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Task force meeting on the analysis of vegetable fats in chocolate
ELSEVIER
Plh
Food (,~mtrol, Vol. 7, No. 2, pp. lf17, 1996 Copyright © 1996 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd Printcd in Great Britain. All rights reserved 11956-7135/96 $15.{10+O.(X)
S0956-7135(96)00002-3
CONFERENCE REPORT
Task force meeting on the analysis of vegetable fats in chocolate This meeting of scientists from eight member states of the European Union (EU) and from Switzerland took place in the European Commissions' Joint Research Centre in Ispra, Lago Maggiore, Italy on 18-19 October 1995. The Directive 73/241/EEC relating to cocoa and chocolate products has in particular foreseen, for some member states, the possibility of adding vegetable fats other than cocoa butter to chocolate products. The permitted quantity of these fats usually 5% of the weight of the finished product. A number of European countries authorizes the use of vegetable fats other than cocoa butter in the manufacture of chocolate. In practice, fats similar in chemical and physical properties or with specific functional properties to cocoa butter are added. The EU Commission now feels there is a need to harmonize the legislation, which means that a decision must be made as to whether the level of vegetable fats
should be regulated at European level or left to member states' individual legislation. At present, there is a lack of a suitable analytical method for quantification of the addition of other vegetable fats than cocoa butter to chocolate. Various methods have been proposed for the determination of these fats in chocolate, but with only limited success. Due to the fact that the composition of fats varies with its origin, the quantification is extremely difficult, especially when the origin of cocoa butter and of other fats is unknown. The member states of the EU feel the need for the development and harmonization of methods suitable for such analysis for control purposes. The different interests include the control authorities, industry, trade, confidence between partners and consumer protection. During the meeting of specialists from control laboratories and from vegetable fat, chocolate and cocoa
processing industries, existing analytical methods and their limits were presented and discussed. A round table discussion followed the presentations where the most appropriate indicators as well as analytical approaches were discussed. The potential of multivariate analysis to interpret simultaneously the analytical results from the different indicators was highlighted. Such an approach was considered to be the most appropriate for ongoing work. The minutes from the meeting will be published and be available as EU-Report from the organizers. Eike Anklam and Catherine Simoneau
Food and Drug Analysis/ Consumer Protection Unit Environment Institute Joint Research Centre Ispra Commission of the European Union 21020 Ispra, Italy
Food Control 1996 Volume 7 Number 2
107
Plh
Food (,~mtrol, Vol. 7, No. 2, pp. lf17, 1996 Copyright © 1996 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd Printcd in Great Britain. All rights reserved 11956-7135/96 $15.{10+O.(X)
S0956-7135(96)00002-3
CONFERENCE REPORT
Task force meeting on the analysis of vegetable fats in chocolate This meeting of scientists from eight member states of the European Union (EU) and from Switzerland took place in the European Commissions' Joint Research Centre in Ispra, Lago Maggiore, Italy on 18-19 October 1995. The Directive 73/241/EEC relating to cocoa and chocolate products has in particular foreseen, for some member states, the possibility of adding vegetable fats other than cocoa butter to chocolate products. The permitted quantity of these fats usually 5% of the weight of the finished product. A number of European countries authorizes the use of vegetable fats other than cocoa butter in the manufacture of chocolate. In practice, fats similar in chemical and physical properties or with specific functional properties to cocoa butter are added. The EU Commission now feels there is a need to harmonize the legislation, which means that a decision must be made as to whether the level of vegetable fats
should be regulated at European level or left to member states' individual legislation. At present, there is a lack of a suitable analytical method for quantification of the addition of other vegetable fats than cocoa butter to chocolate. Various methods have been proposed for the determination of these fats in chocolate, but with only limited success. Due to the fact that the composition of fats varies with its origin, the quantification is extremely difficult, especially when the origin of cocoa butter and of other fats is unknown. The member states of the EU feel the need for the development and harmonization of methods suitable for such analysis for control purposes. The different interests include the control authorities, industry, trade, confidence between partners and consumer protection. During the meeting of specialists from control laboratories and from vegetable fat, chocolate and cocoa
processing industries, existing analytical methods and their limits were presented and discussed. A round table discussion followed the presentations where the most appropriate indicators as well as analytical approaches were discussed. The potential of multivariate analysis to interpret simultaneously the analytical results from the different indicators was highlighted. Such an approach was considered to be the most appropriate for ongoing work. The minutes from the meeting will be published and be available as EU-Report from the organizers. Eike Anklam and Catherine Simoneau
Food and Drug Analysis/ Consumer Protection Unit Environment Institute Joint Research Centre Ispra Commission of the European Union 21020 Ispra, Italy
Food Control 1996 Volume 7 Number 2
107