From: BLIS Technologies Ltd (NZX:BLT)
Date: Thursday, 17 Jan 2013
Release: Immediate
FSANZ clears the way for BLIS M18™ probiotic use in foods
BLIS Technologies Ltd (NZX:BLT) is pleased to advise that it has received a written acknowledgement from Food Standards
Australia New Zealand (‘FSANZ’) that its new probiotic, BLIS M18™ is not considered by the authority to be a Novel Food
in either Australia or New Zealand. This enables the BLIS M18™ probiotic to be used directly in food applications such
as yoghurt and beverages, in Australia and New Zealand bypassing the demanding and formal “novel foods” application.
By definition, a novel food is a non-traditional food that has no sufficient history of safe use and so in making this
declaration, FSANZ have acknowledged the intrinsic safety of the BLIS M18™ probiotic in humans, as well as the safety of
the species and the strain that BLIS M18™ originates from.
Novel food ingredients however, can be sold in Australia and New Zealand but only after they have under gone a rigorous
risk and safety assessment by the researchers and food scientists within FSANZ. Once assessed and deemed to be safe,
these novel foods are then added to the novel foods list, which makes up the Novel Foods Standard. Only food ingredients
that appear on this list or have been assessed prior to be a non-novel food ingredient (such as the BLIS M18™ and BLIS
K12® probiotics) can be legally sold as a food ingredient, in either Australia or New Zealand.
Dr Barry Richardson, CEO of BLIS Technologies said today, “We welcome the finding by the Advisory Committee on Novel
Foods to indicate the ‘non-novel food’ status to BLIS M18™. This probiotic, like its partner product BLIS K12®, has an
exceptional safety record and has been part of our food supply for a long time. This decision from FSANZ will now enable
us to discuss the application of both these probiotics with food manufacturers who are seeking to assist with their
consumer’s oral health and to fight tooth decay in children”
About BLIS M18™
BLIS M18™ is an oral cavity probiotic, which has been shown to support the teeth and gums. BLIS M18™ is able to protect
itself from other invading bacteria by secreting specific short-chain proteins or peptides known as “BLIS”. BLIS stands
for Bacteriocin-Like-Inhibitory- Substances and that is why BLIS probiotics are sometimes called “Next Generation, Advanced Probiotics”.
ENDS