Should Rosemary Extract Be Approved as a Food Preservative?
Official title: Proposal to modify the List of Permitted Preservatives to authorize the use of rosemary extract
Health Canada wants to allow rosemary extract as a preservative in snack foods, cookies, crackers, nuts, and pasta. It's already approved in the US, EU, and Australia. The extract prevents fats from going rancid—think chips staying fresh longer.
Why This Matters
Eat chips, cookies, or peanut butter? This affects what's in them. Rosemary extract is a natural alternative to synthetic preservatives. If you care about food ingredients or have allergies, you might want to weigh in.
What Could Change
If approved, food manufacturers could add rosemary extract to snacks, baked goods, nuts, and pasta at specific levels (10-50 ppm). It would appear on ingredient labels as a preservative. Changes take effect immediately upon publication.
Key Issues
- Should rosemary extract be permitted as a preservative in Canadian foods?
- Are the proposed maximum levels (10-50 ppm) appropriate for different food categories?
- Should Canada adopt the international JECFA specifications for rosemary extract?
How to Participate
- Review the List of Permitted Preservatives to see current approved preservatives and understand where rosemary extract would fit.
- Email your comments to food.ibr-ipr.aliments@hc-sc.gc.ca with "rosemary extract (P-FAA-25-02)" in the subject line by February 21, 2026.