Food improvement agents


Wageningen Food Safety Research (WFSR) is National Reference Laboratory (NRL) for food improvement agents. This task is carried out in compliance with Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 and Regulation (EC) No 178/2002.

Food improvement agents (FIA) encompass a broad range of substances and can be divided in 3 main categories:

  • Additives
  • Flavourings
  • Enzymes

Enhance attributes of food

FIA’s are introduced to enhance various attributes of food products. Food additives help extend shelf life and maintain quality during production, packaging, and storage. Flavourings convey or modify the odour or taste of food while enzymes have specific biochemical actions that serve technological purposes at any stage of the food chain. FIA’s are authorised at European level and legal limits are established to ensure safe food consumption.

WFSR has extensive experience and knowledge of residue analysis in food, as well as the associated legislation. This includes analytical method development, validation and quality control, and quality assurance of Official Laboratories (Ols).

As NRL, WFSR advises the Dutch government on technical matters within the NRL domain, and it acts as an intersection between the European Union Reference Laboratory (EURL) and the OL. Participation in workshops and proficiency tests organised by the EURL is also part of the NRL task. This helps to keep our knowledge up-to-date, and the quality of our analyses is independently verified. It also ensures that the results from different official laboratories in the EU are comparable.