A. Draft Standard for Cocoa Butter (ALINORM 99/14, Appendix II)
Title and Scope
7. The Committee adopted the Title and Scope of the standard without change.
Description (Section 2)
8. At the request of the Delegation of India, the Committee decided to reinstate the former maximum level for unsaponifiable matter of 0.7% m/m, in order to meet processing limitations in many countries. The Delegation of France on behalf of the Members of the European Union expressed its reservation at this decision.
9. The Committee decided to recognize the existence in trade of “press cocoa butter” as defined in the Standard and agreed to remove the square brackets from the definition of this product.
Food Additives/Processing Aids (Section 3)
10. The Delegation of the United States proposed that all safe and suitable extraction solvents be allowed for use, and this proposal was supported by several other Delegations. It was noted that several extraction solvents were included in the Codex Inventory of Processing Aids with defined maximum limits for residues. The Committee decided however to retain the reference only to hexane with a maximum residue limit of 1 mg/kg as had been endorsed by the CCFAC.
Contaminants (Section 4)
11. The Committee had an extensive debate on the maximum limit for Lead (Pb) and the possibility of reducing the proposed limit from 0.5 mg/kg to 0.1 mg/kg. Several delegations reported that levels found in commerce indicated that the level of 0.1 mg/kg could be achieved with good agricultural and manufacturing practices. Other Delegations stated that levels of less than 0.5 mg/kg were not technically achievable in developing countries in particular, and that levels ranging as high a 1 mg/kg were sometimes encountered. It was noted that the Draft Maximum Limits for Lead in Food[6] that had been submitted to the Commission for adoption included the limit of 0.1 mg/kg for vegetable fats.
12. In proposing this level, the Committee invited countries that had data on Lead levels in products obtained from good agricultural and manufacturing practices, to submit these data to the CCFAC to either confirm the level of 0.1 mg/kg, or to justify a higher level.
13. The Committee noted the comment of the Delegation of India that the reduction of the limit would have to be foreseen within a reasonable timeframe to allow for changes to agricultural, processing and production practices.
14. The Committee did not adopt a proposal from Switzerland to include a limit of 20 mg/kg for aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons originating from jute bags. Although recognizing the problem of the occurrence of these substances in cocoa products, the Committee also recognized that changes in the mode of packaging and transport that avoided the use of jute bags were coming into effect and that as a consequence the problem would diminish. The Committee agreed that it would be premature to include maximum limits, but encouraged countries to take further measures to reduce the presence of these substances in cocoa products.
Labelling (Section 6)
15. The Committee agreed to provide for the labelling of both “cocoa butter” and “press cocoa butter” according to the criteria specified in Section 2 of the Standard.
Status of the Proposed Draft Standard for Cocoa Butter
16. The Committee agreed to advance the revised Draft Standard for Cocoa Butter to Step 8 of the Codex Procedure for final adoption by the Commission. The full text of the revised Draft Standard is contained in Appendix II of this report.
B. Draft Standard for Cocoa, Cocoa (Cacao) Mass (Cocoa/Chocolate Liquor) and Cocoa Cake for use in the Manufacture Of Cocoa and Chocolate Products (ALINORM 99/14, Appendix III)
Title and Scope
17. The Committee noted the opinions of those Delegations that wished to add synonyms for cocoa mass to the title of the standard to make reference specifically to cocoa paste, unsweetened chocolate and bitter chocolate. The Committee amended the Title and Scope of the standard to deal with the consequences of the introduction of the product unsweetened chocolate in the detailed sections of the standard dealing with composition and labelling.
Descriptions (Section 2)
18. The Committee agreed to include a reference to the possibility of roasting and the possibility of adding or removing constituents of the cocoa nib. The Delegation of Spain expressed its disagreement with the possibility of removal of cocoa constituents as this would allow for the removal of cocoa butter.
Essential Composition and Quality Factors (Section 3)
19. The Committee decided to separate the requirements for Cocoa Mass and Cocoa Cake in order to provide limits for the cocoa butter content of Cocoa Mass (47 to 60% m/m). The Committee agreed to remove the requirements for Total Ash and Ash Insoluble in Hydrochloric Acid for both Cocoa Mass and Cocoa Cake. The Delegation of The Netherlands noted that this would remove a useful control over the presence on mineral impurities in the products concerned.
Food Additives (Section 4)
20. The Committee had an extended discussion on the relationship between the food additives provisions in commodity standards and those in the General Standard for Food Additives (GSFA). It was noted that the GSFA was a “work in progress” and that many specific food and food additive combinations had yet to be finalized. For the time being, the food additive provisions in Codex Standards were being included in the GSFA as the appropriate provisions for the commodities covered by Codex commodity standards. When the GSFA was closer to completion, it would be necessary to rationalize the general provisions of the GSFA with specific provisions for commodity standards, taking into account the technological needs for the food additives.
21. The Delegation of Germany expressed its reservation concerning the use of artificial flavours, and the Delegation of Italy expressed the opinion that it would like to include artificial flavours in a separate section.
22. The Committee agreed to add Magnesium Oxide (INS 530) to the list of Acidity Regulators and Polyglycerol Esters of Interesterified Ricinoleic Acid (INS 476) to the list of Emulsifiers.
23. The Observer from the European Community stated that as the products covered by the standard were intermediate products for further manufacturing, there should either be no need to specify maximum limits or that the maximum limits should be those expressed on the finished product basis. The Committee agreed that the numeric levels given should represent the level in the finished cocoa or chocolate product.
Contaminants (Section 5)
24. The Committee, noting its discussion in relation to Cocoa Butter (see paras. 11-13 above), decided to reduce the level for Lead to 1 mg/kg in these products and invited countries that had data on Lead levels, to submit these data to the CCFAC.
Labelling (Section 7)
25. The Committee agreed to include a reference to the use of the terms Cocoa Paste, Unsweetened Chocolate, and Bitter Chocolate as synonyms for Cocoa (Cacao) Mass and Cocoa/Chocolate Liquor provided that this was acceptable under the requirements of the legislation in the importing country.
Methods of Analysis and Sampling
26. The Committee agreed to add a method for the determination of Fat Content and deleted the methods for the determination of Total Ash and Ash Insoluble in Hydrochloric Acid.
Status of the Proposed Draft Standard for Cocoa (Cacao) Mass (Cocoa/Chocolate Liquor) and Cocoa Cake
27. The Committee agreed to advance the revised Draft Standard for Cocoa (Cacao) Mass (Cocoa/Chocolate Liquor) and Cocoa Cake to Step 8 of the Codex Procedure for final adoption by the Commission. The full text of the revised Draft Standard is contained in Appendix III of this report.
C. Draft Standard for Cocoa Powders (Cocoas) and Dry Cocoa-Sugar Mixtures (ALINORM 99/14, Appendix IV)
Title and Scope
28. The Committee amended the Title and Scope to indicate that the products were dry mixtures of cocoa and sugars, not only sucrose.
Essential Composition and Quality Factors (Section 3)
29. The Committee had an extended debate on the Moisture Content of the products covered by the Standard. Several Delegations proposed raising the level of moisture content to 9% m/m to take into account the absorption of moisture during transport, storage and handling before the point of sale to the consumer. Other Delegations proposed a reduction of the moisture content to limit the potential for microbial or mould growth, but data were not available to indicate what level would be required for this purpose. The Committee agreed to retain the current proposed limit of 7% m/m and removed the square brackets surrounding this provision.
30. In order to reflect the Committee’s decision concerning the use of sugars other than sucrose, it was agreed to use the term Dry Mixtures of Cocoa and Sugars in place of Cocoa-Sugar Mixtures (Section 3.1.2).
31. The Committee also discussed the differentiation of the products covered by the standard by their cocoa butter content, with some Delegations indicating that the term “fat-reduced” applied to products of less than 20% cocoa butter, and other indicating that the term applied to products of less than 10% cocoa butter. Some concerns were expressed about the use of descriptors that might be misleading to consumers. In order to avoid a situation where the same product could be marketed under two competing designations, the Committee decided to establish a three-tier structure as follows:
32. It was noted that the term “Drinking Chocolate” (“Chocolat de ménage en poudre”) was an acceptable synonym for Sweetened Cocoa Powder in both the full-fat and fat-reduced forms.
33. The Committee decided to present all possible combinations of products depending on their cocoa butter and cocoa powder contents in a tabular form.
34. The Committee decided to retain the definition of the product “Chocolate Powder”, but amended the minimum cocoa powder content to 32% m/m on the whole product, or 29% on a dry matter basis.
Food Additives (Section 4)
35. The Delegation of Japan submitted a list of food additives in writing and it was recommended to send data on technological justification for the use of such additives to the Codex Committee on Food Additives and Contaminants. The Japan's list is included as Annex VI to this report.
36. The Committee noted the reservation of the Delegation of Germany concerning the use of artificial flavours in these products.
37. The Committee agreed to delete the Anticaking Agent Potassium Aluminium Silicate (INS 555) as recommended by the CCFAC.
38. The Committee agreed to add the following substances to the list of food additives:
39. The Committee noted that the inclusion of high-intensity sweeteners in the list of food additives would require additional labelling provisions to ensure that consumers were fully informed of the nature of the products concerned (see below, para. 42). The Delegation of Canada noted that Sodium Saccharin was not allowed for use in that country as a food additive.
40. The Committee agreed that all numeric values given in the list of food additives should refer to the concentration in the finished product. It was further noted that the revised list of food additives would need to be submitted to the CCFAC for endorsement of the changes made to the list.
Contaminants (Section 5)
41. The Committee, noting its discussion in relation to Cocoa Butter (see paras. 11-13 above), decided to reduce the level for Lead to 1 mg/kg in these products and invited countries that had data on Lead levels, to submit these data to the CCFAC.
Labelling (Section 7)
42. The Committee agreed to simplify the provisions concerning the Name of the Food for Dry Mixtures of Cocoa and Sugars by making direct reference to the names given in the table of descriptions in Section 3.1.2.
43. In light of its decision to allow the use of artificial sweeteners, the Committee agreed to include two statements under the Section on Labelling; the first to require that when artificial sweeteners were used to replace all or part of the sugars component, the word Sugar or its equivalent should not form part of the Name of the Food but should be replaced in those languages which required it, by the term “Sweetened”. A second statement was included to require that the term “artificially sweetened” or an equivalent declaration be used in association with the Name of the Food.
44. The Committee agreed that the declaration of minimum cocoa powder content (whether full-fat, fat-reduced, or highly fat-reduced) be declared on the label in accordance with Section 5.1.1 of the General Standard for the Labelling of Prepackaged Foods.
Methods of Analysis and Sampling (Section 8)
45. The Committee agreed to up-date the references to methods for Determination of Cocoa Butter and Determination of Moisture and to delete reference to methods for which there were no criteria established in the standard. It was noted that there was no current method for the determination of cocoa powder (whether full-fat, fat-reduced, or highly fat-reduced), but the Committee decided to retain the possibility of the development of such a method in the future to enable officials to determine compliance with the provisions of the standard.
Status of the Proposed Draft Standard for Cocoa Powders (Cocoas) and Dry Mixtures of Cocoa and Sugars
46. The Committee agreed to advance the revised Draft Standard for Cocoa Powders (Cocoas) and Dry Mixtures of Cocoa and Sugars to Step 8 of the Codex Procedure for final adoption by the Commission. The full text of the revised Draft Standard is contained in Appendix IV of this report.
