The law on MSG

A number of Jakarta-based newspapers have reported that Health Minister Ahmad Sujudi has asked the Food and Drug Control Agency (BPOM) to withdraw food products that contain monosodium glutamate (MSG) but fail to mention the amount on the label. The minister said this was a violation against sub-article 2 of Article 33 of Law No. 8/1999 and Article 5 of Government Regulation No. 69/1999. This was especially the case as regards the use of MSG in food products, the minister added in a way that seemed to suggest that MSG was a dangerous food additive.

The minister's statement about MSG, as reported in a number of Jakarta-based newspapers, clearly shows that he does not have a proper and correct understanding of Government Regulation No. 69/1999. Sub-article 4 of Article 61 stipulates that the health minister must give this input to a technically relevant minister, not to the head of BPOM, who is not a technically relevant minister. Besides, sub-article 3 of Article 61 also stipulates that an administrative sanction in the form of a withdrawal "can be imposed only after written warnings have been given up to a maximum of three times."

MSG is one of 342 food additives. The government/the health ministry is yet to mention what substances are categorized as food additives. Fifteen years ago, the former health minister issued a decree containing a list of 342 food additives that were allowed to be added to processed food. The present minister, Ahmad Sujudi, is yet to prove the danger of the use of MSG so that this can be used as a basis for the withdrawal of food products. In the United States, MSG is safe to eat and is included on the Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) list.

There is not a single article in Government Regulation No. 69/1999 that stipulates that the weight of a food additive in a food product must be mentioned on the label or in the advertisement. I found 10 food additives, including MSG, on the label of a snack product imported from the United States (ML. 362204001 S) but the amount of each additive is not mentioned.

Government Regulation Mo. 69/1999 refers to the health minister 10 times as an official that will issue implementation regulations but not a single implementation regulation has been issued yet.

SUNARTO PRAWIROSUJANTO Jakarta