History of Ozone

History of Ozone

  1. 1840

    Discovered by Christian Schonbein

  2. 1893

    Used as a disinfectant in drinking water

  3. 1909

    Used as a food preservative for cold storage of meats

  4. 1939

    Was found to prevent the growth of yeast & mold during the storage of fruits

  5. 1982

    FDA GRAS declaration for ozone use in bottled water

  6. 1995

    FDA GRAS for ozone use in bottled water renewed without change

  7. 1997

    Industry Expert Panel declares ozone GRAS and meets FDA requirements. Regulators have the option to later add control on ozone use.

  8. 1999

    USDA rejects an ozone use protocol for meats, cites 1982 GRAS declaration for water where FDA stated

  9. 2000

    Food Additive Petition, that addresses both water and air use of ozone, under preparation. FDA estimates approval will occur within six months of submission of the Petition

Status of Ozone in the Food Industry

  • 1982 - O3 declared GRAS for treatment of bottled water (Federal Register, Vol. 47, No. 113, November 5, 1982)

  • 1997 - Expert panel report : Evaluation of the history and safety of ozone in processing foods for human consumption. Vol. 2 : Abstracts. Electric Power Research Institute, Palo Alto, CA. R & D Enterprise, Inc. / GRAS self declaration (Federal Register, v. 62 #74, April 19, 1997)

  • 2000 - FDA and USDA approval granted

EPA - Disinfection By-Product Rules (DBPR)

The very reactive nature of ozone makes it the ideal oxidant for air and water treatment. Ozone will :

  • 2000 - 2004 : Implementation Stage

  • Ozone is EPA listed as DBPR compliant