Flour, Bread and Paste Regulations

FLOUR, BREAD AND PASTE [S.L.231.16 1 SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION 231.16 FLOUR, BREAD AND PASTE REGULATIONS 1st May, 1978 LEGAL NOTICE 92 of 1977, as amended by Legal Notice 32 of 1978. Title.1. The title of these Regulations is Flour, Bread and Paste Regulations. Interpretation. Cap. 231. 2. In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires "the Act" means the Food, Drugs and Drinking Water Act; "bread" means bread in any form intended for sale for human consumption, and includes rolls, fancy loaves and speciality bread; "carbohydrate" means a substance containing only carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, in which the hydrogen and oxygen occur in the same proportion as in water; "enzyme active preparations" include malt extract, malt flour, amylases, proteinases and lipoxidases; "fibre" means the organic matter contained in the dried defatted residue obtained by digest ing a sample of f lour or of bread successively with boiling acids and alkali; "flour" means the finely ground and sifted product intended for sale for human consumption and which is derived or separated from cleaned milling grades of wheat, and whether or not any of the wheat has been malted and whether or not it contains enzyme active preparations; "milk" includes cream, separated milk, condensed milk and dried milk; "permitted colouring matter" means caramel and tartrazine; "to sell" includes to offer, expose, advertise or keep for sale and to supply by way of compensation or otherwise; "sugar" means any soluble carbohydrate sweetening matter; "yeast stimulating preparations" means a substance or mixture of substances capable of maintaining or accelerating the activity of yeast. Licence.3. It shall not be lawful for any person to carry on the trade of baker, breadmaker, pastemaker or miller without a licence from the Superintendent of Public Health. Inspection of mills, bake-houses, etc. 4. It shall be lawful for the Sanitary Authority, or for any police officer when required by the said Authority, to enter into and inspect any mill, bakehouse, or any other place where bread or paste is made or is sold to the public, for the purpose of taking samples or for ensuring that all relevant provisions of the Act and of any regulations made thereunder are being complied with. 2 [S.L.231.16 FLOUR, BREAD AND PASTE Flour from deteriorated cereals, etc. 5. No person shall sell any flour (a) produced from wheats which are oily or damp or are mixed with any extraneous matter; (b) containing any kind of seeds or other matter that renders the flour noxious or yields off-flavours; (c) affected with fungus disease; (d) containing whole or parts of animals, or mite or insect parasites; (e) which has a moisture content exceeding 14.5%; (f) containing any food additives of any kind other than those permitted by these Regulations; (g) which has been bleached by any chemical means; (h) containing any other matter or material not mentioned in the above paragraphs and which matter or material is foreign to wheat. Composition of white flour. 6. White flour shall be free from bran coat and germ to such an extent that the percentage of ash content calculated on a moisture basis of 14.5% does not exceed 0.52%. Flour for biscuits. 7. Flour, other than wholemeal flour, intended for use in the manufacture of biscuits may contain sulphur dioxide not exceeding 200 parts per million, calculated by weight. Flour for confectionery. 8. Flour, other than wholemeal flour, intended to be used for confectionery may contain propionic acid or sorbic acid in a proportion not exceeding 1000 parts per million. Wheatmeal, or brown flour and wholemeal. 9. No person shall sell any wheatmeal, or brown flour, or any wholemeal, unless it complies with the following conditions: (a) wheatmeal, or brown flour, shall contain not less than 0.6% of fibre, calculated by weight on the dry matter; (b) wholemeal, shall contain (i) the whole of the product derived from cleaned milling grades of wheat; (ii) the following nutrients which shall be present in (and not added to) the said product, i.e.: iron - not less than 1.65 mgms; vitamin B - not less than 0.24 mgms; nicotinic acid or nikethamide - not less than 1.60 mgms, per 100 grams of flour; (iii) an ash content, calculated on a moisture free basis of not less than 1.25% and not more than 2.25%. Additives to flour. Amended by: L.N. 32 of 1978. 10. (1) No person shall sell any flour which contains any added colouring matter other than caramel. (2) No person shall sell any flour containing any bleaching agent or improving agent: Provided that any flour, which is not wholemeal flour, may FLOUR, BREAD AND PASTE [S.L.231.16 3 contain ascorbic and/or acetic acid. Composition of bread. 11. Saving the provisions of regulations 13, 14 and 15, bread shall be that product made from flour, yeast and water which has been properly fermented or leavened or ripened, and baked. Properties of bread. 12. No person shall sell any bread which (a) does not conform with the provisions of regulations 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15; (b) has not been properly fermented or properly leavened or ripened; (c) has not been properly baked or is insufficiently baked, or contains more than 45% of water by weight; (d) is mouldy; (e) is ropy, that is, has been attacked by bacillus mesentericus; (f) is made of flour affected by any of the conditions mentioned in regulation 5; or (g) contains any food additives other than those permitted by these regulations. White bread.13. White bread shall be made from white flour which shall conform with the provision contained in regulation 6, yeast and water, and may contain also one or more of the following additional ingredients only: (a) salt; (b) edible oils and fats; (c) milk or milk products; (d) sugar; (e) enzyme active preparations; (f) yeast stimulating preparations; (g) harmless preparations of alpha amylase; (h) ascorbic acid; (i) acetic acid; (j) vinegar; (k) lactic acid; (l) lecithin; (m) stearyl tartrate; (n) partial glycerol esters; (o) complete glycerol esters; (p) partial polyglycerol esters; (q) sesame or poppy seads or egg albumen, on the outside of the loaf; (r) soya bean flour, provided that the proportion of soya bean flour shall not exceed two parts to every hundred parts of flour calculated by weight; 4 [S.L.231.16 FLOUR, BREAD AND PASTE (s) any substance used as an excipient or diluent of any of the additional ingredients mentioned in this regulation, provided that the total proportion of any such substance or substances present in the bread shall not exceed 225 parts per million of flour, calculated by weight. Brown bread. 14. Brown bread, or wheatmeal bread, shall be made from brown flour which shall conform with the provision contained in regulation 9, together with yeast and water, and may contain all or any of the additional ingredients mentioned in regulation 13 as well as caramel: Provided that the proportion of soya bean flour, if present, in the bread shall not exceed five parts to every hundred parts of flour, calculated by weight. Wholemeal bread. 15. Wholemeal bread shall be made from wholemeal flour which shall conform with the provision contained in regulation 9, together with yeast and water, and may contain caramel and any or all of the additional ingredients mentioned in regulation 13 with the exception of soya bean flour and ascorbic acid. Alimentary paste. 16. Alimentary paste shall be made from white flour which shall conform with the provision contained in regulation 6 and from water, and may contain any or all of the following: (a) soya bean flour; (b) soya bean protein; (c) lecithin; (d) malt; (e) malt extract; (f) malt flour; (g) gum, Arabic; (h) stearyl tartrate; (i) partial glycerol esters; (j) complete glycerol esters; (k) partial polyglycerol esters; (l) ascorbic acid; (m) acetic acid; (n) vinegar; (o) salt; (p) edible oils and fats; (q) milk and milk products; (r) yeast; (s) a permitted colouring matter: Provided that, where soya bean flour or soya bean protein is used, the percentage of such flour or protein shall be clearly declared on a label which shall be affixed to the container. FLOUR, BREAD AND PASTE [S.L.231.16 5 Alimentary paste containing deteriorated flour. 17. No person shall manufacture, prepare or sell any alimentary paste which is made of flour affected by any of the conditions mentioned in regulation 5. Special alimentary paste. 18. Special paste containing one or more of the following additional ingredients may be manufactured and sold: (a) spinach - fresh or otherwise; (b) meat; (c) egg or egg products; (d) spices: Provided that the percentage of the above ingredients shall be clearly declared on a label which shal l be aff ixed to the container. Bread or paste for diabetics, etc. 19. Notwithstanding anything contained in these Regulations, it shall be lawful to manufacture, prepare or sell any flour, bread or alimentary paste intended for diabetics or for slimming or dietary purposes, so long as such flour, bread or paste contains a clear indication to that effect.