On March 2, 2022, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) revealed an exposure draft of Health Functional Food Code1 for public opinion. The consultation period is set to end on May 2, 2022.
The proposed changes are:
1. Expanding Raw Material Scope for Manufacturing Protein
All kinds of permitted food ingredients are proposed to be used in manufacturing protein products:
Present | Draft |
Raw Material: Legumes, oils, eggs, fishes, shellfishes, meats, nuts, cereals, edible insects. (Edible insects used for manufacturing protein should be on the list of the Food Code2) |
Raw Material: Protein products shall be manufactured or processed from food ingredients, in order to supplement protein. |
2. Adding New Function of Ginseng
According to the Draft, the individually recognized function of ginseng “benefit for liver health” is going to be changed to a notified function and listed in Health Functional Food Code3.
Therefore, once the draft is passed, the notified functions of ginseng would be “helpful to improve immunity, recover from fatigue, benefit for bone health, and benefit for liver health”.
Background
Adding the “individually recognized function” to Health Functional Food Code
As stipulated in Article 6 under Chapter 1 of Health Functional Food Code, an individually recognized function of a pre-notified ingredient can be added into the Health Function Food Code officially three years after the first approval date. Thus, all companies can use the relevant function to purport the products. Before adding the “individually recognized function” to the Codex, only the applicant of the function can make the relevant health claim on the product. |
The recommended daily intake of the product purporting “benefit to liver” is drafted as well:
Total amount of ginsenoside Rg1 and Rb1: 28.8mg (equivalent to 2.4g ginseng extract).
3. Removing Aloe Whole Leaf from the Functional Ingredient List
The side effect of hepatotoxicity was found after continuous consumption of the aloe whole leaf ingredient for a long time. Therefore, the authority proposed to delete this raw material from the functional ingredient list.
Note the aloe gel still remains a functional ingredient.
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