Certification

           Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
                   (Subsections (a) and (b) of Section 1350,
                  Chapter 63 of Title 18, United States Code)

         Pursuant to section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (subsections
(a) and (b) of section 1350, chapter 63 of title 18, United States Code), each
of the undersigned officers of Opta Food Ingredients, Inc., a Delaware
corporation (the "Company"), does hereby certify, to such officer's knowledge,
that:

         The Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30,
2002 (the "Form 10-Q") of the Company fully complies with the requirements of
Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and the
information contained in the Form 10-Q fairly presents, in all material
respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Company.

         Dated:  November 12, 2002        /s/ Arthur J. McEvily, Ph.D.
                                          -------------------------------------
                                          Arthur J. McEvily, Ph.D.
                                          President and Chief Executive Officer
                                          (principal executive officer)


         Dated:  November 12, 2002        /s/ Scott A. Kumf
                                          -------------------------------------
                                          Scott A. Kumf
                                          Chief Operating Officer,
                                          Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer
                                          (principal financial officer)


         The foregoing certification is being furnished solely pursuant to
section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (subsections (a) and (b) of
section 1350, chapter 63 of title 18, United States Code) and is not being filed
as a separate disclosure document.