Frequently asked questions

1. It is an ingredient, not an additive. It is designated by its specific name (Article 18(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011) and has no E number: Article 3(2)(a)(xi) of Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 does not consider it an additive.

2. "Fibre" is a legal definition. Under Annex I, point 12, of Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011, it means carbohydrate polymers with three or more monomeric units that are neither digested nor absorbed in the human small intestine; those obtained from raw material or synthetic ones also need a proven beneficial physiological effect.

4. "Prebiotic" is not among them. For the European Commission, saying that a food contains prebiotics implies a health benefit (it is a health claim), and none on "prebiotic" is authorised in the EU.

Did you know that whole collagen has a mass of about 300 kDa (kilodaltons, the unit used to measure the mass of proteins) and hydrolyzed collagen, 3 to 6 kDa? That is a mass 50 to 100 times smaller, and both are called "collagen"¹.

Behind the name there is a family of 28 members². When choosing a raw material, three data points describe it: the type (I, II or III, depending on the tissue), the origin (bovine, porcine, poultry or fish) and the form (native or hydrolyzed).

No. Each entry in the list sets its own conditions of use: for example, the weight claim for glucomannan may be used only for food containing 1 g of glucomannan per quantified portion, and the one for chitosan only for food providing a daily intake of 3 g of chitosan.

No. Article 12 of Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006 does not allow claims referring to the rate or amount of weight loss.

The draft's conclusion, according to the slides EFSA presented to food businesses on 22 April 2026, is that “the available data do not allow establishing a safe intake for humans for any preparations of the plant species, and plant parts thereof, included in the assessment”.

It is a draft, not a decision. As of 4 November 2026, no final EFSA opinion on berberine has been found. After an opinion, the Commission may decide to include a substance in Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 1925/2006 (on the addition of vitamins and minerals and of certain other substances to foods), titled “Substances whose use in foods is prohibited, restricted or under…

The food business operator making it (Article 6(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006). The competent authorities may ask for the data showing compliance (Article 6(3)).

After 23 December 2026, two industrial solvents, DMAC (N,N-dimethylacetamide) and NEP (1-ethylpyrrolidin-2-one), may only be placed on the market, at a concentration equal to or above 0.3 %, with four figures in their safety data sheet.

It is not a market withdrawal: it is a condition. Regulation (EU) 2025/1090 adds entries 80 and 81 to Annex XVII of Regulation (EC) 1907/2006 (REACH) and, to manufacture or use these substances, also requires the process to keep workers' exposure below those figures.

The EU is discussing in a draft a maximum of 1,000 mg of "iodine" (iodide) per kg of dry matter in seaweed as food. For the brown seaweed Ascophyllum nodosum, known on the market as "kelp", the literature compiled by the BfR (the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment) gives a range of 150 to 1,800 mg/kg of dry matter.

One seaweed raises four questions depending on the sector: in agriculture, which treatments allow its use as a "plant" under Regulation (EU) 2019/1009; in feed, which entry of the catalogue of Regulation (EU) 68/2013 it corresponds to; in cosmetics, how it appears in CosIng, the European Commission's cosmetic ingredients database;

July 20, 2026 was not the last date for BPA (bisphenol A) in food contact: depending on the type of item, the calendar of Regulation (EU) 2024/3190 runs until January 20, 2029.

Until July 20, 2026, single-use and reusable packaging made with BPA that complied with the previous rules could be placed on the market for the first time. But there are separate deadlines for packaging of fruit, vegetables and fishery products, for varnish only on the outer metal surface and for reusable professional equipment.

Micronising creatine does not turn it into a novel food. Switching it for creatine malate or alpha-ketoglutarate does. That said: "not a novel food" only means it does not need that authorisation. The rest of the legislation still applies.

For the regulation, "creatine" is not a single ingredient: the form decides the framework. And in feed the authorised additive is a different one, GAA (guanidinoacetic acid), which according to the Commission "is converted exclusively into creatine".

Within the same Regulation (EC) 1223/2009, on cosmetic products, three substances get three different answers. Hydroquinone is listed in Annex II, the list of substances not permitted in cosmetic products. Triclosan remains in Annex V, the list of permitted preservatives, but with a table cut back by Regulation (EU) 2024/996.

The 0.3% maximum concentration for triclosan is not a general permission: in cosmetics it only applies to six product types, and since 31 October 2025 products that do not comply cannot be placed on the EU market.

A substance remaining in an annex does not mean it can be used in any product: you have to check the annex, the column and the product type.

Did you know a salmon does not make its own colour? The astaxanthin that tints its flesh comes from its diet. It is the carotenoid that the microalga Haematococcus pluvialis accumulates when stressed, and the one that also appears in food supplements and cosmetic formulas.

Same astaxanthin on the label, three different legal frameworks: what changes is the destination, not the name. We go through the case in food and supplements, in cosmetics and in animal feed, and what is worth checking before choosing origin and form.

Twelve cosmetic ingredients with new restrictions, and a date on the calendar that is already upon us: Regulation (EU) 2026/909 amends Annexes II, III, V and VI of Regulation (EC) 1223/2009 on cosmetic products. The toughest change: triphenyl phosphate moves to Annex II, which means a direct ban.

The regulation has been in force since May 18, 2026, but the dates that really matter are others: from January 1, 2027 non-compliant products may no longer be placed on the market, and from July 1, 2028 (August 1, 2028 for geranial/neral) those already on the market may no longer be made available to the end consumer.

If you formulate or buy raw materials for perfumery, deodorants, sun care, toothpaste or hair dyes, the clock is already running to review formulas ahead of the 2027 reformulation campaign.

In nutraceuticals and food, bovine lactoferrin has been an authorized novel food in the European Union since 2012, with defined uses in infant formulas, beverages and foods for sportspeople, among others. In cosmetics, it appears in the INCI list as Lactoferrin (or Apo-lactoferrin in its iron-free form, CosIng ref.

The technical detail to check before buying: the grade of the product (food, cosmetic or feed) and the level of iron saturation are not interchangeable, and they determine both the permitted use and the documentation that has to be submitted.

Regulation (EU) 2026/196 revises the specifications and conditions of use of a group of very common food additives: carrageenan (E407), locust bean gum (E410), guar gum (E412), gum arabic (E414), xanthan gum (E415), pectins (E440) and starch sodium octenyl succinate (E1450).

It has been applicable since August 18, 2026, with a transitional regime: batches of these additives already lawfully placed on the market before that date may continue to be added to foods until stocks are exhausted, with staggered compliance deadlines until 2028. The exception is guar gum (E412) in infant formula: from that date it can no longer be added.

For those who formulate with hydrocolloids or modified starches, the point to review is not just the ingredient specification: it is whether the batch you have in your warehouse falls within the transitional period or already has to meet the new specification.

In nutraceuticals, its polysaccharides (APS) are being researched for their antioxidant and immunomodulatory activity, and they are part of food supplements focused on the immune system. In cosmetics, astragalus root extract (INCI: Astragalus Membranaceus Root Extract, CosIng ref.

The technical detail to check before buying: the quality of the extract is not defined by the botanical name alone. Astragaloside IV is the marker compound the main pharmacopoeias use for astragalus quality control —it is what separates a standardized extract from one that only carries the name on the label.

We are talking about Regulation (EU) 2024/2462 of September 19, 2024, which adds entry 79 to Annex XVII of REACH. It restricts undecafluorohexanoic acid —PFHxA, CAS 307-24-4, EC No. 206-196-6—, its salts and PFHxA-related substances. It was published in the OJEU on September 20, 2024 and has been in force since October 10, 2024.

April 10, 2026: firefighting foams for training and testing. October 10, 2026: cosmetic products; mixtures for the general public; paper and cardboard in contact with food; consumer textiles, leather, fur and footwear. October 10, 2027: other textiles and leather. October 10, 2029: civil aviation foams.

The limits set by the regulation: less than 25 ppb (0.025 mg/kg) for the sum of PFHxA and its salts, and less than 1000 ppb (1 mg/kg) for the sum of related substances, measured in homogeneous material. There are derogations for specific uses —semiconductors, hydrogen batteries and fuel cells, certain PPE and technical construction textiles.

For those who formulate or buy, the useful work starts now: reviewing fluorinated surfactants, water- and grease-repellent agents, antifoams and certain coatings, and asking the supplier for a declaration of compliance with entry 79 — not just the technical data sheet.

We are talking about ectoine, an ingredient of microbial origin found in two very different worlds: · Cosmetics: a barrier and moisturizing ingredient in skin care formulations, within the framework of Regulation (EC) 1223/2009. · Biotechnology industry: a protein stabilizer in spray-drying processes, where it protects proteins from the thermal stress of the process.

Biochemistry classifies it as a compatible solute, meaning a molecule able to protect biological structures from stress without interfering with their function.

Magnesium L-pidolate is a magnesium salt of the pidolate anion —also called pyroglutamate, 5-oxoproline or PCA—, highly soluble in water. That solubility is why it is used as a source of magnesium in drinkable formats —sachets, vials, solutions— and why it is listed as an authorized source in Annex II of Directive 2002/46/EC.

What sets it apart from other forms of magnesium is its anion: that same PCA, bound to other cations —sodium, zinc—, is also a common cosmetic ingredient, a classic humectant in moisturizing formulas.

Search for “magnesium pidolate” in two different databases and you may well get two different CAS numbers. Only one should appear in your documentation. The international substance registry links magnesium L-pidolate both to CAS 62003-27-4 (EC 263-365-7) and, in other databases, to CAS 135701-98-3.

Beyond the registry number, what really separates one application from another is the manufacturing grade. As a source of magnesium in food supplements, the compound is explicitly listed in Annex II of Directive 2002/46/EC, an entry added by Regulation (EC) 1170/2009: an EU-wide authorization.

Succinic comes from succinum, Latin for “amber”. For centuries it was obtained by distilling that fossil resin, which earned it its old nickname: “spirit of amber”. A raw material we now associate with cosmetics or industry began its story coming out of a piece of resin 40 million years old.

Your body is making it right now. It is not a “lab” compound: succinic acid is a link in the Krebs cycle, the pathway every one of your cells uses to produce energy. You carry it inside you as you read this. It occurs naturally. Wine, rhubarb, broccoli and unripe fruit all contain it naturally. Nobody had to invent it; we had to learn how to isolate it.

It is behind the taste of seafood. It is one of the compounds responsible for the savory taste —umami— of clams, mussels and also Japanese sake. That hint that “tastes of the sea” has, in part, a chemical name.

We are talking about Regulation (EU) 2023/2055 of September 25, 2023, which amends Annex XVII of REACH and restricts synthetic polymer microparticles (the so-called intentionally added microplastics). The restriction has been in force since October 17, 2023 and applies to mixtures with a concentration equal to or greater than 0.01% by weight.

On October 17, 2027, many gels, shampoos and scrubs that are sold normally today will no longer be able to be placed on the EU market without reformulation. This is not a forecast: it is a date that is already in the regulation. What matters for formulators: not everything applies at once.

The typical mistake is not bad faith: it is being late. Reformulating a range, approving an alternative ingredient and gathering the documentation cannot be done in a quarter. Those who start reviewing their INCI lists now will reach 2027 comfortably; those who leave it for the last year will not.

In recent months, the European Union has added new sources for use in food supplements. Among them: magnesium L-threonate, as a source of magnesium; L-5-methyltetrahydrofolic acid, monosodium salt, as a source of folate; and calcidiol monohydrate, as a source of vitamin D.

Being added to a list of permitted sources matters, but it does not settle the development on its own. Before using a specific product you need to review its identity and specifications, the conditions of use that apply to it, the dose and the target population of the product, its possible authorization and conditions as a novel food, and the supplier's documentation.

The classification of a substance under the CLP Regulation can have consequences for its use in cosmetics. When a substance is classified as carcinogenic, mutagenic or toxic for reproduction —CMR—, the Cosmetic Products Regulation establishes as a general principle that it is banned, except for the exceptions provided for by law.

With every change it is worth checking the exact identity of the substance (name, CAS and EC number), its harmonized classification and the corresponding category, the updated annexes of the Cosmetics Regulation, and the date of application with its possible conditions or exceptions.

And an important clarification: CosIng is a useful tool for looking up names and functions, but appearing in the database does not in itself amount to an authorization for unrestricted use.

Since August 12, 2026 the new European Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation has applied, with progressive obligations and timetables. Regulation (EU) 2025/40 —known as the PPWR— does not only affect those who make a box or a jar.

A good starting point is to review which packaging and components are used for each product, who provides the compliance information and documentation, the composition of the material and the presence of restricted substances, and the compatibility between product, packaging and shelf life. Not all the requirements of the regulation start on the same day.