RESOLUTION OENO 8/99

IMPORTANCE OF ETHYL CARBAMATE MONITORING IN WINES DURING ALL STAGES OF PRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY,

BASED ON THE PROPOSAL of the "Food Safety" expert group and the "Nutrition and Health" sub-committee,

AFTER CONSIDERING reports showing ethyl carbamate, a compound occurring naturally in most foods and fermented beverages, is carcinogenic when administered to animals in high doses;

CONSIDERING that, despite the low content of ethyl carbamate in wine, it would be beneficial to take all possible steps to reduce that substance;

CONSIDERING that urea, and to a lesser extent, citrulline (both of which occur naturally in wine), are precursors of the chemical reaction which produces ethyl carbamate in wine;

CONSIDERING that it is possible to reduce the content of ethyl carbamate in wine by suitable viticultural and oenological practices;

RECOMMENDS that member States organize those involved in the production, making, storage, transportation and sale of wine and to encourage the use of appropriate practices for minimizing the formation of ethyl carbamate.