CHAPTER 5

MALAYSIAN FOOD ACT 1983 (ACT 281)

AND FOOD REGULATION 1985

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 FOOD ACT 1983 (Act 281)
•  An act to protect the public against health
hazards and fraud in the preparation, sale
and use of food, and for matters incidental
thereto or connected therewith.

Thereto: to that thing

Therewith: along with that

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•  Be it enacted by the DUli Yang Maha
Mulia Seri Paduka Baginda Yang di-
Pertuan Agong with the advice and
consent of the Dewan Negara and Dewan
Rakyat in the Parliament assembled, and
by the authority of the same as follows:

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•  Part I Preliminary
1 Short Title, Application And Commencement
2 Interpretation

•  Part II Administration And Enforcement

3 Appointment Of Analysts And Authorized Officers
3A Approved Laboratories
4 Power of Authorized Officer
5 Power To Take Sample
6 Procedure For Taking Sample
7 Certificate Of Analyst
8 Power To Call For Information
9 Power Of The Director General To Obtain Particulars Of
Certain Food Ingredients
10 Director May Order Food Premises or Appliances Be
Put Into Hygienic And Sanitary Condition
11 Closure Of Insanitary Premises 4
12 Conviction Published In Newspapers
•  Part III Offences And Evidence
13 Food Containing Substances Injurious To Health
13A Food Unfit For Human Consumption
13B Adulterated Food
13C Removal Of Food From Food Premises
14 Prohibition Against Sale Of Food Not Of The Nature,
Substance Or Quality Demanded
15 Labelling Not Complying With Standard Of Food
16 False Labelling, etc.
17 Advertisement

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18 Power Of Court To Order License To Be Cancelled
And Food To Be Disposed Of
19 Prosecutions
20 Certificate of Analyst To Be Prima Facie Evidence
21 Court May Order Independent Analysis
22 Presumption Of Sale, etc.
23 No Defence That Offence Not Willfully Committed
23A Advance Notice Of Expert Evidence In Court
24 Sales, etc., By Agent Or Servant
25 Presumption For Human Consumption
26 Non-Disclosure Of Information
27 Manufacturing Process And Trade Secret
28 Liability Of Importer, Manufacturer Or Packer

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•  Part IV Important, Warranty And Defenses
29 Importation
30 Warranty
31 Reliance On Written Warranty A Good Defence
32 Penalty For False Warrant
32A Prosecution
32B Power To Order Appearance In Court12A Meaning Of
"Owner Of The Rights Of The Manufacturer Or Packer“

•  Part V Miscellaneous Provisions

33 Power To Compound
33A Offence By Body Corporate
33B Protection Against Legal Proceedings
33C Indemnity
34 Power To Make Regulations
35 Repeal And Savings
36 Application To Tobacco. etc 7
What is Food Regulations 1985??
  Food Regulations 1985 is a subsidiary
legislation made under the Food Act 1983 and
enforced by the Ministry of Health Malaysia and
the local authorities
  It stipulates the minimum standards that shall be
complied by the food industry as well as
manufacturers, importers, wholesalers and
retailers to ensure food safety and quality.
  Food Regulations 1985 shall be complied by the
industry, manufacturer and importer of food and
is applicable for ready to eat food, food
produced or packaged for domestic market.
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 Why Food Regulations 1985
should be complied???
•  To ensure that the public can be protected
against health hazards and fraud in the
preparation, sale and use of food, and for
matters incidental thereto or connected
therewith to ensure food produced are
safe, of quality, hygienic and free from
contamination.

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What are the requirements that need to
be complied in the Food Regulation
1985??
a. Warranty (Part II)
- A written assurance from manufacturers,
distributors and dealers that the food
comply with the Food Regulations 1985

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Food that require written warranty
from manufacturers are:
 Canned food for infants and children
 Cereal-based food for infants and children
 Colouring substance
 Flavouring substance
 Full cream milk powder
 Infant formula
 Skimmed milk powder
 Tea, tea dust, tea extract and scented tea
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 b. Labelling (Part IV)
•  Packaged food shall be labelled as
provided under Part IV (Labelling) and
Part VIII (Standards and particular
labelling requirements for food) of the
Food Regulations 1985.

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 c. Food Additive and Nutrient
Supplement (Part V)
•  Food additives and nutrient supplement
listed in the Food Regulations 1985 only
are allowed to be added in specific food

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 PART V: FOOD ADDITIVE AND
NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT
Food Additive
ü Means any safe substance that is intentionally
introduced into or on a food in small quantities in
order to affect the food’s keeping quality, texture,
consistency, appearance, odour, taste, alkalinity
or acidity
ü Include any preservative, colouring subs,
flavouring subs., flavour enhancer, antioxidant &
food conditioner, but shall not include nutrient
supplement, incidental constituent or salt.
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Additive that cannot be used:
v Additive that are not permitted
v Additive which do not comply with
standard prescribed in Regulations

Cannot introduce into or on a food any food

additive that can cause damage /inferiority
in the quality of that food

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 Justifiable uses for food
additives
1. to maintain or improve nutritional
quality
2. to enhance the keeping quality with
consequent reduction in food waste
3. To enhance the attractiveness of foods
4. To provide essential aids in
processing or preparation

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Preservative:
Any subs. that, when added to food is capable of
inhibiting, retarding or arresting the process of
decomposition, fermentation, or acidification of
such food but shall not include herb, spice,
vinegar or wood smoke (refer 6th schedule)

Antimicrobial agent:
Any subs. used to preserve food by preventing the
growth of m/os & subsequent spoilage, including
fungistats, mould, & rope inhibitors or to
sterilized polymeric food-contact surfaces (Table
1, 6th (A) Schedule

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Colouring substance:
Any subs. that when added to food is
capable of imparting colour to that food
(7th schedule)

Flavouring substance:
Any subs. That when added to food capable
of imparting flavour to that food and
includes the spices (Regulations 283-333)
(8th schedule)

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Flavour enhancer
•  Any subs. when added to food , is capable
of enhancing or improving the flavour of
the food (9th schedule)

Antioxidant
•  Any subs. that when added to food , is
capable of delaying or retarding the
development in food of rancidity or other
deterioration due to oxidation
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Food Conditioner
•  Any subs. that is added to food for a
technological purpose to obtain the
desired food and includes emulsifiers,
antifoaming agents, stabilisers, thickeners,
modified starches, gelling agents, acidity
regulators, enzymes, solvents and
anticaking agents, but shall not include
preservative, colouring substance,
flavouring subs., flavour enhancer &
antioxidant (Table I & II 11th schedule)
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Nutrient Supplement
•  Includes any mineral, vitamin, amino acid, fatty
acid or nucleotide which, when added either
singly or in combination to food, improves or
enriches the nutrient of food (12th schedule-
Table 1)

Bifido bacteria
•  Bifido bacteria specified in the 12th schedule
may be added to food
•  The term “contain bifidus” or “with bifidus” may
be used on the label of any package of food
containing bifido bacteria
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d. Packages for food (Part VI)
•  Only food packaging materials that do not
yield any toxic, injurious or tainting
substance, or those that do not contributes
to the deterioration of the food allowed.

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 e. Incidental Constituent (Part
VII)
•  Incidental constituent or contamination means
any foreign, extraneous, toxic, noxious or
harmful substances that is contained or present
in or on any food and includes metal
contaminant, microorganisms and their toxins,
drug residue and pesticide residue.
•  The importation, preparation or advertisement
for sale or selling of any food containing any
incidential constituent, is prohibited except as
otherwise specified in the Food Regulations
1985.
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 Standards and particular labelling
requirements for specified food (Part VIII)
•  Food Regulations 1985 specify standard for various
categories of foods:
  Cereal,cereal products,starch and bread
  Malt and malt extract
  Food aerating substance
  Milk and milk product
  Sweetening substance
  Confection
  Meat and meat product
  Fish and fish product
  Egg and egg product
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  Edible fat and edible oil
  Vegetable and vegetable product
  Fruit and fruit product
  Jam, fruit jelly, marmalade and seri kaya
  Tea,coffee, chicory and related product
  Cocoa and cocoa product
  Milk shake
  Saltand spice
  Vinegar, sauce, chutney and pickle
  Soft drink
  Alcoholic beverage
  Shandy

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 Use of Water, Ice or Steam (Part IX)

•  Water,ice or steam complies with standard

prescribedin Regulation 394 shall be used
in the preparation or manufacture of any
food for sale.

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 Miscellaneous (Part X)
•  Food not elsewhere standardize
(Regulation 395)
•  Food irradiation (Regulation 396)

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 Penalty for not complying with
the Food Regulations 1985
•  Liable to a fine or jail sentence or both

Who can be found guilty??

  Manufacturer
  Distributor
  Importer
  Packager
  Retailer
  Or the agent of any of them
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 Penalty for not complying with
the Food Regulations 1985
•  Liable to a fine or jail sentence or both

Food containing substances injurious to health

-a fine not exceeding RM100,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 yrs or
to both
Food unfit for human consumption
-a fine not exceeding RM50,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 8 yrs or to
both
Adulterated food
-a fine not exceeding RM20,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 yrs or to
both
Prohibition against the sale of food not of the nature, substance or quality
demanded
-is liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 yrs or to fine or to
both
Labelling etc not complying with standard of food
-is liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3yrs or to fine or to
both
False labelling
-is liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3yrs or to fine or to
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both
 The New Labelling Requirements

Ø  To better protect consumers, the Malaysian

Ministry of Health (MOH) has amended the
Food Regulations to make nutrition labelling
mandatory for certain foods and to regulate
health and nutrition claims.
Ø  Previously, the Food Regulations did not
require mandatory nutrition labelling for
food products, except for special purpose
foods (eg infant formula and cereal-based
foods) and foods that have been enriched
or fortified

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Ø There were also no existing laws for heath and
nutrition claims except for one regulation that
requires the presence of any vitamin, mineral,
essential amino acids or essential fatty acids to be
supported by a statement that sets out the
quantity of these nutrients.
Ø The amendments came into effect on 1
September 2003 (but manufacturers were given a
grace period to comply with their requirements),
and was enforced from 1 July 2005.
Ø The amended Food Regulations introduces two
major changes:
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 (i) Nutrient Labelling
  It will be compulsory for certain food products (which
include prepared cereal food; bread; milk and powdered
milk; canned meat; canned fish; canned vegetable;
canned fruit and fruit juices; salad dressing and
mayonnaise; soft drinks including botanical drinks, soya
bean milk and soya bean drinks) to have nutrition labels.
The nutrients that must appear on the labels of these
food products are energy, protein, carbohydrate, and fat
content.
  Information with regards to value or quantity of these
four nutrients must be expressed in the format
prescribed by the amended Food Regulations.
  To avoid overburdening the local food industry, the
labelling of vitamins, minerals, cholesterol, fiber, and
fatty acids has yet to be made mandatory.
  Nevertheless, these nutrients can be labeled if the
manufacturers desire.
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 The required information according to the
Malaysian Food Act 1983 and Food
Regulation 1985.

•  food ingredients
•  name of food
•  food quantity
•  expiry date
•  name and address of manufacturer
•  Nutrient serving
•  Storage instruction
•  Preparation instruction
•  Information regarding food additives
•  Nutrient claim
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 (ii) Nutrition Claims
  Before any nutrition claim can be made on any food, it
has to meet certain conditions prescribed by the
amended Food Regulations. The amendments draw a
distinction between two types of nutrition claims:
a) Claims that a food product is ‘low in’ or ‘free’ from certain
food component; and
b) Claims that food is a ‘source of’ or ‘high in’ certain
nutrients or food component.
  The MOH allows claims to associate certain nutrients
with certain body functions. For example, a claim that
calcium helps in the development of bones and teeth is
permissible. Manufacturers are, however, prohibited from
making health claims which are not clinically
substantiated. 35