To standardize and guide the food additives production licensing work, and strengthen the safety supervision of food additives, the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) drafted and issued the Review Rules for the Production Licence of Food Additives (Draft) for public comments. Comments are welcomed before May 3, 2024.

On March 13, 2024, China National Center for Food Safety Risk Assessment (CFSA) issued 7 new food additives for public comment, including 2 new food additives, 3 new food nutrition enhancers, 1 food additive with expanded scope, and 1 food nutrition enhancer with expanded scope. Comments are welcomed before April 13, 2024.

On March 12, 2024, the National Health Commission (NHC) and the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR), in accordance with the provisions of the Food Safety Law of the People’s Republic of China, jointly issued Notice No. 1 of 2024, releasing 47 new national food safety standards and 6 amendment notes. These standards mainly include: 1 general standard, 1 food product standard, 1 standard for food-related products, 7 standards for physicochemical testing methods, 16 standards for microbiological testing methods, 7 quality specifications for nutrition enhancers, and 14 quality specifications regarding food additives, along with 6 amendment notes.

As of the end of December 2023, the National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China (NHC) issued five announcements (No. 1 of 2023, No. 3 of 2023, No. 5 of 2023, No. 8 of 2023, and No. 10 of 2023) regarding “Three New Foods”. A total of 74 products have been approved, 33 of which are new food additives, including those with expanded scope.

Throughout 2023, a total of 74 "Three New Food" Products (new food additives, food-related products, and new food materials) have been approved, among which 12 were new food raw materials. According to the statistics from NHC and the China National Center for Food Safety Risk Assessment in 2023: 22 new food raw materials applications were accepted; 17 new food raw materials were issued for public comment; 4 products were rejected for approval; and 5 substances were included in the termination review list. We have summarized the details in China in the following article.

On December 29, 2023, China National Center for Food Safety Risk Assessment (CFSA) issued 3 new food additives for public comment, including 1 new food enzyme and 2 food additives with expanded scope. The deadline for public comments is January 24, 2024.

In recent years, fueled by consumers’ growing demand for low-calorie diets, sweetness-related keywords such as “low-sugar” and “zero-sugar” remain highly popular. Sugar substitutes are widely used in the downstream food and beverage industry, due to the characteristics of high-sweet, low-calorie, and not causing a rise in blood sugar levels.

On November 30, the National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China (NHC) issued an announcement (No. 10 of 2023) on the approval of 9 “Three New Foods”, including three new food raw materials, two new food additives, and four food-related products.

On October 26, 2023, China National Center for Food Safety Risk Assessment (CFSA) issued 8 new food additives for public comments, including 1 new food additive, 2 new food enzymes, 1 new food nutrition enhancer and 4 food additives with expanded scope. The deadline for public comments is November 21, 2023.

On October 7, the National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China (NHC) issued an announcement (No. 8 of 2023) on the approval of 15 “Three New Foods”, including four new food raw materials, six new food additives, and five food-related products.