March 25/Medical Letter on the CDC & FDA -- The Flax Council of Canada announced that a panel of experts determined in January 2009 that whole and milled flax seed be given Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) status. Expected within six months is a letter of "no objection," finalizing GRAS status for flax by the U.S. FDA. Gaining this status expands opportunities for flax use by food manufacturers worldwide.
Increasingly, to be accepted in the mass food industry in the U.S., a "new" food ingredient needs to be shown to be GRAS, or free of harmful toxins or unsafe side effects. In addition, the FDA will not consider an ingredient for a health claim (substantiated or qualified) if the ingredient has not been demonstrated to be GRAS.