The Preservatives in Food Regulations 1989

Sale, etc. of food containing preservative

5.  Subject to regulation 7, nothing in the preceding regulation shall prohibit the presence in any compounded food of any permitted preservative introduced in the preparation of that food by the use of one or more specified foods (other than any unfermented grape juice product intended for sacramental use) if that permitted preservative–

(a) may under these Regulations be present in any specified food used in the compounded food, and

(b) is present in the compounded food in no greater proportion, in relation to the quantity of the specified food used, than the proportion specified in relation to that specified food in column 3 of Schedule 2:

Provided that–

(i) if the said specified food or foods may under these Regulations contain the permitted preservative sulphur dioxide, the compounded food may contain that permitted preservative in a quantity not exceeding that introduced by the use of any such specified food or fifty milligrams per kilogram, whichever is the greater;

(ii) if the said specified food or foods may under these Regulations contain any of the permitted preservatives benzoic acid, methyl 4-hydroxybenzoate, ethyl 4-hydroxybenzoate or propyl 4-hydroxybenzoate, the compounded food may contain that permitted preservative in a quantity not exceeding that introduced by the use of any such specified food or one hundred and twenty milligrams per kilogram, whichever is the greater;

(iii) if the compounded food is a specified food other than a cured meat product it may not contain any permitted preservative specified in relation thereto in column 2 of Schedule 2 in any greater proportion than is specified in relation thereto in column 3 of that Schedule;

(iv) if the compounded food is ice-cream or an edible ice made with fruit pieces in stabilised syrup which may under these Regulations contain the permitted preservative sorbic acid, the compounded food may not contain that permitted preservative in a quantity exceeding three hundred milligrams per kilogram.