Caught in the act, big producer finally admits MSG in snack
Sari P. Setiogi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The producer of popular snacks Smax and Double Decker admitted on Friday that it had started putting monosodium glutamate (MSG) in its products recently and that it had not stated the MSG content on the packs for technical reasons.
Oetje Palar, personal assistant to the general manager of PT Pacific Food Indonesia, which produces Smax and Double Decker, said that products whose packs did not mention MSG indicator were old stock and would soon be replaced with new ones.
"We will soon be distributing the new packs with the new labels after the old stock that is now on the market has been sold," Oetje said without saying when the new packs would appear on the shelves.
Oetje, however, was unsure whether the new labels would state the actual amount of MSC in the snacks, saying he would have to query this with the parent company in Malaysia first.
Smax and Double Decker are two of 13 brands of snacks found to contain MSG by the Public Interest Research and Advocacy Center (PIRAC).
The other brands were Taro Snack, Golden Corn, Jetz, Twistko, Gemez, Happytos Tortilla Chips, Chiki, Chitato, Cheetos, Anak Mas, and Twistee Corn. The producers of these snacks were not available for comment on Friday.
MSG is used as a flavor enhancer in a variety of foods, and is sold as a fine white crystal substance. Chemically, MSG is the sodium salt of glutamic acid, a naturally occurring amino acid.
Seven snacks were found not to identify their MSG content on the packs at all, four items referred to "seasoning" or "food enhancer" but did not say that this was actually MSG, while two others referred to MSG on their packs but do state the amount.
Article 8 of the consumer protection law clearly states that a producer should not conceal the ingredients used in the foods they produce.
Meanwhile, article 3 and 19 of the decree on food labeling and advertising requires that the ingredients of a food product be stated on the label.
Some studies show that people can react adversely to MSG and develop an MSG complex, as well suffering allergic reactions, nausea, headaches, migraines, asthma, and heart and neurological problems.
The neurological problems can be particularly dangerous for growing children as their brain and memory capacities could be affected.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sets a maximum daily intake of MSG of five milligrams per day. However, on average Americans still consume about 11 milligrams of MSG per day.
There are no particular suggestions as to the maximum MSG daily intake, or regulations on the maximum amount of MSG allowed in foodstuffs in Indonesia.
PIRAC is now urging the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM), to set a maximum limit of monosodium glutamate (MSG) substance in snacks as the ingredient might threat health, particularly children.