The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has opened a public consultation period on draft guidance for the agency’s risk assessment of nanoscience and nanotechnology applications in human and animal food. The draft, intended to update the 2011 guidance, will include coverage of novel foods, food contact materials, food and feed additives and pesticides. It also considers in vivo and in vitro toxicology studies and outlines a tiered framework for testing. The deadline for submission of public comments is March 4, 2018.
Category Archives Europe
The Swiss government has reportedly banned the culinary practice of boiling live lobsters, mandating that the lobsters must be killed instantly by “mechanical destruction” or stunned before they are killed. Passed in response to concerns over studies that suggest crustaceans such as lobsters and crabs can feel pain, the law also outlaws transport of live crustaceans on ice, instead requiring that “aquatic species must always be kept in their natural environment." Experienced chefs may also use a traditional method of inserting a sharp knife into the lobster’s head to kill it quickly. The law takes effect March 1, 2018.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has launched a consultation on its draft protocol for its scientific opinion on free sugars. The protocol responds to five member states' request seeking "a science-based cut-off value for a daily exposure to added sugars from all sources (i.e. sucrose, fructose, glucose, starch hydrolysates such as glucose syrup, high-fructose syrup and other isolated sugar preparations used as such or added during food preparation and manufacturing) which is not associated with adverse health effects." EFSA will not accept comments "related to policy or risk management aspects, which are out of the scope of EFSA's activity." Comments will be accepted until March 4, 2018.
The U.K. Advertising Standards Authority has upheld a challenge to a Heinz television ad for canned beans that claimed the beans contained similar levels of protein, fiber and fat as those in a protein shake. The ad showed a man drinking a beverage that he described as “supercharged with high fibre and minimal fat,” and although the beverage was not labeled or identified, ASA decided most consumers would conclude the man was drinking a protein shake. While the ad did not directly compare the nutritional benefits of beans to those of protein drinks and the ad’s nutritional claims for beans were substantiated, ASA ruled that Heinz made a nutrition claim prohibited by broadcast codes.
The Direction générale de la concurrence, de la consommation et de la répression des fraudes (DGCCRF), a French agency for consumer affairs and fraud prevention, has reportedly tested samples of consumer goods throughout France and found titanium dioxide in 17 of the 19 samples. DGCCRF reportedly found nanoparticles in confectionery, sauces, spices, cake toppings and decorations that did not include the ingredient on package labeling as required by EU regulations. The European Food Safety Authority has approved the use of titanium dioxide but has not set an acceptable daily limit for the additive due to lack of data.
The Scottish Government is seeking public comment on a consultation that proposes actions to improve diet and reduce obesity in Scotland. The government previously announced funding of more than $55 million over five years to limit the marketing of food high in fat, sugar and salt and provide weight-loss support for people with type 2 diabetes. The consultation, which is open through January 31, 2018, asks questions about promotions and marketing, “out of home” or restaurant eating, labeling, product reformulation and taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages or similar products. Scotland is also considering proposals to limit “junk food” advertising and provide support for small and mid-sized food manufacturers to reformulate and develop healthier products.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has issued an assessment of the risks of furans and related compounds 2- and 3-methylfurans, concluding that they pose a higher risk to infants—the most exposed group—than older children or adults because infants consume jarred or canned foods with high mean concentrations of the materials. Risks associated with furan exposure reportedly include liver damage and liver cancer. According to EFSA, furan exposure might be reduced through preparation methods such as reheating ready-to-eat foods in a hot-water bath without a lid because evaporation can remove some furan content. EFSA also reported that the highest exposure in adults was attributable to coffee; high mean concentrations of furan were found in whole roasted coffee beans, ground roasted coffee, coffee imitates and instant coffee powder.
The U.K. Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has ruled that Kerry Foods Ltd.'s television advertisements for Richmond Sausages asserting that its products are “the nation’s favourite” are backed by independent third-party market research and did not breach advertising codes. After ASA received three complaints about the ads, Kerry Foods provided research showing the sausages were the highest-ranked for both value and unit sales in the 12 months preceding the dates the ads were aired. ASA found that while the ads did not contain information that would allow consumers to verify the comparison, the market research was sufficient to substantiate the claim.
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has determined that member states cannot invoke the “precautionary principle” to restrict the cultivation and sale of crops developed from genetically modified organisms (GMOs) if the European Commission has not determined that the crops “are likely to constitute a serious risk to human health, animal health or the environment.” Case C-111/16, Italy v. Fidenato (E.C.J., entered September 13, 2017). The ruling responded to a request from an Italian court overseeing the prosecution of three farmers accused of growing GMO maize in violation of Italian law. The district court judge stayed the criminal proceedings to ask the ECJ whether Italy had the authority to ban the crop despite EC approval of its cultivation and sale. In 2013, Italy asked the European Commission to adopt emergency measures allowing member states to apply a “precautionary principle” and implement risk-management measures where “the possibility of harmful effects on…
The chairman of French wine merchant Raphaël Michel has been indicted on charges that he masterminded a scheme to label nearly 4 million cases of ordinary table wine as Rhône Valley wines, including Châteaunneuf-du-Pape and Côtes du Rhône. Guillaume Ryckwaert has been charged with fraud, deception and violations of consumer and tax codes. Several other company executives were taken into custody in Marseilles but released without charges. Agents of the French National Customs Judicial Service discovered the alleged scheme during a company audit in 2016. See The Times, August 4, 2017.
