Limits for vitamin D content in infant and follow-on formulae

8.             In 2006, the European Commission established a minimum vitamin D content in infant- and follow-on formulae of 1 µg per 100 kcal (Directive 2006/141/EC). Subsequently in 2016, in Commission Delegated Regulation 2016/127, this was doubled to 2 µg per 100 kcal (the rationale for this change was not included in the Regulation document). This new regulation became applicable in Great Britain from the 1^st January 2021, and the new limits are shown in Table 1. EU legislation on nutrition continues to be directly applicable in Northern Ireland.

9.             ‘Toddlers’ milks’ and ‘growing up milks’ are not regulated as infant or follow-on formulae and do not fall under the remit of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/128 (the legislation that has the specified maximum and minimum levels of vitamin D content) (EC, 2019). There are no specific regulations for milks for children over 12 months of age ('toddler milks' are considered to be 'general food', which just need to comply with general food law, for example in terms of allergen labelling).

10.             Although the legislation is for infants, the Nutrition Labelling, Composition and Standards (NLCS) team have asked the FSA to include up to 4 years of age in the assessment, as toddler milks are produced and advertised for the second and third years of life.

Table 1: Present limits for vitamin D content in infant and follow-on formulae:

* Previously 1 µg