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. Right now, it's not approved for use in Canada. The extract would prevent foods from going stale or rancid by stopping oxidation.
Why This Matters
Eat chips, crackers, or peanut butter? This could affect what's in them. Rosemary extract is already used in the US, EU, and Australia. If approved, you might see it on ingredient labels soon.
What Could Change
If approved, food manufacturers could add rosemary extract to cookies, chips, nuts, pasta, and snack bars. It would appear on ingredient labels as a preservative. Maximum levels would range from 10 to 50 parts per million depending on the food.
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 proposed changes to the List of Permitted Preservatives to understand what foods would be affected.
- Send your comments by email to food.ibr-ipr.aliments@hc-sc.gc.ca with "rosemary extract (P-FAA-25-02)" in the subject line.