 
  
Notice of Modification to the List of 
Permitted Emulsifying, Gelling, 
Stabilizing or Thickening Agents to 
Extend  the Use of Gellan  Gum to 
Beverage Whiteners  
 
Notice of Modification  – Lists of Permitted Food 
Additives  
Reference Number: NOM/ADM-0183 
June  3, 2022 
 Notice of Modification to the List of Permitted Emulsifying, Gelling, Stabilizing or Thickening Agents  to Extend the Use of Gellan 
Gum to Beverage Whiteners  – Reference Number: NOM/ADM -0183| 2 
 Summary  
Food additives are regulated in Canada under Marketing Authorizations  (MAs) issued by the Minister of 
Health and the Food and Drug Regulations  (Regulations) . Approved food additives and their permitted 
conditions of use are set out in the Lists of Per mitted Food Additives  that are incorporated by reference in 
the MAs and published on the Canada.ca website. A petitioner can request that Health Canada approve a 
new additive , a new source  or a new condition of use for an already approved food additive by filing a food 
additive submission with the Department's Food Directorate. Health Canada uses this premarket approval 
process to determine whether the scientific data support the safety of food additives when used under 
specified conditions in foods sold in  Canada.  
Health Canada’s Food Directorate received a food additive submission s eeking approval for the use of gellan 
gum as a stabilizing agent  in flavoured coffee whiteners . The requested maximum level of use is 350 parts pe r 
million (ppm).  
Gellan gum is  already permitted for use in Canada as a stabilizing agent in  a variety of foods at  various  
maximum levels ranging from 41.5 ppm to 5 ,000 ppm.  
The results of the Food Directorate’s evaluation of available scientific data s upport the safety  and the effica cy 
of gellan gum for use as stabilizing agent in beverage whiteners.  Therefore, Health Canada has modified the 
List of Permitted Emulsifying, Gelling, Stabilizing or Thickening Agents  to ext end the use  of gellan gum  by 
adding the entry shown below to the list  (bold font not used in the List) .  
 
Modification to the  List of  Permitted Emulsifying, Gelling, Stabilizing or Thickening 
Agents  
Item 
No. Column 1  
Additive  Column 2  
Permitted in or Upon  Column 3  
Maximum Level of Use and 
Other Conditions  
G.2 Gellan Gum  (14) 
Beverage whiteners  (14) 
350 p.p.m.  
Rationale  
Health Canada’s Food Directorat e completed a premarket safety and efficacy assessment of gellan gum  for 
use as  a stabilizing agent in beverage whitener s. The Department  conclud ed that information related to 
chemistry and toxicology supports the requested use  of gellan gum , and technical information indicates that 
gellan gum is effective for its intended purpose . Therefore, the Department  has enabled the requested uses 
of gellan gum by adding to the  List of Permit ted Emulsifying, Gelling, Stabilizing or Thickening Agents  the new 
entry shown in the above table.  
Other Relevant Information  
Food additives such as gellan gum are required to meet food -grade specifications set out in Part B of the 
Regulations , where such specifications exist,  or those set out in the  most recent  edition of the  Food 
Chemicals Codex  or the Combined Compendium of Food Additive Specifications . The Food Chemicals Codex  is 
a compendium of standards for purity and identity for food ingredients, including food additives, published Notice of Modification to the List of Permitted Emulsifying, Gelling, Stabilizing or Thickening Agents  to Extend the Use of Gellan 
Gum to Beverage Whiteners  – Reference Number: NOM/ADM -0183| 3 
 by the United States Pharmacopeial Convention. Specifications in the  Combined Compendium of Food 
Additive Specifications  are prepared by the Joi nt FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) , and 
published by the Food and Agriculture Orga nization of the United Nations.   
 
Implementation and Enforcement  
The above modification came into force June 3, 2022 the day it was published in the List of Permitted 
Emulsifying, Gelling, Stabilizing or Thickening Agents . 
 The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is responsible for the enforcement of the Food and Drugs Act and its 
associated regulations with respect to foods.   
Contact Information  
Health Canada's Food Directorate is committed to reviewing new scientific informati on on the safety in use of 
any permitted  food additive, includ ing gellan gum. Anyo ne wishing to submit an inquiry or new scient ific 
information on the use of this additive  may do so in writing, by regular mail or electronically.  If you wish to 
contact the  Food Directorate electro nically, please use the words " gellan gum  (NOM -0183)" in the subject 
line of your e -mail.  
Bureau of Chemical Safety, Food Directorate  
251 Sir Frederick Banting Driveway  
Tunney’s Pasture, PL: 2202C  
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0K9  
E-mail: bcs-bipc@hc -sc.gc.ca  