Australia and New Zealand intend to approve 3-fucosyllactose produced by genetically modified Escherichia coli K-12 strain for use in infant formula

Published Feb 19, 2025

Tridge summary

Glycom A/S has proposed changes to the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code to permit the optional addition of 3-fucosyllactose (3-FL), a human milk oligosaccharide (HMO) found in breast milk, to infant formula at a maximum concentration of 2.0g/L. This move aims to bring infant formula closer to breast milk in composition, providing more natural nutritional support for infants who cannot be fully breastfed. The proposal is in line with Codex Standards and Australian and New Zealand guidelines. The application is under review, with a public comment period upcoming. The use of 3-FL in infant formula is approved in the EU, US, and Singapore, but not in China and Canada.

Disclaimer: The above summary was generated by Tridge's proprietary AI model for informational purposes.

Original content

This application was made by Glycom A/S, which applied to amend Schedule 26 and Schedule 29 of the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code to allow the voluntary addition of 3-fucosyllactose (3-FL) to infant formula products, with a maximum usage of 2.0g/L (equivalent to 80mg/100kJ). 3-FL is one of the 10 most abundant human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) in breast milk. It is a simple structural isomer of 2'-fucosyllactose (2'-FL) and also belongs to the fucosylated human milk oligosaccharide structure category. The 3-FL produced by Glycom A/S is chemically and structurally identical to the 3-FL naturally present in human breast milk. Adding synthetic 3-FL to infant formula products can make infant formula products closer to breast milk in terms of ingredients, and provide nutritional support closer to natural breast milk for infants who cannot be fully breastfed. This is consistent with the Codex Standards for Infant Formula and Infant Formula for Special Medical Purposes, The ...

Source: Foodmate