Erucic acid in foods preserved in oil

Thursday 2 September 2004

Food Survey Information Sheet 62/04

The Food Standards Agency has completed a survey on erucic acid in pickles, sauces and preserved vegetables sold by shops serving South Asian and Chinese communities, following the finding of illegal levels of erucic acid in some products from this category by Birmingham City Council.

Erucic acid is a natural component of some oils and has been shown to cause fatty deposits in the hearts of test animals, but this effect disappears over time once erucic acid is removed from their diet. The results of the FSA survey showed that some products imported from Bangladesh, China, India and Pakistan contained levels of erucic acid that exceeded the statutory limit.

Key Facts

The survey was commissioned after Birmingham City Council (BCC) found levels of erucic acid which exceeded legal limits in some pickles, sauces and preserved vegetables imported from Pakistan and China.
The Erucic Acid in Food Regulations 1977 (S.I. 1977 No. 691 [as amended]) limit the erucic acid content of foods to no more than 5% of the total fatty acid, in products with more than 5% fat (the latter restriction does not apply for foods aimed at infants or young children).
There have been no confirmed reports of erucic acid causing health problems in humans. However, the evidence of health affects in animals means this does not rule out an effect in humans and it is possible that frequent and regular consumption of high levels of erucic acid may add to the risk of developing heart disease. However, evidence from animal studies indicates that this potential increase in risk would diminish once consumption of high levels of erucic acid ceases.
In the FSA survey, 71 samples of pickles, sauces and preserved vegetable products, produced in South and South East Asia, the Far East and the UK were bought. Products were purchased during June and July 2004 from a range of retail and wholesale outlets in Manchester, Leicester, West Yorkshire and the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. These locations were chosen as they have large Chinese and South Asian communities and a wide range of these products was likely to be available. The results are shown in Table 1.
Eight of the products sampled had levels of erucic acid above the legal limit; all of them were imported.
The illegal products found in this survey and the BCC study have been withdrawn from sale. The results from the latter work are given in Table 2.
The importers of the affected products were given the opportunity to comment on the results for their products and their comments are attached at Annex 1.

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Erucic acid in foods preserved in oil

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