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Kindly share the regulation for DHA content claim in Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Taiwan and China for food products (Not infant food). Is there any minimum amount required and maximum permitted limit?

January 25, 2017
ANSWER

Malaysia

According to Regulation No. 26 (8) of Food Regulations 1985, the label on a package of food to which amino acid or fatty acid or both have been added may bear claims that the food is enriched or supplemented with amino acid or fatty acid or both, and where such claim is made, it shall be expressed on the label in the following form or with other words of similar meaning:

“This food is (state the quality as aforesaid) with (state the amount in miligram) of (state whether amino acid, fatty acid or both).”

According to Guide to Nutrition Labelling and Claims, if a declaration is made of the amount of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in a product, the amounts of all the four main types of fatty acid should be declaread as below:

Fat …..g
    comprising of …..g
           monounsaturated fatty acid …..g
            polyunsaturated fatty acid …..g
            docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) …..g
           saturated fatty acid …..g
           trans fatty acid …..g

References

Food Safety and Quality Division of Ministry of Health. (2010). Malaysia Guide to Nutrition Labelling and Claims.

Ministry of Health Malaysia. (2017). Food Regulations 1985. Regulation No. 26 (8).

 

Thailand

According to the Notification of the Ministry of Public Health (No. 182) B.E. 2541 (1998) Re: Nutrition Labelling, nutrient content claim and min-max limit of DHA are permitted as follow;

1) Nutrient content claims – words that are allowed to be used or claimed

  • Good source
  • Contains
  • Provides
  • High
  • Rich
  • Rich in
  • Excellent source of
  • Increased
  • More than
  • Added
  • Enriched
  • Fortified

2) Min-max permitted limit of EPA + DHA is 200-250 mg/day. However, the amount of use is not yet announced as public.

Reference

Ministry of Public Health Thailand. (1998). Notification of the Ministry of Public Health (No. 182) B.E. 2541 (1998) Re: Nutrition Labelling.

 

Singapore

According to A Handbook on Nutrition Labelling (Singapore), the guidelines for polyunsaturated fatty acids claims are as follows:

Nutrient Claim Guideline
Contains Polyunsaturated Fats Source of Polyunsaturates (or  Polyunsaturated  Fatty Acids or Polyunsaturates)  Presence of Polyunsaturates – > 40% total fat shall be polyunsaturated fatty  acids, < 20% total  fat shall be saturated fatty acids and > 25% kilocalories shall be derived from fat
High in Polyunsaturated Fats  (or Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids or Polyunsaturates) –   > 40% total fat shall be polyunsaturated fatty  acids, < 20% total  fat shall be saturated fatty acids and > 50% kilocalories shall be derived from fat
Increased  Polyunsaturated Fats More  Polyunsaturated Fats –   ≥  25%  more polyunsaturated fatty acids than the reference food*

Reference

Health Promotion Board. (2015). A Handbook on Nutrition Labelling (Singapore).

 

China

According to GB 14488-2012 National Food Safety Standard for the Use of Nutritional Fortification Substances in Foods, DHA is allowed to be added to food products listed in table below:

Food Category Number Food Category (name) Application Amount
01.03.02 Modulation milk powder (only for children) ≤ 0.5% (percentage of total fatty acids)
Modulation  milk powder (only for pregnant and lying-in women) 300 mg/kg – 1000 mg/kg

Reference

National Standards of People’s Republic of China. (2012). National Food Safety Standard for the Use of Nutritional Fortification Substances in Foods (GB14488-2012).

 

Taiwan

We regret to inform you that we are unable to provide information as this country is outside our area of expertise.

 

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