β-glucan permitted

Before the revision, only products containing barley derived β-glucan were allowed to bear a health claim. Now products containing oat derived β-glucan, may use the following claim in a label:
“Oat beta-glucans have been shown to lower/reduce blood cholesterol. High blood cholesterol is a risk factor in the development of coronary heart disease.”

Food additives newly added and scope expanded

Scope expanded
Food additive name	Function	Additional scope	Maximum limit
dimethyl polysiloxane	anti-foaming agent	lactobacillus milk drinks or cultured milk, drinks	10 ppm
		flavored milk
		ready-to-drink coffee
		ready-to-drink tea
Newly approved
Food additive name	Function	scope	Maximum limit
Monk fruit extract	Sweetening agent	all food	GMP
propionic acid	Chemical preservatives	all food	GMP
1,3-propanediol	Flavoring agent solvent	-	refer to British Pharmacopoeia standard
……for more info, check on Food Regulations 2019^[2] and refer to Food Additives Permitted Under the Singapore Food Regulations^[3].

Maximum limit for contaminants and antibiotic residues

Maximum limits of copper in food are removed
Maximum limit of 5 ppm for formaldehyde in smoked meat, smoked sausage and smoked fish is deleted
Limit of inorganic arsenic in husked rice (0.35 ppm) is set
Nisin is allowed to be employed in the preservation of liquid egg analogues