4. Level 2 Outcomes

The level 2 outcomes that are currently in use are:

4.1. Additives

Code	Level 2 Outcome	Comments
01	Antioxidant	Applied to any determination of an additive added to a food to serve the function of an antioxidant.
02	Colouring Matter	Applied to any determination of an additive added to a food to serve the function of a colouring agent.
03	Flavour Enhancer	Applied to any determination of an additive added to a food to serve the function of a flavour enhancer
04	Preservative	Applied to any determination of an additive added to a food to serve the function of a preservative.
05	Solvent	Applied to any determination of an additive added to a food to serve the function of a solvent
06	Sweetener	Applied to any determination of an additive added to a food to serve the function of a sweetener. This outcome should not be used for any type of sugar.
99	Other Additive	Applied to any determination of an additive added to a food to serve any technological function other than any of the six functions listed above.

4.2. Constituents

Code	Level 2 Outcome	Comments
01	Acidity	Applied to any determination of the fixed or volatile acidity of a food.
02	Alcohol	Applied to any determination of the alcohol (ethanol) content of a food and to any determination of other alcohols (congeners) in a food. This outcome should be used when the congener content of a sample indicates that it is not the brand of spirit drink indicated in the name of the food.
03	Alkaloids	Applied to any determination of alkaloids such as caffeine or theobromine in a food.
04	Ash	Applied to any determination of the ash content of a food.
05	Casein	Applied to any determination of the casein content of a food.
06	Carbohydrate	Applied to any determination of the amount of carbohydrate or starch present in a food. This outcome should be applied whether the carbohydrate content has been determined analytically or by calculation. This outcome should not be applied to the determination of individual or total sugars in a food.
07	Egg	Applied to any determination of the egg content of a food.
08	Fat	Applied to any determination of the free or total fat content of a food.
09	Fatty Acids	Applied to any determination of the fatty acid profile of a food. This outcome should be applied to the determination of individual fatty acids and also to groupings of fatty acids such as saturates, unsaturates and polyunsaturates.
10	Fish Content	Applied to any determination or calculation of the fish content of a food. This outcome should be applied where the overall fish content has been calculated from a series of individual proximate determinations. Where the fish content of a food has been found to be unsatisfactory the use of this outcome should not prevent the outcome of individual proximate determinations also being marked as unsatisfactory. However, it is recognised that in some cases there may be no single proximate that is considered to be unsatisfactory but when the results are considered together then the overall fish content is unsatisfactory. An exception to this is where the fish content is not reported as a result but is expressed as an opinion in the comments applied to the food; in this circumstance one or more proximate determinations must be marked as unsatisfactory e.g. the fish content is too low because there is insufficient protein present or there is too much fat or moisture present.
11	Fruit Content	Applied to any determination or calculation of the fruit content of a food.
12	Gluten	Applied to any determination or calculation of the gluten content of a food.
13	Honey	Applied to any determination of the honey content of a food. This outcome should also be applied to any determination of characteristics specifically associated with assessing the quality of honey. It should also be used for the determination of the pollen type present in the honey.
14	Meat Content	Applied to any determination or calculation of the meat content of a food. This outcome should be applied where the overall meat content has been calculated from a series of individual proximate determinations. Where the meat content of a food has been found to be unsatisfactory the use of this outcome should not prevent the outcome of individual proximate determinations also being marked as unsatisfactory. However, it is recognised that in some cases there may be no single proximate that is considered to be unsatisfactory but when the results are considered together then the overall meat content is unsatisfactory. An exception to this is where the meat content is not reported as a result but is expressed as an opinion in the comments applied to the food; in this circumstance one or more proximate determinations must be marked as unsatisfactory e.g. the meat content is too low because there is insufficient protein present or there is too much fat or moisture present.
15	Milk Content	Applied to any determination of the milk content of a food. It should not be applied to the determination of specific components such as fat or antibiotics in milk.
16	Moisture	Applied to any determination of the moisture content of a food. It should not be applied to the determination of the adulteration of foods such as spirit drinks or milk by the addition of water.
17	Protein	Applied to any determination or calculation of the nitrogen content or protein content of a food.
18	Sterols	Applied to any determination of the sterol content of a food.
19	Sugar	Applied to any determination of individual sugars present in a food and also to the determination or calculation of the total sugar content of a food.
20	Added Water	Applied to any determination or calculation of the presence added water in a food such as spirit drinks or milk. This outcome should not be used for any determinations made on packaged water or water used in the preparation of food. Such samples are normally analysed along with other samples of drinking water and have separate and specific determinations.
99	Other Constituent	Applied to any determination of a constituent of a food not more specifically defined above.

4.3. Nutritional Components

Code	Level 2 Outcome	Comments
01	Chondroitin	Applied to any determination of the chondroitin content of a food.
02	Energy	Applied to any determination or calculation of the energy value of a food.
03	Fatty Acids	It requires to be re-considered whether there is sufficient difference between fatty acids (other than omega fatty acids) present in a food to enhance its nutritional quality and those present normally. If there is no difference then fatty acid profiles should be recorded under “Composition” and omega fatty acids in the appropriate outcome in this section. This outcome should then be retired.
04	Fibre	Applied to any determination or calculation of the crude fibre or dietary fibre content of a food.
05	Follate	Applied to any determination of the follate content of a food.
06	Glucosamine	Applied to any determination of the glucosamine content of a food.
07	Non-Metallic Elements	Applied to any determination of the amount of any non-metallic element or a compound of a non-metallic element in a food. This outcome should be used for the determination of sulphate, phosphate etc in food.
08	Nutrient Metals	Applied to any determination of metallic elements that are present to enhance the nutritional quality of a food. Some metals may be present in a food either to enhance its nutritional quality or as an undesirable substance; in most cases there will be a difference in the amount present depending on function and this will be clear by the units applied to the determination.
09	Omega Fatty Acids	Applied to any determination of the amount of omega fatty acids present in a food. This outcome should not be used for any other fatty acids or for general fatty acid profiles.
10	Sugars	It requires to be re-considered whether there is sufficient difference between sugars present in a food to enhance its nutritional quality and those present normally. If there is no difference then sugars should be recorded under “Composition”. This outcome should then be retired.
11	Vitamins	Applied to any determination of the amount of any vitamins present in a food.
99	Other Nutritional Components	Applied to any determination of a nutritional component of a food not more specifically defined above.

4.4. Undesirable Substances

Code	Level 2 Outcome	Comments
01	3-MCPD	Applied to any determination of the amount of 3-MCPD present in a food.
02	Antibiotics	Applied to any determination of the amount of antibiotics present in a food.
03	Food Contact Materials	Applied to any determination of the amount of general or specific food contact materials present in a food.
04	Fungicide	Applied to any determination of the amount of any compound present in a food to serve the function of a fungicide. It should also be applied to determination of the metabolites and breakdown products of fungicides. As there is a vast array of fungicides, herbicides, insecticides and pesticides that may be detected in food these have been split accordingly. If there is any doubt as to the function of a specific compound or for general screening of a range of compounds then the pesticide outcome should be applied.
05	GMO	Applied to any determination of the amount of any genetically modified organism present in a food.
06	Trace and Heavy Metals	Applied to any determination of the amount of any trace or heavy metals present in a food. Some metals may be present in a food either to enhance its nutritional quality or as an undesirable substance; in most cases there will be a difference in the amount present depending on function and this will be clear by the units applied to the determination.
07	Herbicide	Applied to any determination of the amount of any compound present in a food to serve the function of a herbicide. It should also be applied to determination of the metabolites and breakdown products of herbicides. As there is a vast array of fungicides, herbicides, insecticides and pesticides that may be detected in food these have been split accordingly. If there is any doubt as to the function of a specific compound or for general screening of a range of compounds then the pesticide outcome should be applied.
08	Histamine	Applied to any determination of the amount of histamine present in a food.
09	Insecticide	Applied to any determination of the amount of any compound present in a food to serve the function of a insecticide. It should also be applied to determination of the metabolites and breakdown products of insecticides. As there is a vast array of fungicides, herbicides, insecticides and pesticides that may be detected in food these have been split accordingly. If there is any doubt as to the function of a specific compound or for general screening of a range of compounds then the pesticide outcome should be applied.
10	Mycotoxins	Applied to any determination of the amount of individual or total mycotoxins present in a food.
11	Non-Permitted Colour	Applied to any determination of the amount of colouring matter present in a food that is not permitted by statute to be present in that food.
12	PCB’s and Dioxins	Applied to any determination of the amount of PCB’s and dioxins present in a food.
13	Pesticide	Applied to any determination of the amount of any compound present in a food to serve the function of a pesticide. It should also be applied to determination of the metabolites and breakdown products of fungicides. As there is a vast array of fungicides, herbicides, insecticides and pesticides that may be detected in food these have been split accordingly. If there is any doubt as to the function of a specific compound or for general screening of a range of compounds then the pesticide outcome should be applied.
14	THM	Applied to any determination of the amount of trihalo methanes present in a food (normally a packaged water or water used in the preparation of a food).
99	Other Undesirable Substances	Applied to any determination of undesirable substances present in a food not more specifically defined above.

4.5. Substitution

Code	Level 2 Outcome	Comments
01	Fish Identification	Applied where the species of fish present in the food has been identified and found either to comply with or differ from that declared in the name of the food or in the ingredient list.
02	Meat Identification	Applied where the species of meat present in the food has been identified and found either to comply with or differ from that declared in the name of the food or in the ingredient list.
03	Plant Identification	Applied where the type of plant material present in the food has been identified and found either to comply with or differ from that declared in the name of the food or in the ingredient list.
99	Other Substitution	Applied where any other ingredient or class of ingredients in a food has been identified and found either to comply with or differ from that declared in the name of the food or in the ingredient list. This outcome should not be used where a named brand of spirit drink has been found to differ from that given in the name of the food.

4.6. Labelling

Code	Level 2 Outcome	Comments
01	All Statutory Information	Applied where the labelling of the sample has been evaluated and all the information provided is deemed either to comply with statutory requirements or else that all the required information is absent. This outcome should not be used as a shortcut where much of the labelling information provided with a sample is not satisfactory; in such cases each specific failure to comply with the statutory requirements should be recorded. All the following outcomes should be used to note where an aspect of labelling information fails to comply with statutory requirements. There is not a need to note where specific aspects of labelling information are found to be satisfactory; where one or more aspects have been found not comply with statutory requirements then it is inferred that all other labelling aspects have been considered and found to be satisfactory
02	Name of the Food	Applied where the name of the food does not comply with statutory requirements.
03	Name and/or Address of Manufacturer	Applied where the name and/or address of the manufacturer, packer or seller of the food does not comply with statutory requirements.
04	Ingredients and Ingredients List	Applied where the ingredient list of the food or items within the list do not comply with statutory requirements.
05	Durability Indication	Applied where the indication of minimum durability of the food does not comply with statutory requirements.
06	Place of Origin	Applied where the place or origin or provenance of the food does not comply with statutory requirements.
07	Storage and/or Usage Instructions	Applied where any special storage conditions or conditions of use of the food do not comply with statutory requirements.
08	QUID Declaration	Applied where the QUID declaration of the quantity of certain ingredients or categories of ingredients in the food does not comply with statutory requirements.
09	Allergen Declaration	Applied where any required declaration of allergenic ingredients does not comply with statutory requirements.
10	Nutritional Declaration	Applied where any declaration of the nutritional composition of the food, whether this is provided compulsorily or voluntarily does not comply with statutory requirements. This outcome should not be used for claims as to the composition of the food e.g. “low fat”, “high in iron” etc.
11	Other Statutory or Compulsory Declaration	Applied where any aspect of labelling not more specifically defined does not comply with statutory requirements.
12	Compositional, Medicinal or Health Claim and Description of the Food	Applied where any claim relating to the composition of the food (“low fat”, “high in iron” etc.), medicinal benefits or health benefits and also any descriptions does not comply with statutory or other accepted requirements.
13	Manufacture and/or Expiry Date	Applied where the given manufacture date and/or expiry date are required but are missing or in the incorrect format.
14	Net Quantity	Applied where the declaration of net quantity does not comply with statutory requirements.

4.7. Microbiology

Note

Each of these outcomes should be applied to the determination of the relevant microbiological species or class of organism. With the exception of E Coli 0157 the outcomes have not been split into individual species so as not to make the list unworkably long and complex.

The outcomes should be applied to both qualitative and quantitative tests.

Code	Level 2 Outcome	Comments
01	Aeromonas	See note above
02	Bacillus	See note above
03	Campylobacter	See note above
04	Clostridia	See note above
05	Coliforms	See note above
06	Cryptosporidia	See note above
07	E Coli	See note above
08	E Coli 0157	See note above
09	Enterobacteriaceae	See note above
10	Faecal Streptococci	See note above
11	Giardia	See note above
12	Lactobacillus	See note above
13	Legionella	See note above
14	Listeria	See note above
15	Mesophiles	See note above
16	Micrococci	See note above
17	Pseudomonas	See note above
18	Salmonella	See note above
19	Shigella	See note above
20	Somatic Cell Count	See note above
21	Staphylococci	See note above
22	Thermophiles	See note above
23	Thermoduric Bacteria	See note above
24	TVC	See note above
25	Vibrio	See note above
26	Yeast and Mould	See note above
27	Yersinia	See note above
99	Other Microbiology	Applied to any microbiological determination other than any of the specific species listed above.

4.8. Radiation Monitoring

Code	Level 2 Outcome	Comments
01	Radioactivity Monitoring	Any determination of the radiological activity present in a food.
02	Irradiated Foods	Any determination applied to determine whether or not a food has been subjected to an irradiation process.

4.9. Additives - Animal Feed

Code	Level 2 Outcome	Comments
01	Acidity regulators	Applied to any determination of an additive added to an animal feeding stuff to serve the function of an acidity regulator.
02	Antibiotics	Applied to any determination of an additive added to an animal feeding stuff to serve the function of an antibiotic.
03	Antioxidant substances	Applied to any determination of an additive added to an animal feeding stuff to serve the function of an antioxidant.
04	Binders + anti-caking agents + coagulants	Applied to any determination of an additive added to an animal feeding stuff to serve the function of a binder, anti-caking agent or a coagulant.
05	Bioproteins (unapproved)	Applied to any determination of an additive added to an animal feeding stuff to serve the function of a bioprotein which does not have approval for use.
06	Coccidiostats + other medicinal substances	Applied to any determination of an additive added to an animal feeding stuff to serve the function of a coccidostat or any other medicinal purpose.
07, Colourants, including pigments	Applied to any determination of an additive added to an animal feeding stuff to serve the function of a colouring agent.
08	Emulsifying + stabilizing + thickening + gelling substances	Applied to any determination of an additive added to an animal feeding stuff to serve the function of an emulsifier, stabiliser, thickening agent or gelling substance.
09	Enzymes	Applied to any determination of one or more enzymes added to an animal feeding stuff.
10	Flavouring + appetizing substances	Applied to any determination of an additive added to an animal feeding stuff to serve the function of a flavouring or an appetising substance.
11	Growth promoters	Applied to any determination of an additive added to an animal feeding stuff to serve the function of a growth promoter.
12	Micro-organisms	Applied to any determination of a microbiological additive added to an animal feeding stuff. This outcome should not be used for the routine microbiological examination of a feeding stuff.
13	Preservatives	Applied to any determination of an additive added to an animal feeding stuff to serve the function of a preservative.
14	Radionuclide binders	Applied to any determination of an additive added to an animal feeding stuff to serve the function of a radionuclide binder.
15	Trace elements	Applied to any determination of trace element added to an animal feeding stuff in order to enhance its nutritional value.
16	Vitamins + pro-vitamins + substances with similar effect	Applied to any determination of a vitamin, pro-vitamin or similar substance added to an animal feeding stuff.
99	Other additives	Applied to any determination of an additive added to an animal feeding stuff to serve any technological function other than any of the specific functions listed above.

4.10. Composition - Animal Feed

Code	Level 2 Outcome	Comments
01	Protein and nitrogen	Applied to any determination or calculation of the nitrogen content or protein content of an animal feeding stuff.
02	Amino acids	Applied to any determination of individual amino acids present in an animal feeding stuff..
03	Nutrient Metals	Applied to any determination of metallic elements that are present to enhance the nutritional quality of an animal feeding stuff. Some metals may be present in a feed either to enhance its nutritional quality or as an undesirable substance; in most cases there will be a difference in the amount present depending on function and this will be clear by the units applied to the determination.
04	Sugars and starch	Applied to any determination or calculation of individual sugars present in an animal feeding stuff or the amount of starch or carbohydrate material present.
05	Other elements and compounds	Applied to any determination of the amount of any non-metallic element or a compound of a non-metallic element in an animal feeding stuff that is included so as to enhance the nutritional quality of the feed. This outcome should be used for the determination of sulphate, phosphate etc in an animal feeding stuff. It should not be used for the determination of the salt content of a feed (even if this is calculated from the chloride content).
06	Moisture and ash	Applied to any determination of the moisture or ash content of an animal feeding stuff.
07	Fibre	Applied to any determination of the fibre content of an animal feeding stuff.
08	Oils and fats	Applied to any determination of oil or fat content of an animal feeding stuff.
09	Sodium and salt	Applied to any determination or calculation of sodium or salt content of an animal feeding stuff. This outcome should be used even where the salt content of the feed has been calculated from the chloride content.
10	GMOs	Applied to any determination of any genetically modified organism in an animal feeding stuff.
11	Labelling	It is not normal practice to examine the labelling of animal feeding stuffs; in many cases none will be available. For this reason it is not necessary to have a separate Level 1 outcome for the microbiological examination of animal feeding stuffs nor to have several Level 2 outcomes. This single outcome should be applied for any microbiological examination of animal feeding stuffs.
99	Other compositional ingredients	Applied to any determination of a compositional ingredient of an animal feeding stuff not more specifically defined above.

4.11. Undesirable Substances - Animal Feed

Code	Level 2 Outcome	Comments
01	Heavy metals	Applied to any determination of the amount of any trace or heavy metals present in a food. Some metals may be present in a feed either to enhance its nutritional quality or as an undesirable substance; in most cases there will be a difference in the amount present depending on function and this will be clear by the units applied to the determination.
02	Other elements and ions	Applied to any determination of the amount of any non-metallic element or a compound of a non-metallic element in an animal feeding stuff that is not included so as to enhance the nutritional quality of the feed.
03	Dioxins and PCB’s	Applied to any determination of the amount of PCB’s and dioxins present in an animal feeding stuff.
04	Pesticides	Applied to any determination of the amount of any compound present in an animal feeding stuff to serve the function of a pesticide (including fungicides, herbicides and insecticides).
05	Mycotoxins	Applied to any determination of the amount of individual or total mycotoxins present in an animal feeding stuff.
06	Micro-organisms	The microbiological quality of animal feeding stuffs is not examined as routinely as for food. For this reason it is not necessary to have a separate Level 1 outcome for the microbiological examination of animal feeding stuffs nor to have several Level 2 outcomes. This single outcome should be applied for any microbiological examination of animal feeding stuffs.
07	Seeds and fruits	Applied to any determination of the presence of seeds or fruit that are considered to be deleterious to the quality of an animal feeding stuff.
08	Processed animal protein	Applied to any determination of processed animal protein present in an animal feeding stuff.
99	Other undesirable substances	Applied to any determination of an undesirable substance present in an animal feeding stuff not more specifically defined above.

4.12. Other Miscellaneous Outcomes

standards

Code	Level 2 Outcome	Comments
99	Other Miscellaneous Outcomes	This is to be used for determinations either on food or animal feed samples which cannot be more appropriately allocated to another outcome. This should be used for reportable “determinations” that record information on the sample such as nitrogen factor, date analysis started etc. Such determinations will always have a “Satisfactory” level 3 outcome allocated. However, apart for the information determinations this outcome should be used very sparingly as it should be possible to choose a more specific outcome. If it is thought that an analytical determination cannot be categorised other than as this outcome then this should be brought to the attention of the database administrator and either guidance will be provided or a new outcome may be created if appropriate. This outcome must not be used as a “rubbish bin”!