This additive is controversial due to the presence of nanoparticles. In France, it has been banned in food since 2020 and this year, the Twenty-Seven will definitively end its food use throughout the EU.
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France is renewing in 2022 the ban on the use of titanium dioxide in foodstuffs, according to a decree published in the Official Journal on Friday, December 31. Indicated on the labels by TiO2 or E171, this white powder is mainly used as a coloring agent to whiten or intensify the shine of food products (confectionery, pastries, ready meals).
This substance containing nanoparticles – less than 100 nanometers in size, which facilitates their penetration into the body – was banned from French plates for the first time in January 2020. The measure has since been renewed. The ban on this controversial additive should become permanent during 2022. At the beginning of October, in fact, the Twenty-Seven gave the green light to ban titanium dioxide in food at the EU level, after a postponement because of its security by the European regulator.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) considers that E171 can no longer be considered as “sure” as a food additive. She adds that she cannot rule out the “genotoxicity” component, that is, its ability to damage DNA, the genetic material of cells. “After oral ingestion, absorption of titanium dioxide particles is poor, but they can accumulate in the body”, according to the authority. The European ban is due to enter into force in early 2022, with a six-month transition period.
“During this period and in order to ensure that foodstuffs containing titanium dioxide as an additive are not placed on the French market again, the suspension measure is maintained in 2022”, is it explained in the notice of the decree published Friday by France. The ban does not apply to drugs and cosmetics.