Posted on March 31, 2023
Sarah Hadland sparked controversy a decade ago on The Great British Bake-Off when she pointed out that not all edible glitters are safe to eat. Edible glitter is used across the industry and takes the visual aesthetic of your baked goods to a whole other level: unlocking a magical world of sparkles, pearls, and shine.
After almost 10 years of scientific research and clinical trials, Titanium Dioxide (TiO2) or E171 as it appears on some food ingredient labels, has been identified as being toxic, possibly carcinogenic and unsafe to consume by most food authorities across Europe. The result bring that Titanium dioxide / E171 is now banned from being used in all food substances in Europe.
Titanium Dioxide has been used as a whitening agent in edible glitter, bringing sparkle and shine to cakes, cookies, and other baked goods. Edible glitter is typically made from a combination of ingredients, including food-grade colourants, flavourings, and binders. Magic Sparkles has always made the conscientious choice of never using E171 in any of its products. In fact, the amazing prismatic effect of Magic Sparkles has been achieved with only food-grade ingredients and no artificial colours or ingredients! We only use natural plant-based colourings in our products.
Food safety standards are important for all food products, including edible glitter, to ensure that they are safe for consumption and do not pose any risks to human health. These standards are developed and enforced by regulatory agencies, such as the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), to ensure that food products meet certain safety criteria and are free of contaminants, pathogens, and other potential hazards.
Usage of Titanium Dioxide in edible products is now banned across Europe, and the UK may soon follow suit. This has led to a paradigm shift in how the industry views ingredients, with small-scale bakers to large-scale producers, all scrambling to find healthier alternatives for their creations.
Magic Sparkles is one of these alternatives. One of our founding principles has been ‘food safety first’ and so we developed proprietary technology that achieves an amazing decorative effect using only food-grade ingredients.
As the regulatory landscape keeps getting ever stricter on food safety, you can rest assured that Magic Sparkles are already way ahead of the curve on this front.
