Organic Board Votes to Remove Carrageenan from Approved Substance List

At its regular fall meeting, National Organic Standards Board voted to remove carrageenan from the National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances for organic foods. Carrageenan is an ingredient extracted from red algae which was included in the organic list of nonagricultural, nonsynthetic substances allowed in organic foods.

As reported by FoodDive, 10 of the 15 board members voted at its fall meeting in St. Louis to disallow the seaweed-derived substance, which is commonly used as an emulsifier in food products. Three voted to keep it on the list, and one member abstained. According to board rules, to get an item taken off of the approved list, two-thirds of the members need to vote for its removal. 

Additionally, the report stated, carrageenan has been a controversial ingredient because there is some scientific and anecdotal evidence that it causes digestive inflammation. Other researchers have not been able to duplicate those findings and argue that the ingredient is safe and extremely effective in helping to hold food items like ice cream and baby formula in suspension.

The board's decision acts as an interim recommendation for review and final decision by the USDA. Carrageenan was the list of substances to be reviewed by 2018, and the final decision is expected then.