A total of 26,000 coffee shops, bakeries and fast food restaurants are expected to be affected by the new regulations. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Jul. 3 (Korea Bizwire) — As a measure to prevent excessive consumption, regulations on caffeine will be expanded, with “total caffeine content” also displayed in coffee shops and bakeries that directly make and sell coffee starting next year.
The newly introduced regulations, set forth by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, are an expansion of existing guidelines, which are applied to highly caffeinated processed coffee produced by food companies.
The standards are now being applied to brewed coffee.
To this end, coffee containing more than 0.15 mg of caffeine per ml should be marked with phrases such as “high caffeine content” and “Children, pregnant and those vulnerable to caffeine must watch their consumption carefully.”
“The overconsumption of caffeine can cause anxiety, agitation and insomnia, and can have negative effects on the cardiovascular system and bone formation,” said Oh Jeong-wan, the ministry’s food safety certification director.
The new regulations apply to merchants with more than 100 stores and food service providers with more than 100 direct branches.
As a result, a total of 26,000 coffee shops, bakeries and fast food restaurants are expected to be affected by the new regulations.
D. M. Park (dmpark@koreabizwire.com)
