FSAI Notifies the Withdrawal of Locust bean gum (E410) in Certain Food Products due to Ethylene Oxide Contamination

On July 16, 2021, the Food Safety Authority of Ireland released the “FSAI Advises on Withdrawal of Some Food Containing Locust Bean Gum (E 410) due to Ethylene Oxide Contamination”, in line with members of other EU states alerts on the identification of higher residues above regulatory maximum limits in locust bean gums.

The scope of the scientific report is summarized below:

• Locust bean gum is a vegetable gum extracted from the seeds of the Carob tree
• It is approved as a food additive in the EU mainly as a thickening agent or stabiliser and in a range of foods including ice-cream, breakfast cereals, meat products, confectionery, follow on formulae, fine bakery wares, fermented milk products and cheese.
• Consumption of foods containing ethylene oxide does not pose an acute risk to health but prolonged consumption of contaminated products may result in health complications

FSAI is working with its official agencies in relation to the identification of the contaminated additive (E410) that may have been supplied to businesses or food manufacturers in Ireland and will provide updates as and when available, it will also list affected food products as identified on its website.   

To view the document, check out the Food News Monitoring System.