Last Wednesday, Emily Main of Rodale Press sent me this question:
“Have you ever heard of this new ‘sweetness enhancer’ that just got approved by the FDA? It’s called Sweetmyx and is made by a company called Senomyx, and is apparently licensed by Pepsi for exclusive use. All I can really find out about it is that it enhances the sweet flavor of other sugars, so soda companies can use less sugar in their regular products. … Do you have any insight about it?”
Nope. Never heard of it. All I could find out was that Pepsi had an exclusive deal to use it, according to a Bloomberg report.
“Sweetmyx, a new ingredient by Senomyx Inc. (SNMX), received approval for foods and beverages, clearing the way for PepsiCo Inc. (PEP) to use it to make lower-sugar beverages taste sweeter. “The Flavor and Extract Manufacturers Association’s expert panel has determined that Sweetmyx is generally recognized as safe as an ingredient, San Diego-based Senomyx said today in a statement. PepsiCo has the exclusive right to use the product, a so-called flavor modifier, in many nonalcoholic drinks under a 2010 agreement.”
While I was trying to discover what Sweetmyx is exactly, this notice came in from FDA:
“On March 11, 2014, Senomyx, Inc. issued a public statement suggesting that its food ingredient Sweetmyx (also known as S617) was generally recognized as safe (GRAS). The statement appeared to suggest that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had made the GRAS determination. In fact, the agency had not made this determination nor had it been notified by Senomyx regarding a GRAS determination for this food ingredient. The company’s statement has been corrected and now notes that a third party organization made the determination. “A company can make an independent GRAS determination without notifying the FDA. However, the agency does have a voluntary GRAS notification program whereby a company can inform the FDA of the company’s determination. The FDA maintains an inventory of such GRAS Notices on its website, allowing the public to confirm whether FDA has filed and responded to a GRAS notice. “When making a GRAS self-determination, companies should not state or imply that the FDA has made a GRAS determination on their food ingredients. “For more information on the GRAS notification process, please see: Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS).”
Recall from one of my previous posts the shocking gap in FDA regulatory authority over GRAS determinations.
- Manufacturers get to decide whether food additives are safe or not.
- Manufacturers get to decide whether to bother to tell FDA the additives are in the food supply, and, even if they do,
- Manufacturers get to decide who sits on the panels that review the evidence for safety.
In the case of Sweetmyx, the company’s consultant says it’s safe, so why bother to see if FDA agrees? My questions:
- Pepsi: Don’t you want FDA approval before putting this stuff in your drinks?
- Chemists: What is Sweetmyx anyway?
- FDA: Don’t you think you ought to take a look at this thing?
- Congress: How about insisting that FDA establish a better system for dealing with food additives?
Hey, I can dream.
