Amendment to the Specifications and Standards for Foods, Food Additives, Etc.  
 
The government of Japan will revise  manufacturing standards for non-alcoholic beverages . 
 
Background  
Under Article 13, paragraph (1) of the Food Sanitation Act (Act No. 233 of 1 947; “the 
Act”) , the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare can  establish manufacturing 
standards or compositional specifications for food or food additives f or sale after hearing 
opinion of the Pharmaceutical Affai rs and Food Sanitation Council.  
 
When specifications or standards  for foods or  food additives are established  and 
stipulated  in the Specifications and Standards for Foods, Food Additives, Etc. (Publi c 
Notice of the Ministry of Health and Welfare No. 370, 1959; “the Public  Notice”) , Japan 
prohibits  the sale  of foods and food additives if the foods or  the food additives do not 
meet  the specifications or the standards  under paragraph (2) of the same article  of the 
Act,. 
 
The specifications and standards for non -alcoholic beverages are established in the 
Public  Notice.  Japan does not approve the manufacturing of non-alcoholic beverages 
excluding mineral waters, frozen fruit beverages, and fruit juice used as ingredients 
(“other non -alcoholic beverages”) by the following method: by mixing non -sterilized or 
non-filter sterilized ingredients  into other non -alcoholic beverages that are already 
sterilized or filter sterilized.  
 
This time, it has been confirmed that even if other non -alcoholic beverages are 
manufactured  by mixing lactic bacteria, yeasts, fermented milks, or lactic -acid-bacteria 
beverages into other non -alcoholic beverages that are alr eady sterilized or filter 
sterilized , the obtained  products do not have food hygiene problems  when the 
manufacturing process following  the sterilization or filter -sterilization is controlled by 
an appropriate method that can prevent the process from being contaminated with pathogenic microorganisms . Japan  has decided to revise the manufacturing standards 
for non -alcoholic beverages, because the draft revision has been approved by the Food 
Specification Committee under the Pharmaceutical Affairs and Food Sanitation Council 
and the risk assessment body, the Food Safety Commission of Japan under  the Cabinet 
Office.  
 
Outline of revision  
Japan will revise the manufacturing standards for non -alcoholic beverages and newly 
add the following standards for other non -alcoholic beverages to the  Public  Notice . 
 
When other non -alcoholic beverages are manufacture d by mix ing lactic bacteria, yeasts, 
fermented milks, or lactic -acid-bacteria beverages into other non -alcoholic beverages 
that are sterilized or filter sterilized  by the method specified in the Public  Notice, the 
manufacturing process after the mixing  shall be controlled by an a ppropriate method* 
that can prevent the process from being contaminated with pathogenic microorganisms 
and the obtained product shall be automatically filled in containers a nd stoppered or 
sealed tightly.  
 
* To individually confirm that the process after the mixing of  lactic bacteria, yeasts, fermented 
milks, or lactic -acid-bacteria beverages is controlle d by an appropriate method , the Ministry of 
Health, Labour and Welfare requires the manuf acturers of non -alcoholic beverages to submit 
document s to demonstrate that the product safety is ensured by hygiene control based on 
Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP ).