Municipality steps up checks on food imports

Dubai Municipality officials have warned foreign companies keen to export sweets, confectioneries, chocolates, biscuits and other food products to the UAE to comply with local regulations that ban many food ingredients and additives.

A senior official from Dubai Municipality told Emirates Business that health inspectors found some of the food products displayed at a recent food exhibition in the city did not fully comply with the local restrictions and the Municipality had to issue a warning that the displayed products cannot be taken out for local consumption. Dubai Municipality officials are vigilant about food safety after thousands of babies reportedly took ill and four children died in China after consuming dairy products containing industrial melamine. Many countries and companies including Uniliver have recalled China-made dairy products contaminated with industrial melamine.

Dubai Municipality food inspector said: "We have allowed some of these products into Dubai only because they are for demonstration and exhibition purposes. Some international companies had displayed products that contained some banned substances, food colours as well as additives.

After the melamine milk powder controversy in China, we have strengthened our inspection at various ports of entry."

The Municipality official added that a team of inspectors regularly monitor imported food into the country for banned substances such as quinoline yellow, fast yellow AB, yellow 2G or food yellow 5, amaranth, ponceau 4-R, erythrosine, patent blue V, green S, acid brilliant green, food green S, lissamine green, potassium bromate used in bread products, cyclamate and ethanol. The official said some companies were displaying products using these banned substances without mentioning it on the label.

He said the municipality had issued warnings at the entrances that the displayed products are not to be taken out for use in the local market. Ethanol, for instance, is now widely used as fuel and ethanol leftovers are used in pet foods. Other banned food additives cause cancer and other diseases.

About 160 sweets and confectionary companies from 23 countries including the UAE have participated in a recent food exhibition. About 16 companies from various countries are trying to find local and regional distribution agents to market their products.

The municipality divides banned food additives into five categories – colouring materials, food preservatives, anti-oxidiant materials, packaging materials and other materials.

The official said companies have to display the ingredients used in food products on the packets. "If any of the consignments contain these banned substances, we will either send them back to the originating port or destroy them as per the advise of the importer. If we find any food products containing banned substances, the supermarkets and hypermarkets selling them are first given a warning and the product is withdrawn from the shelves. If they repeat the crime, the municipality imposes a fine," the official said.

A UAE-based sweet manufacturer said: "Our food and sweet packets contain details of the ingredients used in the food items, but these samples do not have them printed. We don't use any banned substances in our confectionary products."

A Pakistani sweet manufacturer said the company produces 16 varieties of sweets and chewing gums, but only one product is currently exported to the UAE. "We are looking for agents in the region. Only one of our products is sold in the UAE. We don't use Chinese dairy products in our chocolates and sweets," the official said.

The municipality said Chinese milk powder import was stopped following the melamine controversy.