Analytical topics

• Additives and their analysis (purity requirements, detection in the food matrix, contaminant analysis)
• JECFA (FAO/WHO) methods; § 64 methods
• Cooperation with reference laboratories (national - European)

Food law topics

• Food law regulations (e.g. Regulation (EC) 1333/2008)
• Scientific issues (e.g. technological effectiveness)
• Purity criteria (Regulation (EU) 231/2012)
• Differentiation issues additives / processing aids / nutrients / food ingredients (e.g. food fibres as additives or nutrients)
• Differentiation issues food fibres as additives or nutrients)
• Exchange on developments in the authorisation of additives in the EU
• Labelling of additives in food and in business-to-business sales
• Safety issues regarding additives (e.g. discussion of current EFSA opinions)

• Differentiation of colours / colouring foods (2024) (pdf)
• Food law status of food cultures (2023) (pdf)
• Opinion on the use of plant extracts rich in technologically active ingredients (2020) (pdf)
• Application of the Regulation on the hygiene of foodstuffs (852/2004/EC) to the manufacture of food additives (2005) (pdf)

Please note that access to the publications in "Lebensmittelchemie" is reserved for subscribers to the journal only.

• Poster article Working Group Additives LM-Chemietage 2025
• Häseler, J. (2025) Tagungsbericht II "Ballaststoffe - viel mehr als Ballast
• Sieg, J. (2025) Concentrated dietary fibres based on the J. Rettenmaier portfolio
• Bunzel, M. (2025) Can analytical methods reflect the chemical diversity of dietary fibres?
• Nagel, A. (2025) Reformulation of foods with extrinsic dietary fibres
• Kerlikowsky, F. (2025) Dietary fibres - a nutritional-physiological view
• Scherb-Forster, J. (2025) Plant fibre preparations for food - between additives and nutrients, food fraud or benefit?
• Gelbert, J. (2025) Food law interpretation issues from the perspective of the food industry
  

Literature references

• Eds. Muermann | Rexroth | Sumfleth: Handbuch Lebensmittelzusatzstoffe, Behr's Verlag, Hamburg
• P. Kuhnert: Lexikon Lebensmittelzusatzstoffe, 4th edition, 2014, Behr's Verlag, Hamburg
• R. Matissek & M. Fischer: Lebensmittelanalytik, 2nd ed. Springer Spektrum, 2021
• Michael and Irene Ash: Handbook of Food Additives, 3rd Ed., Synapse Information Resources Inc., 2008
• Jim Smith: Food Additive User's Handbook, Springer science+business media, LLC, 1996

Further Internet pages:

• Germany
  BMEL - Authorisation and use of food additives
  BfR - Food additives
  BfR - Commission for Food Additives, Flavourings and Processing Aids
  Lebensmittelverband Deutschland - additives
  VCI - Guideline for Good hygiene practice in food additive production
  
• EU
  European Commission - Additives
  EFSA - Food additives
  
• Codex Alimentarius
  Codex Committee on Food Additives (CCFA)
  Codex General Standard for Food Additives (GSFA) Online Database
  JECFA - Database on Evaluations of JECFA
  JECFA - Combined Compendium of Food Additives Specifications

These statements no longer correspond to the current state of affairs and are for documentation purposes only and not for further use in current discussions.

• Statement on wheat stalk fibre ("wheat fibre") (2012) (pdf)
• Protective cultures as additives? (2012) (pdf)
• Aluminium in food additives and in substances for special nutritional purposes (2008) (pdf)