Sección: IV PREPARED FOODSTUFFS; BEVERAGES, SPIRITS AND VINEGAR; TOBACCO AND MANUFACTURED TOBACCO SUBSTITUTES
Capítulo: 21 Miscellaneous edible preparations
Chapter 21


Miscellaneous edible preparations
Notes.

1.- This Chapter does not cover:

(a) Mixed vegetables of heading 07.12;

(b) Roasted coffee substitutes containing coffee in any proportion (heading 09.01);

(c) Flavoured tea (heading 09.02);

(d) Spices or other products of headings 09.04 to 09.10;

(e) Food preparations, other than the products described in heading 21.03 or 21.04, containing more than 20 % by weight of sausage, meat, meat offal, blood, fish or crustaceans, molluscs or other aquatic invertebrates, or any combination thereof (Chapter 16);

(f) Yeast put up as a medicament or other products of heading 30.03 or 30.04; or

(g) Prepared enzymes of heading 35.07.

2.- Extracts of the substitutes referred to in Note 1 (b) above are to be classified in heading 21.01.

3.- For the purposes of heading 21.04, the expression “homogenised composite food preparations” means preparations consisting of a finely homogenised mixture of two or more basic ingredients such as meat, fish, vegetables, fruit or nuts, put up for retail sale as infant food or for dietetic purposes, in containers of a net weight content not exceeding 250 g. For the application of this definition, no account is to be taken of small quantities of any ingredients which may be added to the mixture for seasoning, preservation or other purposes. Such preparations may contain a small quantity of visible pieces of ingredients.

21.01 Extracts, essences and concentrates, of coffee, tea or maté and preparations with a basis of these products or with a basis of coffee, tea or maté; roasted chicory and other roasted coffee substitutes, and extracts, essences and concentrates thereof.


The heading covers:

(1) Coffee extracts, essences and concentrates. These may be made from real coffee (whether or not caffeine has been removed) or from a mixture of real coffee and coffee substitutes in any proportion. They may be in liquid or powder form, usually highly concentrated. This group includes products known as instant coffee. This is coffee which has been brewed and dehydrated or brewed and then frozen and dried by vacuum.

(2) Tea or maté extracts, essences and concentrates. These products correspond, mutatis mutandis, to those referred to in paragraph (1).

(3) Preparations with a basis of the coffee, tea or maté extracts, essences or concentrates of paragraphs (1) and (2) above. These are preparations based on extracts, essences or concentrates of coffee, tea or maté (and not on coffee, tea or maté themselves), and include extracts, etc., with added starches or other carbohydrates.

(4) Preparations with a basis of coffee, tea or maté. These preparations include, inter alia:

(5) Roasted chicory and other roasted coffee substitutes and extracts, essences and concentrates thereof. These are all kinds of roasted products intended to replace or imitate coffee when infused with hot water, or to be added to coffee. These products are sometimes described as “coffee”, prefixed by the name of the basic substance (e.g., barley “coffee”, malt “coffee”, acorn “coffee”).

Roasted chicory is obtained by roasting the chicory root (Cichorium intybus var. sativum) of heading 12.12. It is blackish-brown in colour and has a bitter flavour.


Other roasted coffee substitutes include those derived from sugar beet, carrots, figs, cereals (especially barley, wheat and rye), split peas, lupine seeds, edible acorns, soya beans, date stones, almonds, dandelion roots or chestnuts. The heading also includes roasted malt so put up that it is clearly intended for use as a coffee substitute.

These products may be presented in lump, granular or powder form, or as liquid or solid extracts. They may also be mixed either with one another or with other ingredients (e.g., salt or alkaline carbonates), and may be put up in various types of containers.

The heading does not cover:

(a) Roasted coffee substitutes containing coffee in any proportion (heading 09.01).

(b) Flavoured tea (heading 09.02).

(c) Caramel (caramelised molasses and caramelised sugars) (heading 17.02).

(d) Products of Chapter 22.

21.02 - Yeasts (active or inactive); other single-cell micro-organisms, dead (but not including vaccines of heading 30.02); prepared baking powders.



(A) YEASTS

The yeasts of this heading may be in the active or inactive state.

Active yeasts generally provoke fermentation. They consist essentially of certain micro-organisms (almost exclusively of the genus Saccharomyces), which multiply during alcoholic fermentation. Yeasts may also be produced by partial or total prevention of fermentation, according to the aeration process.

The active yeasts include:

(1) Brewery yeast. This forms in beer fermentation vats. It is presented as a yellowish-brown paste or solid generally with the bitter flavour of hops and the odour of beer.

(2) Distillery yeast. This is produced during the fermentation, of, e.g., grain, potatoes or fruit, in distilleries. It is a firm cream-coloured paste varying in odour according to the product used in the distillation.

(3) Bakers’ yeast, produced by the propagation under special conditions of specially cultured strains of yeast in a carbohydrate medium such as molasses. It is generally marketed in the form of pressed yellowish-grey cakes (pressed yeast) which sometimes have an alcoholic odour. It is, however, also marketed in the dried form (usually in grains) or as liquid yeast.

(4) Culture yeast, a pure strain of yeast prepared under laboratory conditions. It may be suspended in distilled water or in gelatin or agar-agar. It is usually marketed in measured quantities put up in sealed containers to protect it from contamination.

(5) Seed yeast, produced from culture yeast by successive fermentation processes, is used to “seed” commercial yeast. It is usually marketed in the form of a moist pressed and plastic mass or in the form of a liquid suspension.

Inactive yeasts, obtained by drying, are generally brewery, distillery or bakers’ yeasts which have become insufficiently active for further use in those industries. They are used for human consumption (source of vitamin B) or for feeding animals. It should, however, be noted that, owing to their growing importance, these dried yeasts are to an increasing extent being produced directly from specially prepared active yeasts.

The heading also covers other types of dried yeasts (e.g., Candida lipolytica or tropicalis, Candida maltosa) developed from the yeasts not belonging to Saccharomyces. They are obtained by drying the yeasts which have been cultivated on substrates containing hydrocarbons (such as gas-oils or n-paraffins) or carbohydrates. These dried yeasts are particularly rich in protein and are used in animal feeding. They are commonly known as petroproteins or yeast bioproteins.

(B) OTHER SINGLE-CELL MICRO-ORGANISMS, DEAD

This category covers single-cell micro-organisms such as bacteria and unicellular algae, which are not alive. Inter alia, covered here are those which have been obtained by cultivation on substrates containing hydrocarbons or carbon dioxide. These products are particularly rich in protein and are generally used in animal feeding.

Certain products of this group may be put up as food supplements for human consumption or animal feeding (e.g., in powder or tablet form) and may contain small quantities of excipients, e.g., stabilising agents and anti-oxidants. Such products remain classified here provided that the addition of such ingredients does not alter their character as micro-organisms.

(C) PREPARED BAKING POWDERS

The “prepared baking powders” classified in this heading consist of mixtures of chemical products (e.g., sodium bicarbonate, tartaric acid, ammonium carbonate, phosphates), with or without added starch. Under suitable conditions they evolve carbon dioxide and are therefore used in baking for leavening dough. They are usually sold in retail packings (sachets, tins, etc.) under various names (baking powder, Alsatian leaven, etc.).

The heading excludes, inter alia:

(a) Self-raising cereal flour, e.g., flour to which baking powder has been added (heading 11.01 or 11.02).

(b) Autolysed yeast (heading 21.06).

(c) Cultures of micro-organisms (other than yeasts) and vaccines (heading 30.02).

(d) Medicaments of heading 30.03 or 30.04.

(e) Enzymes (amylases, pepsin, rennet, etc.) (heading 35.07).

21.03 Sauces and preparations therefor; mixed condiments and mixed seasonings; mustard flour and meal and prepared mustard.


(A) SAUCES AND PREPARATIONS THEREFOR; MIXED CONDIMENTS AND MIXED SEASONINGS

This heading covers preparations, generally of a highly spiced character, used to flavour certain dishes (meat, fish, salads, etc.), and made from various ingredients (eggs, vegetables, meat, fruit, flours, starches, oil, vinegar, sugar, spices, mustard, flavourings, etc.). Sauces are generally in liquid form and preparations for sauces are usually in the form of powders to which only milk, water, etc. need to be added to obtain a sauce.

Sauces are normally added to a food as it cooks or as it is served. Sauces provide flavour, moisture, and a contrast in texture and colour. They may also serve as a medium in which food is contained, for example, the velouté sauce of creamed chicken. Seasoning liquids (soy sauce, hot pepper sauce, fish sauce) are used both as ingredients in cooking and at table as condiments.

The heading also includes certain preparations, based on vegetables or fruit, which are mainly liquids, emulsions or suspensions, and sometimes contain visible pieces of vegetables or fruit. These preparations differ from prepared or preserved vegetables and fruit of Chapter 20 in that they are used as sauces, i.e., as an accompaniment to food or in the preparation of certain food dishes, but are not intended to be eaten by themselves.

Mixed condiments and mixed seasonings containing spices differ from the spices and mixed spices of headings 09.04 to 09.10 in that they also contain one or more flavouring or seasoning substances of Chapters other than Chapter 9, in such proportions that the mixture has no longer the essential character of a spice within the meaning of Chapter 9 (see the General Explanatory Note to that Chapter).

Examples of products covered by the heading are : mayonnaise, salad dressings, Béarnaise, bolognaise (consisting of chopped meat, tomato purée, spices, etc.), soya sauces, mushroom sauce, Worcester sauce (generally made with a base of thick soya sauce, an infusion of spices in vinegar, with added salt, sugar, caramel and mustard), tomato ketchup (a preparation made from tomato purée, sugar, vinegar, salt and spices) and other tomato sauces, celery salt (a mixture of cooking salt and finely ground celery seeds), certain mixed seasonings for sausage making, and products of Chapter 22 (other than those of heading 22.09) prepared for culinary purposes and thereby rendered unsuitable for consumption as beverages (e.g., cooking wines and cooking Cognac).


Besides the products of Chapters 9 and 20 mentioned above, the heading does not cover:

(a) Extracts and juices of meat, fish or crustaceans, molluscs or other aquatic invertebrates (heading 16.03). (b) Soups and broths and preparations therefor (heading 21.04). (c) Protein hydrolysates, consisting mainly of a mixture of amino-acids and sodium chloride, used as additives in food preparations (heading 21.06). (d) Autolysed yeast (heading 21.06).

(B) MUSTARD FLOUR AND MEAL AND PREPARED MUSTARD

Mustard flour and meal are obtained by grinding and sifting mustard seed of heading 12.07. They may be made from white or black mustard seeds or from a mixture of the two varieties. They remain in the heading whether or not the seeds were defatted or the seed coats removed before grinding, and irrespective of their intended use.

The heading also covers prepared mustard consisting of mustard flour mixed with small quantities of other ingredients (cereal flour, turmeric, cinnamon, pepper, etc.), or of a paste composed of a mixture of mustard flour with vinegar, grape must or wine, to which salt, sugar, spices or other condiments may be added.

This heading excludes, inter alia:

(a) Mustard seeds (heading 12.07). (b) Fixed mustard oil (heading 15.14). (c) Mustard-seed oilcake, i.e., the product remaining after the fixed oil has been extracted from mustard seeds (heading 23.06). (d) Essential oil of mustard (heading 33.01).

21.04 Soups and broths and preparations therefor; homogenised composite food preparations.

(A) SOUPS AND BROTHS AND PREPARATIONS THEREFOR

This category includes:

(1) Preparations for soups or broths requiring only the addition of water, milk, etc.

(2) Soups and broths ready for consumption after heating.

These products are generally based on vegetable products (flour, starches, tapioca, macaroni, spaghetti and the like, rice, plant extracts, etc.), meat, meat extracts, fat, fish, crustaceans, molluscs or other aquatic invertebrates, peptones, amino-acids or yeast extract. They may also contain a considerable proportion of salt.

They are generally put up as tablets, cakes, cubes, or in powder or liquid form.


(B) HOMOGENISED COMPOSITE FOOD PREPARATIONS

In accordance with Note 3 to this Chapter, the homogenised composite food preparations of this heading are those which consist of a finely homogenised mixture of two or more basic ingredients such as meat, fish, vegetables or fruit, put up for retail sale as infant food or for dietetic purposes, in containers of a net weight content not exceeding 250 g. Besides the basic ingredients, these preparations may contain small quantities of substances such as cheese, egg yolk, starch, dextrin, salt or vitamins, which are added either for dietetic purposes (balanced diet), or for seasoning, preservation or for other purposes. They may also contain visible pieces of ingredients, provided that such pieces are present only in small quantities, i.e., that they do not alter the character of the products as homogenised preparations.

Homogenised composite food preparations are generally used as infant food and take the form of a smooth paste, of varying consistency, suitable for consumption either directly or after re-heating. They are usually put up in airtight jars or cans in a quantity generally corresponding to one whole meal.

The heading excludes homogenised composite food preparations which are put up otherwise than for retail sale as infant food or for dietetic purposes, or in containers of a net weight content exceeding 250 g. It also excludes preparations of this kind which consist of one basic ingredient such as meat, meat offal, fish, vegetable or fruit (generally Chapter 16 or 20), whether or not containing small quantities of any ingredients added for seasoning, preservation or for other purposes.

The heading also excludes:

(a) Mixtures of dried vegetables (julienne), whether or not in powder form (heading 07.12).

(b) Flour, meal and powder of dried leguminous vegetables (heading 11.06).

(c) Extracts and juices of meat, fish, etc. and other products of Chapter 16.

(d) Food preparations containing cocoa (generally heading 18.06 or 19.01).

(e) Mixtures of vegetables of heading 20.04 or 20.05, even if sometimes used for the preparation of soups.

(f) Autolysed yeast (heading 21.06).

21.05 Ice cream and other edible ice, whether or not containing cocoa.



This heading covers ice cream, which is usually prepared with a basis of milk or cream, and other edible ice (e.g., sherbet, iced lollipops), whether or not containing cocoa in any proportion. However, the heading excludes mixes and bases for ice cream which are classified according to their essential constituents (e.g., heading 18.06, 19.01 or 21.06).

21.06 Food preparations not elsewhere specified or included.


Provided that they are not covered by any other heading of the Nomenclature, this heading covers:

(A) Preparations for use, either directly or after processing (such as cooking, dissolving or boiling in water, milk, etc.), for human consumption.

(B) Preparations consisting wholly or partly of foodstuffs, used in the making of beverages or food preparations for human consumption. The heading includes preparations consisting of mixtures of chemicals (organic acids, calcium salts, etc.) with foodstuffs (flour, sugar, milk powder, etc.), for incorporation in food preparations either as ingredients or to improve some of their characteristics (appearance, keeping qualities, etc.) (see the General Explanatory Note to Chapter 38).

However, the heading does not cover enzymatic preparations containing foodstuffs (e.g., meat tenderisers consisting of a proteolytic enzyme with added dextrose or other foodstuffs). Such preparations fall in heading 35.07 provided that they are not covered by a more specific heading in the Nomenclature.

The heading includes, inter alia:

(1) Powders for table creams, jellies, ice creams or similar preparations, whether or not sweetened.

Powders based on flour, meal, starch, malt extract or goods of headings 04.01 to 04.04, whether or not containing added cocoa, fall in heading 18.06 or 19.01 according to their cocoa content (see the General Explanatory Note to Chapter 19). The other powders are classified in heading 18.06 if they contain cocoa. Powders which have the character of flavoured or coloured sugars used as sweetener (49a.) fall in heading 17.01 or 17.02 as the case may be.

(2) Flavouring powders for making beverages, whether or not sweetened, with a basis of sodium bicarbonate and glycyrrhizin or liquorice extract (sold as “Cocoa-powder”).

(3) Preparations based on butter or other fats or oils derived from milk and used, e.g., in bakers’ wares.

(4) Pastes based on sugar, containing added fat in a relatively large proportion and, sometimes, milk or nuts, not suitable for transformation directly into sugar confectionery but used as fillings, etc., for chocolates, fancy biscuits, pies, cakes, etc.

(5) Natural honey enriched with bees’ royal jelly.

(6) Protein hydrolysates consisting mainly of a mixture of amino-acids and sodium chloride, used in food preparations (e.g., for flavouring); protein concentrates obtained by the elimination of certain constituents of defatted soya-bean flour, used for protein-enrichment of food preparations; soya-bean flour and other protein substances, textured. However, the heading excludes non-textured defatted soya-bean flour, whether or not fit for human consumption (heading 23.04) and protein isolates (heading 35.04).

(7) Non-alcoholic or alcoholic preparations (not based on odoriferous substances) of a kind used in the manufacture of various non-alcoholic or alcoholic beverages. These preparations can be obtained by compounding vegetable extracts of heading 13.02 with lactic acid, tartaric acid, citric acid, phosphoric acid, preserving agents, foaming agents, fruit juices, etc. The preparations contain (in whole or in part) the flavouring ingredients which characterize a particular beverage. As a result, the beverage in question can usually be obtained simply by diluting the preparation with water, wine or alcohol, with or without the addition, for example, of sugar or carbon dioxide gas. Some of these products are specially prepared for domestic use; they are also widely used in industry in order to avoid the unnecessary transport of large quantities of water, alcohol, etc. As presented, these preparations are not intended for consumption as beverages and thus can be distinguished from the beverages of Chapter 22.

The heading excludes preparations of a kind used for the manufacture of beverages, based on one or more odoriferous substances (heading 33.02).

(8) Edible tablets with a basis of natural or artificial perfumes (e.g., vanillin).

(9) Sweets, gums and the like (for diabetics, in particular) containing synthetic sweetening agents (e.g., sorbitol) instead of sugar.

(10) Preparations (e.g., tablets) consisting of saccharin and a foodstuff, such as lactose, used for sweetening purposes.

(11) Autolysed yeast and other yeast extracts, products obtained by the hydrolysis of yeast. These products cannot provoke fermentation and they have a high protein value. They are used mainly in the food industry (e.g., for the preparation of certain seasonings).

(12) Preparations for the manufacture of lemonades or other beverages, consisting, for example, of:

Such preparations are intended to be consumed as beverages after simple dilution with water or after further treatment. Certain preparations of this kind are intended for adding to other food preparations.


(13) Mixtures of ginseng extract with other ingredients (e.g., lactose or glucose) used for the preparation of ginseng “tea” or beverage.

(14) Products consisting of a mixture of plants or parts of plants (including seeds or fruits) of different species or consisting of plants or parts of plants (including seeds or fruits) of a single or of different species mixed with other substances such as one or more plant extracts, which are not consumed as such, but which are of a kind used for making herbal infusions or herbal “ teas ”, (e.g., those having laxative, purgative, diuretic or carminative properties), including products which are claimed to offer relief from ailments or contribute to general health and well-being.

The heading excludes products where an infusion constitutes a therapeutic or prophylactic dose of an active ingredient specific to a particular ailment (heading 30.03 or 30.04).

The heading also excludes such products classifiable in heading 08.13 or Chapter 9.

(15) Mixtures of plants, parts of plants, seeds or fruit (whole, cut, crushed, ground or powdered) of species falling in different Chapters (e.g., Chapters 7, 9, 11, 12) or of different species falling in heading 12.11, not consumed as such, but of a kind used either directly for flavouring beverages or for preparing extracts for the manufacture of beverages.

However, products of this type whose essential character is given by their content of species falling within Chapter 9 are excluded (Chapter 9).

(16) Preparations, often referred to as food supplements, based on extracts from plants, fruit concentrates, honey, fructose, etc. and containing added vitamins and sometimes minute quantities of iron compounds. These preparations are often put up in packagings with indications that they maintain general health or well-being. Similar preparations, however, intended for the prevention or treatment of diseases or ailments are excluded (heading 30.03 or 30.04).

(17) Preparations in the form of granules or powders consisting of sugar, flavouring or colouring matter (e.g., plant extracts or certain fruits or plants such as orange, blackcurrant, etc.), antioxidants (e.g., ascorbic acid or citric acid or both), preserving agents, etc., of a kind used for making beverages. However, preparations which have the character of sugar fall in heading 17.01 or 17.02, as the case may be. (49a.)

The heading further excludes: (a) Preparations made from fruit, nuts or other edible parts of plants of heading 20.08, provided
that the essential character of the preparations is given by such fruit, nuts or other edible parts of plants (heading 20.08). (b) Micro-organisms of heading 21.02 put up as food supplements for human consumption
(heading 21.02).

ULTIMO CAMBIO D.O.F.