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A new regulation on "novel foods" will come into force on December 1, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said yesterday on its website.

It will supersede a ruling on such products introduced in 1990 and a regulation on genetically modified foods, which some experts had warned failed to sufficiently protect the health of consumers.

The new regulation applies to companies and individuals involved in the production and trade of novel foods.

These are defined as food ingredients, which meet the basic criteria of food but do not have a significant history of consumption in China.

Novel foods have to undergo a series of strict procedures before the MOH will allow them onto the market, the regulation said.

The foods fall broadly into four categories: Animals, plants, and microorganisms that are not often consumed in China; seldom-used food ingredients aside from animals, plants, and microorganisms; newly discovered microorganisms applied during food processing; and food ingredients whose structure has been modified by new techniques, the regulation said.

Given the fact that novel foods are usually just ingredients in ready-to-consume products, the public is seldom aware of what it is eating, Zhang Jian, a researcher with national institute of nutrition and food safety affiliated to the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, told China Daily.

For instance, not many people would know that sugar-free chewing gum gets its sweetness from Isomalt , Zhang said.

Isomalt is a solution used in sugar-free and low-sugar products such as boiled sweets, chewing gum and chocolates.

"The market for novel foods in China is still largely untapped, but it will surely grow as wealthy Chinese develop a taste for healthier foods, such as sugar-free products," Zhang said.

The regulation said the government encouraged the scientific research and development of novel foods as it wanted to add greater variety to the market.

Currently, there are some 340 novel foods in the market, but these might have to be reviewed to comply with the new rules, the ministry said.

To further drive the novel food industry, the regulation does away with complex approval procedures, while tightening food safety measures.

Health authorities will be required to conduct spot checks on producers and track the quality and safety of novel products, the ministry said.

Companies that overstate the medical efficacy of novel foods will be punished, it said.

(China Daily 07/19/2007 page 3)

Vocabulary:

Isomalt：益壽糖

Questions:

1. What are the four broad categories of food that will have to undergo strict procedures before being allowed into the market?

2. What is Isomalt typically used in?

3. What could happen to the 340 novel foods that are currently on the market?

Answers:

1. Animals, plants and microorganisms that are not often consumed in china; seldom-used food ingredients aside from animals, plants, and microorganisms; newly discovered microorganisms applied during food processing; and food ingredients whose structure has been modified by new techniques.

2. Suger-free and low-sugar products such as boiled sweets, chewing gum and chocolates.

3. They might have to be reviewed to comply with the new rules.

（英語點津 Linda 編輯）

About the broadcaster:

Suzann Riddle is a senior double majoring in Health Care Management and Economics at Appalachian State University in Boone, NC. She finds herself at China Daily Website after visiting many areas of China as a Holland Fellow, Appalachian's international exchange program with Fudan University.