EU Court allows Denmark to maintain stricter provisions on food additives

In a case relating to food additives, the European Court of Justice ruled that a Member State "may derogate from a harmonisation measure when it considers that the risk to public health is greater than that found by the Community legislature at the time the harmonisation measure was adopted."

The dispute was over a 1999 Commission decision not to authorise the stricter Danish limits than allowed by a 1995 directive on food additives, on three preservatives: nitrites, nitrates and sulphites. Despite a 1995 opinion by the Scientific Committee of Food which called into question the maximum amounts of nitrites set under the 1995 directive, the Commission considered the Danish request "disproportionate in relation to the objective of protecting public health".

Nitrites and nitrates can cause cancer and sulphites, if ingested in large amounts, can cause lesions in the digestive tract and provoke severe allergic reactions in asthmatics.

The Court found that the Commission failed to take into account the opinion of the Commission's Scientific Committee for Food when assessing the Danish provisions on nitrites and nitrates and, therefore, ruled this decision unlawful and to be annulled. On the other hand, the Court approved the Commission's decision regarding sulphites.