Fruit Juices and Similar Products Regulations, 2004

L.N. 301 of 2004

FOOD SAFETY ACT

(CAP. 449)

Fruit Juices and Similar Products Regulations, 2004

IN exercise of the powers conferred by article 10 of the Food

Safety Act, the Minister of Health, the Elderly and Community Care

has made the following regulations:-

The title of these regulations is the Fruit Juices and Similar

Products Regulations, 2004.

1.1 These regulations implement the provisions of Council

Directive 2001/112/EEC relating to fruit juices and certain similar

products intended for human consumption.

Product Names, Definitions of Products and Characteristics

I.

DEFINITIONS

1. (a) Fruit juice

The fermentable but unfermented product obtained from fruit which is sound

and ripe, fresh or preserved by chilling, of one or more kinds mixed together,

having the characteristic colour, flavour and taste typical of the juice of the fruit

from which it comes. Flavour, pulp and cells from the juice which are separated

during processing may be restored to the same juice. In the case of citrus fruits, the

fruit juice must come from the endocarp. Lime juice, however, may be obtained

from the whole fruit, by suitable production processes whereby the proportion of

constituents of the outer part of the fruit is reduced to a minimum.

(b) Fruit juice from concentrate

The product obtained by replacing in the concentrated fruit juice water

extracted from that juice during concentration, and restoring the flavours, and, if

appropriate, pulp and cells lost from the juice but recovered during the process of

producing the fruit juice in question or of fruit juice of the same kind. The water

added must display appropriate characteristics, particularly from the chemical,

microbiological and organoleptic viewpoints, in such a way as to guarantee the

essential qualities of the juice. The product thus obtained must display organoleptic

and analytical characteristics at least equivalent to those of an average type of

juice obtained from fruits of the same kind within the meaning of (a).

2. Concentrated fruit juice

The product obtained from fruit juice of one or more kinds by the physical

removal of a specific proportion of the water content. Where the product is intended

for direct consumption that removal will be of at least 50 %.

3. Dehydrated/powdered fruit juice

The product obtained from fruit juice of one or more kinds by the physical

removal of virtually all the water content.

4. Fruit nectar

(a) The fermentable but unfermented product obtained by adding water

and sugars and/or honey to the products defined in points 1, 2 and 3, to fruit

puree or to a mixture of those products, that product, moreover, meeting the

requirements of the Fourth Schedule. The addition of sugars and/or honey is

permitted up to 20 % of the total weight of the finished product. Where fruit

nectars are manufactured without added sugar or with low energy value, sugars

may be replaced wholly or partially by sweeteners, in accordance with the

Sweeteners for Use in Foodstuffs Regulations, 2000 (L.N. 268 of 2000).

(b) By way of derogation from (a), fruits listed in parts II and III of the

Fourth Schedule and apricots can be used, individually or mixed together, to

manufacture nectars without the addition of sugar, honey and/or sweeteners.

II.

AUTHORISED INGREDIENTS, TREATMENTS AND SUBSTANCES

1. Authorised ingredients

— Pursuant to regulation 2, the addition of vitamins and minerals is

authorised in the case of the products defined in Part I, subject to the Nutrition

Labelling Regulations, 1998 (L.N. 247 of 1998).

— Flavour, pulp and cells restored to fruit juice defined in part I.1(a)

must have been separated from that juice during processing, whereas flavour,

pulp and cells restored to fruit juice defined in part I.1(b) may also be from

fruit juice of the same kind. For grape juice only, salts of tartaric acids may be

restored.

— For products defined in part I.1, 2 and 3, other than pear or grape

juice, the addition of sugars is authorised

• for regulating acidic taste, the quantity of sugars added, expressed

as dry matter, may not exceed 15 g per litre of juice,

• for sweetening purposes, the quantity of sugars added, expressed

as dry matter, may not exceed 150 g per litre of juice

provided that the total amount of sugar added for both regulating acidic taste

and sweetening purposes may not exceed 150 g per litre.

— For products defined in part I.1, 2, 3 and 4, in order to regulate

acidic taste, the addition of lemon juice and/or concentrated lemon juice up to

3 g per litre of juice, expressed as anhydrous citric acid, is authorised.

— Carbon dioxide, as an ingredient, is authorised.

The addition of both sugars and lemon juice, whether concentrated or not, or

acidifying agents as permitted by the Permitted Food Additives Regulations, 2003,

to the same fruit juice is prohibited.

2. Authorised treatments and substances

— Mechanical extraction processes.

B

— The usual physical processes, including in-line water extraction

(diffusion) of the edible part of fruits other than grapes for the manufacture of

concentrated fruit juices, provided that the concentrated fruit juices thus

obtained comply with part I.1.

— For grape juice, where sulfitation with sulphur dioxide of the grapes

has been used, desulfitation by physical means is authorised, provided that

the total quantity of SO 2 present in the final product does not exceed 10 mg/l.

— Pectolytic enzymes.

— Proteolytic enzymes.

— Amylolytic enzymes.

— Edible gelatine.

— Tannins.

— Bentonite.

— Silicon aerogel.

— Charcoal.

— Chemically inert filtration adjuvant and precipitation agents (e.g.

perlite, washed diatomite, cellulose, insoluble polyamide,

polyvinylpolypyrolidone, polystyrene), which comply with the relevant

legislation on materials and articles intended to come into contact with

foodstuffs.

— Chemically inert adsorption adjuvants which comply with the

relevant legislation on materials and articles intended to come into contact

with foodstuffs, and which are used to reduce the limonoid and naringin content

of citrus juice without significantly affecting the limonoid glucosides, acid,

sugars (including oligosaccharides) or mineral content.

These regulations shall come into force on 1st June, 2004

provided that

2.1 products falling within the scope of these regulations

which do not conform with these regulations but which conform

with the provisions of the Fruit Juices and Similar Products Order

(L.N. 242 of 1998), may be placed on the market until the 12 th July

2004;

2.2 products falling within the scope of these regulations

which do not conform with these regulations but which conform

with the provisions of the Fruit Juices and Similar Products Order

(L.N. 242 of 1998), and which were labelled before the 12 th July

2004, may continue to be marketed until stocks are exhausted.

Definitions of Raw Materials

For the purposes of these regulations, the following definitions shall apply

1. Fruit

All fruits. For the purposes of these regulations, tomatoes are not regarded as

fruit.

2. Fruit purée

The fermentable but unfermented product obtained by sieving the edible part

of whole or peeled fruit without removing the juice.

3. Concentrated fruit purée

The product obtained from fruit purÈe by the physical removal of a specific

proportion of its water content.

4. Sugars

For the production of

(a) fruit nectars

— sugars as defined by Council Directive 2001/111/EC of 20

December 2001 relating to certain sugars intended for human

consumption,

— fructose syrup,

— sugars derived from fruits;

(b) fruit juice from concentrate

— sugars as defined by Directive 2001/111/EC,

— fructose syrup;

(c) fruit juices: the sugars listed in (b) containing less than 2 % water.

5. Honey

The product defined by Council Directive 2001/110/EC of 20 December 2001

relating to honey.

1 These regulations shall apply to the products defined in

the First Schedule.

3.2 These regulations shall not preclude the possibility of

addition of vitamins and minerals to the products defined in part I

of the First Schedule to these regulations.

Particular Designations for Certain Products Listed in the First Schedule

The reserved terms in this Schedule shall apply without prejudice to the

provisions on permitted languages laid down in regulation 18(1) of the Labelling,

Presentation and Advertising of Foodstuffs Regulations, 2002.

(a) ‘succo e polpa’, for fruit nectars obtained exclusively from fruit

puree and/or concentrated fruit puree;

(b)

‘mosto’, synonym of grape juice.

B

1 The Labelling, Presentation and Advertising of Foodstuffs

products (L.N. 5 of

Regulations, 2002, shall apply to the products defined in the First

Schedule, subject to the following conditions

4.1.1 (a) The product names listed in the First Schedule

shall apply only to the products referred to therein and shall,

without prejudice to subparagraph (b), be used in trade to

designate them.

(b) As an alternative to the product names referred to in

subparagraph (a), the Third Schedule provides a list of particular

designations. These designations may be used in the language

and under the conditions laid down in the Third Schedule.

4.1.2 If the product comes from a single kind of fruit,

the name of the latter shall be substituted for the word ‘fruit’.

4.1.3 For products manufactured from two or more fruits,

except where lemon juice is used under the conditions laid down

in part II.1 of the First Schedule, the product names shall be

supplemented by a list of the fruits used, in descending order

of the volume of the fruit juices or purèes included. However,

in the case of products manufactured from three or more fruits,

the indication of the fruits used may be replaced by the words

‘several fruits’ or a similar wording, or by the number of fruits

used.

4.1.4 For fruit juices which have been sweetened by the

addition of sugars, the sales name shall include the word

‘sweetened’ or ‘with added sugar’, followed by an indication

of the maximum quantity of sugar added, calculated as dry

matter and expressed in grams per litre.

4.1.5 The restoration of the products defined in part I of

the First Schedule to their original state, by means of the

substances strictly necessary for this operation, shall not entail

an obligation to enter on the labels a list of the ingredients used

for this purpose. The addition to fruit juice of extra pulp or

cells as defined in the Second Schedule shall be indicated on

the labelling.

4.1.6 Without prejudice to paragraphs 8(2) and 8(5) of

the Labelling, Presentation and Advertising of Foodstuffs

Regulations, 2002, for mixtures of fruit juice and fruit juice

from concentrate, and for fruit nectar obtained entirely or partly

from one or more concentrated products, the labelling shall bear

the words ‘made with concentrate(s)’ or ‘partially made with

concentrate(s)’, as appropriate. That information shall be entered

close to the product name, standing out well from any

background, in clearly visible characters.

4.1.7 For fruit nectars, the labelling shall indicate the

minimum content of fruit juice, fruit purèe or any mixture of

those ingredients, by the declaration ‘fruit content: ……%

minimum’. That information shall be located in the same field

of vision as the product name.

4.2 The labelling of concentrated fruit juice referred to in part

I point 2 of the First Schedule not intended for delivery to the final

consumer shall bear a reference indicating the presence and quantity

of added sugars, or added lemon juice or acidifying agents as

permitted by the Permitted Food Additives Regulations, 2003 (L.N.

347 of 2003). This reference shall appear on the packaging, on a

label attached to the packaging or on an accompanying document.

Special Provisions relating to Fruit Nectars

Fruit nectars made from

Minimum juice

and/or purèe content

(% by volume of

finished product)

I. Fruits with acidic juice unpalatable in the

natural state

Passion fruit

Quito naranjillos

Blackcurrants

Whitecurrants

Redcurrants

Gooseberries

Sallow-thorn berries

Sloes

Plums

Quetsches

Rowanberries

Rose hips

Sour cherries

Other cherries

Bilberries

Elderberries

Raspberries

Apricots

Strawberries

Mulberries/blackberries

Cranberries

Quinces

Lemons and limes

Other fruits belonging to this category

II. Low-acid, pulpy or highly flavoured fruits

with juice unpalatable in the natural state

Mangoes

Bananas

Guavas

Papayas

Lychees

Azeroles (Neapolitan medlars)

Soursop

Bullock’s heart or custard apple

B

Minimum juice

Fruit nectar made from

and/or purèe content

(% by volume of

finished product)

Sugar apples

Pomegranates

Cashew fruits

Spanish plums

Umbu

Other fruits belonging to this category

III. Fruits with juice palatable in the natural

state

Apples

Pears

Peaches

Citrus fruits except lemons and limes

Pineapples

Other fruits belonging to this category

Mitbug[ fl-Istamperija tal-Gvern — Printed at the Government Printing Press

1 Without prejudice to the Additives in Food Regulations,

1994 (L.N. 89 of 1994), only the treatments and substances listed in

part II of the First Schedule and the raw materials complying with

the Second Schedule may be used to manufacture the products

defined in part I of the First Schedule. Moreover, fruit nectars shall

comply with the provisions of the Fourth Schedule.

B

Pulp or cells

The products obtained from the edible parts of fruit of the same kind without

removing the juice. Furthermore, for citrus fruit, pulp or cells are the juice sacs

obtained from the endocarp.

B