The application from the Canada-based company is for a vitamin D rich baker’s yeast to be brought onto the European market under the Novel Food Regulation (EC) 258/97. In its Novel Food application (found here), Lallemand said it proposes to market the yeast Saccharomyces Cerevisiae containing an enhanced levels of vitamin D2 as a nutritional food ingredient and food supplement ingredient.
The company added that it intends that the vitamin D rich yeast concentrate yeast will be used primarily in the leavening of bread and in food supplements and will be produced by treating the yeast with UV light to enhance vitamin D2 production.
Lallemand pointed out that vitamin D2 is an authorised form of vitamin D in the EU, noting that some companies extract the vitamin from irradiated yeast: “Lallemand believes that there is a market for a less processed form of vitamin D2 obtained from yeast – as in the way some customers prefer raw sugar to refined sugar or whole grain wheat to white flour.
“Therefore, Lallemand proposes to market this less processed form of vitamin D2 … as an alternative form to the extracted vitamin D2 in all its food applications (current foods and foods supplements) wherever vitamin D2 is authorized,” said the application.
It said that the dossier supports the position that the company’s yeast concentrate “should be approved as a source of vitamin D for the addition to food in the EU.”
Novel foods views
Before a new food ingredient can be introduced on the European market, it must be rigorously assessed for safety – according to the European Union rules
In the UK – where Lallemand has applied – the assessment of novel foods is carried out by a committee of scientists appointed by the Food Standards Agency (FSA), known as the Advisory Committee on Novel Foods and Processes (ACNFP).
The FSA said that any comments on the application should be sent to the ACNFP Secretariat by 31 May 2012. Any comments will be passed to the Committee during its assessment of the application.