Durability of Flavourings / Date of Minimum Durability (Executive summary)

1. Introduction

Under the new EC Flavouring Regulation (Council Document 11479/08) a date of minimum durability must be mentioned on the label of the flavouring package. This applies to flavourings intended for the final consumer as well as for flavourings intended for manufacturers. Regarding flavourings for the final consumer existing legislation already stipulated that the date of minimum durability be mentioned.

By far most flavourings are sold to industrial and trade manufacturers. Even if the mention of the date of minimum durability is not obligatory it is nowadays common practice that manufacturers inform their customers about the durability of flavourings as a type of service and/or orientation (specification, label).

2. Definition of Date of Minimum Durability

Directive 2000/13/EC relating to the labelling, presentation and advertising of foodstuffs regulates under Article 9 1. the notion of date of minimum durability:

“The date of minimum durability of a foodstuff shall be the date until which the foodstuff retains its specific properties when properly stored.”

Under the German foodstuff labelling regulation (LMKV article 7, paragraph 1), which is the transposal of the EC directive, the notion of date of minimum durability is expressed synonymously.

The minimum durability applies to a period of time to be fixed by the manufacturer during which provisions on storage (temperature, humidity etc.) must be observed. During this period of time the flavouring is stored in closed original packages. The specific characteristics of the product are to be guaranteed at least for the period of durability mentioned.

The date of minimum durability is not a use by date. A use by date is to be mentioned only on highly perishable foodstuffs from the microbiological point of view as, for instance, minced meat. With the expiry of the date of durability the foodstuffs must not be marketed anymore. Flavourings are not highly perishable foodstuffs.

3. Requirements for Date of Minimum Durability for Flavourings

The manufacturer guarantees that short deviations from storage conditions, as may occur, for instance, during the transport of the flavouring, are in compliance with the information on the date of minimum durability. Otherwise transport conditions are to be adapted according the flavouring.

Regarding flavourings beyond the date of minimum durability the user must exercise due care to check if the relevant characteristics are still present. This can be determined in a dialogue between the customer and the flavouring manufacturer.

Customers also ask questions regarding durability of flavourings in opened packages. In such cases the durability can only be judged and indicated by the manufacturer case by case rather than generally. A mention of such additional date on the package is not the general standard.

Since such date and/or period depends essentially on storage conditions on the side of the user, beyond the control of the manufacturer, such date and/or period can only be considered as a guidance and not as a guarantee.

4. Periods of Durability

The attribution of a date of minimum durability to a specific flavouring by the manufacturer is a company specific process. Therefore it is well possible that comparable flavourings of different provenience can carry different dates of minimum durability.

Responsibility for safety, assurance of destined usability and correspondence with specific values within tolerance limits rest with the manufacturer until the date of minimum durability expires.

In the course of years periods of minimum durability established themselves for specific types of flavourings and stood the test in practice. These periods are usually between 6 and 24 months at temperatures between 15 °C and 25 °C. Where modern encapsulation technologies are used periods can also last more than 24 months.

The responsibility of the food manufacturer for the date of minimum durability of a foodstuff starts with the use of a flavouring during foodstuff production.

5. Conclusion

The date of minimum durability is defined as that date up to which a foodstuff (here: flavouring) preserves at least its specific characteristics in an unopened package under adequate storage conditions. The date of minimum durability must strictly be distinguished from a use by date.

The flavouring manufacturer fixes the date of minimum durability observing the factors and requirements described. The differing date of minimum durability periods for specific types of flavourings are objectively justified and have stood the test in practice. The careful observance of the date of minimum durability and its accompanying storage conditions at all levels of the net product chain contribute considerably to the quality and safety of our foods.

Status: 23-09-2008