Products containing kava kava

Thursday 18 July 2002

Category D: For information only

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) issued a Food Hazard Warning (ref: 53/2001) on 21 December 2001 providing information about products containing kava kava. While most of these products available in the UK are sold as medicines or herbal remedies, kava kava may be an ingredient in some foods.

At the time the Food Hazard Warning was issued, both the Medicines Control Agency (MCA) and FSA were advising consumers not to use products (whether medicines or foods respectively) containing kava kava as a precautionary measure. In addition, the MCA had written to all herbal interest groups (including the retail sector, manufacturing and herbal practitioners) requesting that they voluntarily withdraw kava kava products. The FSA supported this action regarding kava kava products sold under food law. However, despite this, it is known that some products remain on sale.

Since then, reports on kava kava and possible links to liver toxicity have been assessed by the Committee on Safety of Medicines (CSM). The CSM has concluded that due to concerns about the rare risk of liver toxicity, products containing the herbal ingredient kava kava should be removed from the market. The FSA has reviewed the data available to the CSM, and again supports the need to take action.

At a meeting on 18 July, both the MCA and FSA advised that they were proposing legislation which, if made, would require kava kava to be withdrawn. Such legislation has to go through a period of consultation of several weeks before it comes into force. In the meantime, the FSA continues to support the voluntary withdrawal by relevant food businesses of food products containing kava kava.

At this stage food authorities are not being requested to take any action in respect of foods that contain kava kava. However, a further update identifying any necessary action required of food authorities will be issued if the aforementioned legislation comes into force.

Additional Information: The herbal ingredient kava kava is prepared from the plant Piper methysticum, a member of the pepper family native to the South Pacific islands. It has been used extensively in European herbal medicine for some time as a remedy for nervous states such as anxiety, tension and restlessness.