Chinese Star Anise (Illicium verum), also know as Chinese badian, is fit for human consumption and commonly used in foods, reports Reading Scientific Services.
However, according to a European Commission Decision (2002/75/EC) of 1 February 2002, Japanese Star Anise (Illicium anisatum, I. religiosum, I. japonicum, I. shikimmi or I. skimmi) is scientifically recognised as highly poisonous and not fit for human consumption.
Under the Decision Member States may allow the import of Chinese Star Anise (CN code 0909 10 00) from Third Countries provided it is accompanied by the results of official sampling and analysis and a certificate laid out in the style specified in Annex I.
The certificate requires confirmation that the consignment contains only Chinese Star Anise which has been subjected to laboratory analysis to determine the absence of the Japanese product. No analytical methods are specified, but the method of analysis used must be given on the certificate as well as the performance characteristics of the method.