Following the Revision of the Ordinance for Enforcement of the Food Sanitation Act, the Ministry of Health, Labour & Welfare (MHLW) designated argon as a food additive in the ordinance.
Argon is assumed to be used mainly for the anti-oxidization of foodstuff and beverage. Nitrogen is also used for the same purposes, but is an existing food additive without any restriction on the production process.

Now that Argon is a designated food additive, like carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide, it is necessary for the manufacturers to obtain permission for sales as a food additive manufacturer by the health center under the jurisdiction.

For reference, what has been designated at this time is gaseous argon, and it does not include any liquefied argon. However, in case it has been processed using argon for liquefaction or processing compatible with argon’s composing specifications, it is regarded to formulate for the production of a food additive.