Jelly sweets import ban
Saturday 16 January 2010
Jelly sweets containing a thickening agent called konjac (E425) are banned in the UK and the rest of the EU. This is because there is a risk of choking. These sweets are widely available in Japan and the Far East.
Jelly mini-cup sweets which contain food additives (including gelling agents) specified in 2009 Regulations below are also banned because of concerns that these could also pose a choking hazard.
The use in the production of jelly mini-cups of any of the additives set out in the Food (Jelly Mini-Cups) (Emergency Control) (England) Regulations 2009, which implement Commission Decision 2004/374/EC in England, is prohibited, as is the carrying out of commercial operations in relation to these jelly mini-cups, including their sale, importation and storage or transportation for the purpose of sale. Jelly mini-cups are defined in Decision 2004/374/EC as 'confectionery of a firm consistence, contained in semi-rigid mini-cups or mini-capsules, intended to be ingested in a single bite by exerting pressure on the mini-cup or mini-capsule to project the confectionery into the mouth'.
In addition, the use of konjac in jelly confectionery, including jelly mini-cups, and the sale of such confectionery, is prohibited under Annex IV of Directive 95/2/EC, as effected by Regulation 1333/2008. This is enforced by way of The Food Additives (England) Regulations 2009.
Similar provisions apply in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.