Food additives: Sweeteners

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• Sweeteners
• Related links

Sweeteners

Sweeteners are food additives that are used to give food a sweet taste. The List of Permitted Sweeteners sets out the sweeteners that are permitted in Canada, the foods they may be used in, and the maximum level of use in each food.

Many sweeteners are permitted in table-top sweeteners. Table-top sweeteners can be in a liquid or powder format and are intended for people to add to food themselves. Some sweeteners are permitted only in table-top sweeteners. These sweeteners are not allowed to be used as an ingredient to sweeten another prepackaged food.

Health Canada is aware of information questioning the safety of certain sweeteners. To date, Health Canada has found that the evidence presented was insufficient to show that these sweeteners are unsafe for their permitted food uses. As with any food additive, Health Canada will further restrict the permitted use of any sweetener, or no longer permit the sweetener to be used at all, if there is a safety reason to take such action.

Most prepackaged foods in Canada with more than one ingredient must have a list of ingredients. This list shows all the ingredients in a prepackaged food, including sweeteners. If you want to avoid a particular sweetener, check the list of ingredients for the name of the sweetener.

Related links

• September 2024 - Front-of-package nutrition symbol labelling guide for industry
• July 2022 – Changes to information on sweeteners
• The gastroinstestinal effects of D-tagatose
• Sugar Substitutes
• Aspartame
• August 2024 - Modification to the List of permitted food additives with other accepted uses to remove brominated vegetable oil
• June 2022 - Titanium dioxide (TiO2) as a food additive: Current science report
• Caffeine in Foods
• Enzyme use in Food Processing
• Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) - Questions and Answers
• The Food Directorate's Pre-Market Submission Management Process for Food Additives, Infant Formulas and Novel Foods
• Notices of proposal and notices of modification
• Priority Scheduling and Expedited Handling of Submissions that have the Capacity to Enhance Food Safety