The European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA’s) Panel on Contaminants in the Food Chain (CONTAM Panel) has issued a scientific opinion assessing the health risks of acute and chronic dietary exposure to chlorate, “a byproduct when using chlorine, chlorine dioxide or hypochlorite for the disinfection of drinking water, water for food production and surfaces coming into contact with food.” At the request of the European Commission, the opinion considers the presence of chlorate in both drinking water and food, setting “a tolerable daily intake (TDI) of 3 micrograms per kg (µg/kg) of body weight per day for long-term exposure to chlorate in food,” with “a recommended safe intake level for a daily intake (called the ‘acute reference dose’) of chlorate of 36 µg/kg of body weight per day.” After reviewing data collected by the EFSA Evidence Management Unit, the CONTAM Panel identified drinking water as “the main average contributor to chronic dietary exposure,”…
Category Archives European Food Safety Authority
The European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA’s) Scientific Committee has published guidance for renewing “applications of genetically modified [GM] food and feed authorized under Regulation (EC) No. 1829/2003.” Describing “the data requirements for renewal applications, “ the guidance directs applicants seeking reauthorization of GM food and feed products to provide the following: (i) “a copy of the authorization”; (ii) “post-market monitoring and post-market environmental monitoring reports”; (iii) “systematic search and evaluation of literature”; and (iv) “updated bioinformatics and any additional documents or studies performed by or on behalf of the applicant during the authorization period.” In addition, EFSA asks applicants “to assess the collected information and conclude whether the previous risk assessment remains valid.” “GM food and feed listed under Regulation (EC) 1829/2003 are within the scope of this new guidance. These include all those plants that have already been assessed by EFSA–such as maize, oilseed rape, soybean and cotton,” explains…
The European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA’s) Panel on Contaminants in the Food Chain (CONTAM) has released its final scientific opinion on acrylamide, concluding that dietary exposure to the substance “potentially increases the risk of developing cancer for consumers in all age groups.” Naturally formed in starchy food products during high-temperature cooking, acrylamide is digested and distributed throughout the body, where one of its metabolites is said to cause “the gene mutations and tumors seen in animal studies.” “Evidence from animal studies shows that acrylamide and its metabolite glycidamide are genotoxic and carcinogenic: they damage DNA and cause cancer,” states the CONTAM Panel, which reviewed 43,419 analytical results from food commodities as well as the latest scientific literature. “Evidence from human studies that dietary exposure to acrylamide causes cancer is currently limited and inconclusive.” In particular, the agency singles out fried potato products, coffee, biscuits, crackers, crisp bread, and soft bread as…
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has published its final caffeine risk assessment, concluding that “single doses of caffeine up to 200 mg” and “habitual caffeine consumption up to 400 mg per day does not give rise to safety concerns for non-pregnant adults.” Following a two-month consultation, the EFSA Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition and Allergies (NDA Panel) issued a scientific opinion considering “possible interactions” between caffeine and energy drink constituents, alcohol, p-synephrine, and physical exercise. The data evidently indicated no safety concerns when non-pregnant adults consume up to 200 mg of caffeine (i) less than 2 hours before intense physical exercise, (ii) in combination with energy drink ingredients such as taurine or d-glucurono-γ-lactone at typical concentrations, or (iii) in combination with alcohol at doses up to 0.65 g/kg body weight (bw). “The single doses of caffeine considered to be of no concern for adults (3mg/kg bw per day) may…
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has announced a June 17, 2015, workshop in Brussels, Belgium, to discuss supplementary guidance for the allergenicity assessment of genetically modified organisms (GMOs). According to the agency, the supplementary guidance aims to reflect technological and scientific advances as well as assessment methodologies developed since EFSA finalized the current guidance in 2011. The Working Group of EFSA’s GMO Panel requests feedback from member states, international partners, academia, non-governmental organizations and industry on the following topics: (i) non-IgEmediated immune adverse reactions to foods; (ii) in vitro digestibility tests for allergenicity assessment; and (iii) endogenous allergenicity. The June workshop will feature the work of 90 experts with a focus on molecular allergology, protein chemistry, plant science, clinical allergy, gastroenterology, food chemistry, and risk assessment. See EFSA News Release, April 14, 2015. Issue 562
The European Commission (EC) is convening a meeting to “inform Member States, Members of the European Parliament, third country representatives and stakeholders about the ongoing impact assessment on criteria to identify endocrine disruptors and to provide a platform for further exchanges of views” on June 1, 2015, at the Centre Albert Burschette in Brussels, Belgium. Sessions at the day-long event will include discussions of (i) the impact assessment vis à vis the plant protection products regulation and biocide products regulation; (ii) establishing criteria for identifying endocrine disruptors and assessing that criteria in a regulatory context; and (iii) potential impacts on health, the environment, trade, agriculture, consumers, and the food and pesticide industries. The registration deadline is May 19. See EFSA News Release, April 23, 2015. Issue 562
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has reportedly concluded that “[t]here is no evidence that the Ebola virus can be transmitted through food in the European Union.” At the request of the European Commission, EFSA issued a scientific report detailing the risk pathway for the transmission of Zaïre Ebola virus (ZEBOV) via imported food consumed in the European Union. Although the report emphasizes that ZEBOV infections linked to the EU food chain have never been documented, it notes the gaps in scientific research stemming from the unlikelihood of this event. “Due to lack of data and knowledge, which results in very high uncertainty, it is not possible to quantify the risk of foodborne transmission of ZEBOV derived from the consumption of these imported foods, or in fact whether or not this mode of transmission could occur at all,” states EFSA. “The overall conclusions of both approaches are consistent and suggest…
The Technical University of Denmark’s (DTU’s) National Food Institute has rejected the European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA’s) recent bisphenol A (BPA) assessment, claiming that the agency’s decision to set the tolerable daily intake (TDI) at 4 micrograms per kilogram body weight per day does not adequately protect consumers. After examining EFSA’s toxicological evaluation, National Food Institute’s researchers criticized the scientific opinion for not applying an appropriate uncertainty factor and failing to take into account animal studies allegedly showing the effects of BPA on reproductive health and neurological development. The National Food Institute has instead proposed a TDI of less than 0.7 µg/ kg bw/day to protect against “endocrine disrupting effects.” In particular, the scientists note that, according to EFSA, men and women at the highest exposure levels are currently exposed to more than 1 microgram of BPA per kilogram per day, “while children and teenagers are exposed to between 1.26 and…
At the request of the Hellenic Food Authority, the European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA’s) Panel on Contaminants in the Food Chain (CONTAM Panel) has issued a scientific opinion on the public health risks associated with the presence of nickel (Ni) in food—especially vegetables—and drinking water. Citing the established tolerable daily intake (TDI) of 2.8 µg Ni/kg body weight (bw) per day, the CONTAM Panel concluded that chronic dietary exposure to nickel represents a concern for the general population and that consumers already sensitized to nickel through dermal contact may develop eczematous flare-up skin reactions at the current levels of acute dietary exposure levels. The CONTAM Panel relied on a total of 18,885 food samples and 25,700 drinking water samples to estimate dietary exposure to nickel, finding that the following food groups were the main contributors across age categories: (i) grain and grain-based products; (ii) non-alcohol beverages (except milk-based beverages); (iii)…
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has announced a March 5, 2015, stakeholder meeting to discuss its draft opinion on the safety of caffeine. Authored by the agency’s Nutrition Unit, the draft opinion finds, among other things, that “single doses of caffeine up to 200 mg and daily intakes of up to 400 mg do not raise safety concerns for adults.” It also considers the following: (i) “caffeine consumption during pregnancy, and adverse health effects on the fetus”; (ii) “acute and long-term effects of caffeine consumption on the central nervous system (e.g. sleep, anxiety, behavioral changes) in adults, adolescents, and children”; (iii) “long-term adverse effects of caffeine consumption on the cardiovascular system in adults”; (iv) “acute effects of caffeine consumption in ‘energy drinks’ and risk of adverse health effects in adolescents and adults involving the cardiovascular and central nervous systems, particularly when consumed within short periods of time, at high…
