Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 6 November 2012
1064. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Health the position regarding the use of aspartamene in children's products here and in the EU; and his plans to make changes to the law in this area here [47964/12]
View answerThe Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) has advised that the safety of aspartame has been comprehensively evaluated by international scientific experts including the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), the EU Scientific Committee on Food (SCF), the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives and the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA). These expert committees consider that aspartame is safe for use and have established an acceptable daily intake (ADI) for aspartame of 40-50 milligrams per kilogram of body weight per day. This ADI is applicable to both adults and children over the age of 12 weeks and therefore there are no additional restrictions on the use of aspartame in food particularly consumed by children.
However, following some recent concerns regarding the safety of aspartame raised by several members of the European Parliament and the publication of several new studies on aspartame, EFSA is currently undertaking a full re-evaluation of the safety of the sweetener. This will be completed by May 2013 following a period of public consultation on the draft evaluation report. This consultation period is planned to commence at the end of 2012.
It should also be noted that the FSAI reviews all information on approved food additives such as aspartame on an ongoing basis. Based on current information available the FSAI consider that aspartame is safe for use.
