Foodstuffs, Cosmetics and Disinfectants Act, 1972 (Act No. 54 of 1972) Regulations Regulations relating to the Labelling and Advertising of Foodstuffs 1. Definitions

 

In these regulations, any expression to which a meaning has been assigned in the Act shall bear such meaning and, unless inconsistent with the context—

 

"address"

means a physical address in the Republic of South Africa and includes the street or road number or name and the name of the town, village or suburb and, in the case of a farm, the name or number of the farm and of the magisterial district in which it is situated;

 

"added sugar"

means any sugar added to foodstuffs during processing and includes but is not limited to sugar as defined by Regulations Relating to the Use of Sweeteners in Foodstuffs under the Act, honey, molasses, sucrose with added molasses, coloured sugar, fruit juice concentrate, deflavoured and/or deionised fruit juice and concentrates thereof, high-fructose corn syrup and malt or any other syrup of various origins;

 

"allergen"

means any substance that causes an allergic or other adverse immune response;

 

"allergen cross-contamination"

means the presence of any common allergen not  intentionally added to a foodstuff, which is present in such foodstuff as a result of the cultivation, production, manufacturing, processing, preparation. treatment, packing, packaging, transport or holding of such foodstuff or as a result of environmental contamination;

 

"allergen control program"

means a program for the identification and control of allergenic ingredients and for the prevention of allergen cross-contamination at every stage of the manufacturing process, from harvesting through to packaging and retailing;

 

"annexure"

means an annexure to these regulations;

 

"antioxidant"

means either an additive that prolongs the shelf life of foods by protecting against rancidity or colour changes or other deterioration caused by oxidation or means a substance that inhibits oxidation or inhibits reactions promoted by oxygen or peroxides;

 

"audit"

in terms  of certification means a systematic and functionally independent examination to determine whether activities and related results comply with planned objectives or legislative requirements;

 

"batch"

means a definite quantity of a commodity produced essentially under the same conditions, not exceeding 24 hours;

 

"brine"

means a solution of sodium chloride in water where the solution is used for curing, flavouring and/or preserving the foodstuff;

 

"bulk stock"

means either a container that is used to display several individual units suitable for sale by itself, or several units, which are pre-packed or wrapped for the purpose of bulk sales or foodstuffs, which are offered for sale to consumers in quantities of their own choice from a large-scale container;

 

"catering establishment"

means any establishment including a vehicle or a fixed or mobile stall where, in the course of business, ready-to-eat foodstuffs are prepared for direct sale to the consumer for consumption;

 

"cereal"

means a product derived from the grain or edible seed of any cultivated grasses of the family Poaceae, which may be used as a food, e.g. wheat, rice, oats, barley, rye, maize, millet et cetera;

 

"certification"

means the procedure by which ISO 65 accredited, certifying organisations provide written assurance that a product, process or service is in conformity with certain standards;

 

"certifying organisation"

means an organisation  performing  conformity  assessment  against specified requirements through an audit process resulting in a certificate being issued;

 

"chilled" or "refrigerated"

means stored at an appropriate temperature ranging from 0°C to 7°C for a specific product type, but specifically means a maximum core temperature of 4°C for raw unpreserved fish, molluscs, crustaceans, edible offal, poultry meat and milk, and for any other perishable food that must be kept chilled to prevent spoilage, a maximum temperature of maximum 7°C;

 

"chocolate confectionery"

means any foodstuff that is meant to be consumed as a sweet snack and which contains chocolate as described in Codex and/or other ingredients;

 

"claim"

in relation to a foodstuff, means any written, pictorial, visual, descriptive or verbal statement, communication, representation or reference brought to the attention of the public in any manner including a trade name or brand name and referring to the characteristics of a product, in particular to its nature, identity, nutritional properties, composition, quality, durability, origin or method of manufacture or production;

 

"Codex"

means the latest adopted version of the relevant text of the Codex Alimentarius Commission of the Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme;

 

"colourant"

means any substance described as such in the Regulations Relating to Food Colourants published under the Act;

 

"common allergen"

means egg, cow's milk,crustaceans and molluscs, fish, peanuts, soybeans, tree nuts and any significant cereals, as well as ingredients derived from these foodstuffs that has retained its allergenicity in the final product;

 

"comparative claim"

means a claim that compares the nutrient level(s) and/or energy value and/or alcohol level of two or more similar foodstuffs;

 

"compound ingredient"

means any ingredient, which itself is composed of two or more ingredients;

 

"container"

means any packaging of foodstuffs for sale at retail level or for catering purposes for delivery as a single item or for free sample handout purposes, whether by completely or partially enclosing the foodstuff and includes wrappers for individual and multiple-unit-packs;

 

"contaminant"

means any biological or chemical agent, foreign matter or other substance not intentionally added to the food which may compromise food safety or suitability so that it does not meet a standard or requirement determined by any law:

 

"cold-pressed"

in terms of edible vegetable fat and oil manufacturing, means the oil has been obtained by applying mechanical procedures, such as expelling or mechanical pressure, in the absence of light, without the application of external heat where the temperature of the process never exceeds 50°C (122°F) and where purification may have been accomplished by washing with water, settling, filtering and centrifuging only;

 

"daily serving"

means the average daily intake in terms of a food vehicle;

 

"dairy product"

means a primary dairy product, a composite dairy product or a modified dairy product as defined by the regulations published in terms of the Agricultural Product Standards Act, 1990 (Act No. 119 of 1990) as amended;

 

"date of manufacturing"

means the date on which the food becomes the product as described;

 

"date of minimum durability"

("Best Before" or "Best Before End") means the date which signifies the end of the period under any stated storage conditions during which the product will remain fully marketable and will retain any specific qualities for which tacit or express claims have been made. However, beyond the date the food may still be perfectly satisfactory;

 

"deflavour"

means the intentional removal of the bulk of volatile and non-volatile natural flavourings from fruit juices or fruit juice concentrates;

 

"deionise"

in terms of fruit juices or fruit juice concentrates means the intentional removal of the bulk of mineral salts from fruit juices or fruit juice concentrates;

 

"dietary fibre" or "fibre"

means edible carbohydrate polymers with ten or  more monomeric units, which are not hydrolysed by the endogenous enzymes in the small intestine of humans and which occur naturally, or which have been obtained by physical, enzymatic, or chemical means, in fruits, vegetables and cereals consumed ordinarily as food and measured as non-starch polysaccharides (NS), but exclude novel fibres;

 

"drained weight"

means the net mass of the remaining solid component after the liquid medium has been drained;

 

"endorse"

means to confirm or convey or declare an approval of a particular foodstuff in any manner but exclude certification;

 

"enrichment"

means the voluntary addition by a manufacturer of one or more nutrient(s) to  a foodstuff, whether or not it is normally contained in the food, with the sole purpose of adding nutritional value to the food, but excludes "fortification";

 

"evidence-based nutrition"

means the application of the best available systematically assembled scientific evidence in setting nutrition policy and practice;

 

"fat" or "lipid"

means the total  amount of chemically extractable fat, including phospholipids, determined according to the appropriate extraction method for animal and plant fats;

 

"flavouring"

means a flavouring substance intended to be added in small amounts to foods and of which the primary purpose is to impart, modify or improve the flavour of foodstuffs rather than to enhance nutritional quality, is not intended to be consumed on its own and exclude substances that have an exclusively sweet, sour or salty taste (e.g.,sweeteners, table salt, vinegar). Flavourings may consist of flavouring substances, flavouring preparations, process flavourings, smoke flavourings or mixtures thereof;

 

"flavour enhancer"

means a substance that enhances, intensifies or supplements the existing taste and/or odour of a foodstuff;

 

"flour confectionery"

means any cooked foodstuff ready for consumption without further preparation (other than reheating) having as its characteristic ingredients ground cereal and sweeteners and/or other ingredients, and includes uncooked pastry casings but does not include pizzas, samoosas, sausage rolls, meat pies, dry biscuits and speciality breads;

 

"food additive" means any substance, regardless of its nutritive value, that is not normally consumed as a foodstuff by itself and not normally used as a typical ingredient of the foodstuff, which is added intentionally to a foodstuff for a technological (including organoleptic) purposes in the manufacture, processing, preparation, treatment, packing, packaging, transport or storage of the foodstuff, and results, or may reasonably be expected to result (directly or indirectly) in such a substance, or its by­ products, becoming a component of, or otherwise affecting the characteristics of, such foodstuffs and excludes any substance added to foodstuffs for maintaining or improving nutritional qualities or any contaminants and sodium chloride;

 

"food constituent"

means any biologically active substance other than a nutrient, which is naturally present in certain foodstuffs;

 

"foodstuffs for catering purposes"

means those foodstuffs intended for use in the hospitality services, schools, hospitals and similar institutions;

 

"food vending machine"

means any mechanical device, whether attended or not, by means of which foodstuffs are sold;

 

"frozen"

means stored at any appropriate temperature equal to or colder than 0°C which will maintain and preserve the inherent quality of a specific product in a hard, frozen condition or state and includes frozen foodstuffs for which special temperature requirements were stipulated for in regulations under the Agricultural Product Standards Act 1990, Act No. 119 of 1990, the National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications Act, 2008 (Act No. 5 of 2008) and any other Regulations promulgated under the Act;

 

"generic health promotion"

means the promotion of a healthy diet and lifestyle (which includes food choices, exercise, serving sizes, food preparation methods, et cetera) by an organization or foundation, who focuses their work on educating the consumer on these aspects without promoting the consumption or sale of any particular foodstuff, brand name, trademark or company in any manner and where record shall be kept of all generic health promotional materials in the case where the appropriate substantiation might be requested by an inspector;

 

"gluten"

means the proteins that naturally occur in a significant cereal to which some persons are intolerant;

 

"glycaemic carbohydrate"

means the sum of all glycaemic carbohydrates that are carbohydrates, which are available for metabolism;

 

"Good Manufacturing Practice"

(GMP) means that combination of manufacturing, quality control and hygiene procedures aimed at ensuring that food products are consistently manufactured to their specifications;

 

"guidelines"

means guidelines as determined from time to time by the Director-General in terms of these regulations;

 

"health practitioner"

means any health professional referred to in the Health Professions Act, 1974 (Act No. 56 of 1974), the Allied Health Professions Act, 1982 (Act No. 63 of 1982), the Pharmacy Act, 1974 (Act No. 53 of 1974), the Nursing Act, 2005 (Act No. 33 of 2005) or the Dental Technician Act, 1979 (Act No. 19 of 1979);

 

"honey"

is the natural sweet substance produced by honey bees from the nectar of plants or from secretions of living parts of plants or excretions of plant sucking insects on the living parts of plants, which the bees collect, transform by combining with specific substances of their own, deposit, dehydrate, store and leave in the honey comb to ripen and mature;

 

"ILAC"

means the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation;

 

"intrinsic sugar"

means sugars that are naturally occurring and which form an integral part of certain unprocessed foodstuffs, the most important being whole fruits and vegetables, that are enclosed in the cell, (mainly fructose, glucose and sucrose) and  which are always accompanied by other nutrients;

 

"ingredient"

means any substance, including any food additive and any constituent of a compound ingredient, which is used in the manufacture or preparation of a foodstuff and which is present in or on the final product, although possibly in a modified form;

 

"import"

means as defined in the Act;

 

"irradiation"

means deliberate exposure to ionising radiation;

 

"label"

means any tag, brand, mark, pictorial, graphic or other descriptive matter, which is written, printed, stencilled, marked, embossed, impressed upon, or permanently attached to a container of a foodstuff, and includes labelling for the purpose of promoting its sale or disposal;

 

"liquid medium"

means water, or aqueous solutions of sugar, sugars or other sweeteners, food acids or salt, brine, vinegar, fruit and vegetable juices in canned fruits and vegetables only, or alcohol beverages in the case of typical traditional South African dishes, either singly or in combination;

 

"main ingredient" means the ingredient(s) in a foodstuff which by weight or volume, whatever  is applicable, contributes the highest percentage mass, excluding water;

 

"main panel"

means that part of the label that bears the brandname or trade name and product name in greatest prominence or any other part of the label that bears the brand or trade name in equal prominence;

 

"manufacture"

means as defined by the Act;

 

"mechanically pressed"

in terms of edible vegetable fat and oil manufacturing has the same meaning as cold pressed;

 

"naked bread"

means bread, bread rolls and bread buns displayed for sale without being prepackaged;

 

"name"

means a word or words giving a true description of the nature of the food product concerned, sufficiently precise to avoid misleading or confusing the consumer with  regard to the true nature, physical condition, type of packing medium, style, condition and type of treatment it has undergone;

 

"non-nutritive sweetener"

means a sweetener listed in Regulations Relating to the Use of Sweeteners in Foodstuffs under the Act, or a mixture of such non-nutritive sweeteners, of which an amount with the sweetening equivalent of 5g of sucrose does not have an energy value of more than 8kJ;

 

"novel fibres"

means edible carbohydrates, of which a physiological effect of benefit to health was demonstrated by generally accepted scientific evidence to competent authorities and approved and registered by the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA)—

•        with ten or more monomeric units, which—

 

"NRV"

means  Nutrient Reference Value for the general population of 4 years  and older for the purpose of food labelling;

 

"nutrient"

means any natural or synthetic substance consumed as a constituent of a foodstuff, which provides energy or which is needed for growth, development and maintenance of life and health or of which a deficit will cause characteristic biochemical or physiological changes to occur;

 

"nutrient content claim"

means a claim that describes the level of a nutrient or energy contained in a foodstuff;

 

"nutrition claim"

means any representation that refers to a specific nutrient or food constituent content of a particular foodstuff namely a nutritional content claim or a comparative claim;

 

"omega-3 fatty acids"

means one or more of the following;

 

"peanuts"

means the kernels of the underground fruit of the plant Arachis hypogaea of the species/legume family Fabaceae;

 

"poultry"

means any chicken, duck, goose, guinea fowl, ostrich, partridge, pheasant, pigeon, quail, turkey and the chicks thereof;

 

"prepackaged"

means the packaging of a foodstuff in packaging material ready for sale to the consumer or to a catering establishment, so that such foodstuff cannot be altered without opening or changing the packaging but does not include individually wrapped one-bite sugar confectionary or chocolate confectionery which is not enclosed in any further packaging material and is not intended for sale as individual items, and does not include the outer containers of bulk stock;

 

"preservative"

means an additive that prolongs the shelf life of a food by protecting against deterioration caused by microorganisms;

 

"pressurised container"

means a container of metal, glass or plastic, or a composite of  these materials, containing liquids or pastes and a propellant which discharges the contents under pressure through a valve system;

 

"processed"

means a foodstuff that has been subjected to any of the following processes which alter its original state—

but excludes—

 

"processed meat"

means products as defined by the standard SANS 885 under the Standards Act, 1993 (Act No. 29 of 1993);

 

"protein"

means—

 

"raw-processed meats"

means raw meat products from all species of meat animals and birds intended for human consumption in South Africa, that resembles a cut, joint, slice, portion or carcass of meat, cured or uncured, or a combination thereof, prepackaged or unpre-packed, that has not undergone any heat treatment and where any added ingredient and/or additive and added water, including brine, is retained in or on the product as sold, but exclude products covered by the SANS 885 standard;

 

"ready-to-eat-food"

means any food (including beverages) which is normally consumed in its raw state or any food handled, processed, mixed, cooked, or otherwise prepared into a form in which it is normally consumed without further processing;

 

"reputable laboratory"

means a laboratory which has the required accreditation for each method and technique used for the purpose of nutritional and microbiological information in terms of probiotics on labels of foodstuffs by the South African National Accreditation System (SANAS) or another recognised international accreditation authority who is a member of the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) and part of the International Laboratory Accreditation Arrangement;

 

"salt"

means the compound Sodium Chloride in the ratio Na:CI of 40:60;

 

"SANAS"

means the South African National Accreditation System, a statuary body governed by the Accreditation for Conformity Assessment, Calibration and Good Laboratory Practice Act, 2006 (Act No. 19 of 2006);

 

"sell"

means as defined by the Act;

 

"sell by" or "display until"

means the last date of offer for sale to the consumer after which there remains a reasonable storage period at home;

 

"sell by retail"

means to sell to a person buying other than for the purpose of resale, but does not include selling to a caterer for the purposes of his catering business, or to a manufacturer for the purposes of his manufacturing business;

 

"serving"

in relation to a foodstuff, means the mass, volume or number, as the case may be, of a foodstuff which is typically consumed as a single serving by most people and which is referred to in the nutritional information table when provided on the label;

 

"significant cereal"

means any one of the following cereals:

 

"single ingredient agricultural commodities"

means:

 

"speciality breads"

means any bread which is not prepared exclusively with and containing at least 90% fortified wheat flour, excluding water;

 

"starch"

means edible starch as listed in Guidelines 1 and exclude chemically modified starches;

 

 

"strict vegetarian diet"

means a diet which excludes all ingredients and additives derived  from animal origin and the expression "vegan diet" has the same meaning;

 

"substance"

means a  collective  term for  any chemical,  microbiological, or  physical component, nutrient, or food constituent present in or added to a foodstuff;

 

"sugar  confectionery"

means  any  foodstuff  which  is  ready  for  consumption  without  further preparation and of which carbohydrate sweetening matter is a characteristic ingredient, and which may contain non-nutritive sweetening agents and includes sweetened liquorice, chewing gum and meringues, but does not include any chocolate or flour confectionery, edible ice, table jellies or sugar;

 

"the Act"

means the Foodstuffs, Cosmetics and Disinfectants Act, 1972 (Act No. 54 of 1972);

 

"total carbohydrates"

means the sum of the mono-, di- oligo- and polysaccharides as indicated in Guideline 1;

 

"total sugar"

means the sum of all intrinsic and added sugars;

 

"traceable/traceability/product tracing"

means the ability to follow the movement of a food through specified stage(s) of production, processing and distribution;

 

"tree nuts"

means almonds (Prunus dulcis, syn. Prunis amygdalus Batsch, Amygdalus communis L., Amygdalus dulcis Mill), brazil nuts (Bertholletia excelsa), cashew nuts (Anacardium occidentale), hazel nuts (Corylus avellana), macadamia nuts (Macadamia ternifolia), pecan nuts (Carya illinoiesis[Wangenh] K. Koch), pistachio nuts (Pistachia vera) and walnuts (Juglans regia);

 

"typical values"

means the real, typical, representative, composite nutritional or microbiological values of a foodstuff which is sampled according to the relevant criteria stipulated in Guideline 5 and which is analysed in accordance with the methods described in these regulations, the Guidelines or Codex, and which has the required accreditation by the South African National Accreditation System (SANAS) or other recognised international accreditation authority which is part of the ILAC arrangement:

 

"vegetarian"

means a diet which—

 

"uncommon allergen"

means any food or non-food allergen not classified as a common allergen;

 

"Use by"

(Best Consumed Before, Recommended Last Consumption Date, Expiry Date) means the date which signifies the end of the estimated period under the stated storage conditions, after which the product probably will not have the quality attributes normally expected by the consumers and after which date the food should not be regarded as marketable;

 

"unprocessed meat"

means uncooked, uncured meat which has not been processed and which does not fall in the category of a processed meat or a raw-processed meat;

 

"whole grain"

means grains from cereals, which, after milling (if milled), naturally contain all the components namely endosperm, bran, germ, and all the macronutrients, micronutrients and trace elements of the original unprocessed whole kernel.