The European Commission launched, on 6 October, a public consultation, open until 3 November, on a draft regulation to restrict the use of green tea extracts as a food supplement in the EU.
The cause: catechins, a compound in green tea extracts, which the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) considered, in a 2018 scientific opinion, could risk liver injury.
The draft Commission Regulation, due to be adopted before the end of the year, will amend Annex III of EU Regulation (EC) No 1925/2006 on the addition of vitamins and minerals and of certain other substances to foods. It will aim to ensure that foods containing catechins are safe for human consumption.
In 2015, Norway, Sweden and Denmark requested the Commission to initiate the procedure under Article 8 of the Regulation, as there was a potential risk to consumers from the consumption of green tea extracts in found in food.
The Commission wants to gather as many comments as possible from all interested parties in order to finalise its draft regulation.
To access the public consultation: https://bit.ly/3lnqqMZ (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)