COMMI SSION REGUL ATION (EU) 2020/1419 
of 7 Oct ober 2020 
amending Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council 
as regards the use of ascorbic acid (E 300) and citric acid (E 330) on white vegetables intended for 
further processing 
(Text with EEA relevance) 
THE EUR OPEAN COMMISSION, 
Havi ng regar d to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, 
Havi ng regard to Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on 
food additives (1), and in particular Article 10(3) thereof, 
Whereas: 
(1) Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 lays down a Union list of food additives appro ved for use in food and 
their conditions of use. 
(2) That list may be updated in accordance with the common procedure refer red to in Article 3(1) of Regulation (EC) 
No 1331/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council (2), either on the initiative of the Commission or 
follo wing an application. 
(3) Pursuant to Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008, ascorbic acid (E 300) and citric acid (E 330) are currently 
author ised for use as food additives in a wide variety of foods. 
(4) On 17 December 2018, the Commission received an application for the modifi cation of the conditions of use of 
ascorbic acid (E 300) and citric acid (E 330) contained in food cate gory 04.1.2 ‘Peeled, cut and shredded fruit and 
veget ables ’, to author ise the use of these substances on whit e vegetables intended for further processing, including 
heat treatment such as roasting, steam ing or grilling, before they are consumed by the final consumer . 
(5) When sliced, cut, chopped or diced, white vegeta bles are susceptible to enzymatic brown ing as the cells are brok en 
down liberating enzymes, in particular polyphenol oxidases, from the tissues. Enzymatic brown ing can be 
controlled by dipping the vegetables into a wate r solution containing ascorbic acid (E 300) and citric acid (E 330) at 
a maximum concentration of 1 % for a couple of minutes. It results from the application that, the proposed use of 
these additives as antio xidants on unprocessed vegetables intended for further processing, including heat treatment, 
prior to consump tion results in reduced food waste by increasing the overall food quality and the shelf-life of the 
treated vegeta bles, up to five days. 
(6) Pursuant to Article 3(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1331/2008, the Commission has to seek the opinion of the European 
Food Safety Author ity (‘the Auth ority’) in order to update the Union list of food additives set out in Annex II to 
Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008, excep t where the update in question is not liable to have an effect on human health. 
(7) On 6 May 2015, the Author ity published a scientifi c opinion re-evaluating among others the safet y of ascorbic acid 
(E 300) as a food additive. The Author ity concluded that there is no safety concer n for the use of ascorbic acid (E 
300) as a food additive at the repor ted uses and use levels and there is no need for a numer ical accept able daily 
intake (‘ADI’) for ascorbic acid and its salts. Such a conclusion means that the substance is of a very low safety 
concer n, there is reliable information for exposure and toxicity and there is a low probability of adverse health 
effects in humans at doses that do not induce nutr itional imbalance in animals (3). 
(1)OJ L 354, 31.12.2008, p. 16. 
(2)Regulation (EC) No 1331/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 establishing a common 
author isation procedure for food additives, food enzymes and food flavourings (OJ L 354, 31.12.2008, p. 1). 
(3)EFSA Jour nal 2014;12(6):3697. EN Offi cial Jour nal of the European Union 8.10.2020                                                                                                                                         L 326/11   (8) The safety of citric acid (E 330) was evaluated in 1990 by the Scientifi c Committ ee for Food, whic h established its 
ADI as ‘not specifi ed’(4). The term ‘not specifi ed’ means that, on the basis of the available toxicological, biochemical 
and clinical data, the total daily intake of the substance, arising from its natural occur rence and its present use or uses 
in food at the levels necessar y to achieve the desired technological effect, does not present a hazard to health. 
Pending the re-evaluation of citric acid (E 330) under the program for the re-evaluation of food additives laid down 
in Commission Regulation (EU) No 257/2010 (5), the Commission considers that this safet y assessment remains a 
valid basis for its decision for the same reasons why it considered then, on the basis of the criteria mentioned in 
recital 5 of that Regulation, that Citric acid (E 330) was of low concer n and that its re-evaluation was not a high 
priority. 
(9) Since the use of ascorbic acid (E 300) and citric acid (E 330) as antio xidants on prepac ked whit e vege tables intende d 
for further processing, including heat treatment, prior to consump tion is not liable to have an effect on human 
health, it is not necessar y to seek the opinion of the Author ity. 
(10) Theref ore, Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 should be amended according ly. 
(11) The measures provid ed for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committ ee on 
Plants, Animals, Food and Feed, 
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGUL ATION: 
Article 1 
Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 is amended in accordance with the Annex to this Regulation. 
Article 2 
This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day followi ng that of its publication in the Official Journal of the 
European Union. 
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States. 
Done at Brussels, 7 October 2020.  
For the Commission 
The President 
Ursula VON DER LEYEN     
(4)Repor ts of the Scientif ic Committee for Food, Twenty-f ifth series, 1991, p. 13 (https://ec.europa.eu/f ood/sites/f ood/files/safety/docs/ 
sci-com_scf_repor ts_25.pdf). 
(5)Commission Regulation (EU) No 257/2010 of 25 March 2010 setting up the program for the re-evaluation of approved food additives 
in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council on food additives (OJ L 80, 
26.3.2010, p. 19). EN Offi cial Jour nal of the European Union L 326/12                                                                                                                                         8.10.2020   ANNEX 
Part E of Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 is amended as follows: 
(1) in food categor y 04.1.2 ‘Peeled, cut and shredded fruit and vegetables’ the entr y for ascorbic acid (E 300) is replaced by the follo wing:  
‘E 300 Ascorbic acid quantum satis  only prepack ed refrigerated unprocessed fruit and vegetables ready for 
consump tion, prepack ed unpro cessed and peeled potatoes and prepack ed 
white vegetables intende d for further processing, including heat treat­
ment, prior to consump tion’   
(2) in food categor y 04.1.2 ‘Peeled, cut and shredded fruit and vegetables’ the entr y for citric acid (E 330) is replaced by the followi ng:  
‘E 330 Citric acid quantum satis  only prepack ed refrigerated unprocessed fruit and vegetables ready for 
consump tion, prepack ed unpro cessed and peeled potatoes and prepack ed 
white vegetables intende d for further processing, including heat treat­
ment, prior to consump tion’   EN Offi cial Jour nal of the European Union 8.10.2020                                                                                                                                         L 326/13