food additive

Defined in Article 3, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 (Additives)

Definitions over time (3)

1. 19/03/2020 – today applies on 12/11/2026 Article 3, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 (Additives) Scope: Whole act

   For the purposes of this Regulation the following definitions shall also apply:

   ‘food additive’ shall mean any substance not normally consumed as a food in itself and not normally used as a characteristic ingredient of food, whether or not it has nutritive value, the intentional addition of which to food for a technological purpose in the manufacture, processing, preparation, treatment, packaging, transport or storage of such food results, or may be reasonably expected to result, in it or its by-products becoming directly or indirectly a component of such foods; The following are not considered to be food additives: monosaccharides, disaccharides or oligosaccharides and foods containing these substances used for their sweetening properties; foods, whether dried or in concentrated form, including flavourings incorporated during the manufacturing of compound foods, because of their aromatic, sapid or nutritive properties together with a secondary colouring effect; substances used in covering or coating materials, which do not form part of foods and are not intended to be consumed together with those foods; products containing pectin and derived from dried apple pomace or peel of citrus fruits or quinces, or from a mixture of them, by the action of dilute acid followed by partial neutralisation with sodium or potassium salts (liquid pectin); chewing gum bases; white or yellow dextrin, roasted or dextrinated starch, starch modified by acid or alkali treatment, bleached starch, physically modified starch and starch treated by amylolitic enzymes; ammonium chloride; blood plasma, edible gelatin, protein hydrolysates and their salts, milk protein and gluten; amino acids and their salts other than glutamic acid, glycine, cysteine and cystine and their salts having no technological function; caseinates and casein; inulin;

2. 20/03/2017 – 19/03/2020 Article 3, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 (Additives) Scope: Whole act

   For the purposes of this Regulation the following definitions shall also apply:

   ‘food additive’ shall mean any substance not normally consumed as a food in itself and not normally used as a characteristic ingredient of food, whether or not it has nutritive value, the intentional addition of which to food for a technological purpose in the manufacture, processing, preparation, treatment, packaging, transport or storage of such food results, or may be reasonably expected to result, in it or its by-products becoming directly or indirectly a component of such foods;

3. 20/07/2010 – 20/03/2017 Article 3, Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 (Additives) Scope: Whole act

   For the purposes of this Regulation the following definitions shall also apply:

   ‘food additive’ shall mean any substance not normally consumed as a food in itself and not normally used as a characteristic ingredient of food, whether or not it has nutritive value, the intentional addition of which to food for a technological purpose in the manufacture, processing, preparation, treatment, packaging, transport or storage of such food results, or may be reasonably expected to result, in it or its by-products becoming directly or indirectly a component of such foods; The following are not considered to be food additives: monosaccharides, disaccharides or oligosaccharides and foods containing these substances used for their sweetening properties; foods, whether dried or in concentrated form, including flavourings incorporated during the manufacturing of compound foods, because of their aromatic, sapid or nutritive properties together with a secondary colouring effect; substances used in covering or coating materials, which do not form part of foods and are not intended to be consumed together with those foods; products containing pectin and derived from dried apple pomace or peel of citrus fruits or quinces, or from a mixture of them, by the action of dilute acid followed by partial neutralisation with sodium or potassium salts (liquid pectin); chewing gum bases; white or yellow dextrin, roasted or dextrinated starch, starch modified by acid or alkali treatment, bleached starch, physically modified starch and starch treated by amylolitic enzymes; ammonium chloride; blood plasma, edible gelatin, protein hydrolysates and their salts, milk protein and gluten; amino acids and their salts other than glutamic acid, glycine, cysteine and cystine and their salts having no technological function; caseinates and casein; inulin;

Used in (212 places in 49 provisions on 12/11/2026)

Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 (Additives) (212 in 49)

Recital 3 · Recital 4⁴ · Recital 5³ · Recital 7⁶ · Recital 8⁴ · Recital 9² · Recital 10² · Recital 12 · Recital 13 · Recital 14 · Recital 17² · Recital 22 · Recital 24 · Recital 25⁶ · Recital 26² · Recital 27² · Recital 28³ · Preamble · Article 1⁵ · Article 2³ · Article 3⁴ · Article 4⁷ · Article 5³ · Article 6⁶ · Article 7 · Article 8 · Article 9³ · Article 10⁸ · Article 11⁶ · Article 12² · Article 13³ · Article 14³ · Article 15 · Article 16 · Article 18¹² · Article 19² · Article 20 · Article 21 · Article 22⁹ · Article 23³ · Article 26⁴ · Article 27² · Article 30¹⁰ · Article 31 · Article 32 · Article 34 · Annex I⁴ · Annex II¹⁰ · Annex III⁵¹