The UK’s Food Standards Agency (FSA) has been accused of acting in an “utterly disproportionate” manner after it ruled that apples treated with fruit wax containing morpholine should be removed from sale.
The decision will affect an unspecified volume of Chilean apple imports to the country, some of which were recently found to contain morpholine, a fruit glaze that is permitted in several major nations, including the US, South Africa and Chile, although not in Europe.
In its ruling, released on Friday, the FSA said that “no application has been made to approve this additive in the EU, therefore it should not be present on food on sale in member states”.
Although the agency judged that exposure to morpholine at levels detected on the apples was “likely to be of low risk to consumers”, it said that food business operators had been advised all affected fruit should be removed from sale in the UK.
However, the FSA said that citrus fruit imports that also contained the chemical in their waxes would remain on sale as the affected part of the product was removed before consumption.
In a statement, FSA director of food safety Dr Alison Gleadle said: “Waxes containing morpholine aren’t allowed under EU rules and shouldn’t be on food products. However, eating any of the fruit is unlikely to be a health concern.
“We asked industry to remove the apples from the food chain because they are usually eaten unpeeled but we won’t be asking food businesses to take any citrus fruits off shelves or ask consumers not to consume them because they are generally peeled before eating.”
The agency’s decision provoked an angry response from the UK’s Fresh Produce Consortium, which said it was “deeply concerned” that the FSA was “raising undue concerns” over the safety of all fruit and vegetables through its ruling.
The organisation’s chairman, Nigel Jenney, claimed in a statement that the government agency had “failed to manage” the incident “in a responsible and proportionate manner”.
He said: “The fresh produce industry takes every care to provide safe, fresh produce of the highest quality and the FSA recognises that the likelihood of any risk from residues of morpholine to consumers is extremely low.
'We are most concerned that the decision could create an unnecessarily confusing picture for consumers about the safety of all fresh produce.'
He argued: “The FSA’s response to this incident is utterly disproportionate, particularly in the light of the fact that the FSA states that ‘exposure to morpholine from the levels detected in apples is likely to be of low risk to consumer health’ based on its initial risk assessment.”
Mr Jenney claimed that the decision would not just be confined to the UK, but would have “major repercussions” across the EU and globally.
He added: “FPC believes that the FSA has failed to manage this incident in a responsible and proportionate manner and is challenging the FSA’s handling of this incident at a senior level both in the UK and the EU.”
