EU Tightens Checks on Vanilla Extract from US

As part of legislation updates to the rate of official controls and emergency measures for food of non-animal origin imported into Europe, the European Commission (EC) has added controls for vanilla extract from the United States. 

Decisions are based on notifications made in the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) portal and information from documentary, identity, and physical checks by member states in 2022.

Consignments of vanilla extract from the US will need to be accompanied by an official certificate stating that sampling results show compliance with EU maximum residue levels for ethylene oxide.  However, shipments dispatched before February may enter the EU until October 16, 2023 without a certificate and they will be subject to checks at a 20% frequency.  Other products with new ethylene oxide checks include botanical food supplements from South Korea, locust bean products from Morocco and Malaysia, tomato ketchup and sauces from Mexico, and calcium carbonate from India.

Currently, there is a 20% frequency for checks on peanuts, peanut butter, and peanut paste for aflatoxins from the US as well.