Knowledge of thresholds constitutes a critical requirement to assessing the risk from allergens, as they are a characteristic of the hazard that allergens present to the food-allergic population.     FAO and WHO reconvened the Ad hoc Joint FAO/WHO Expert Consultation on Risk Assessment of Food Allergens for a second meeting to provide scientific advice on review and establish threshold levels in foods for the priority allergens.     The expert committee concurred that the benchmark dose/probabilistic hazard assessment approach aligned most closely with the requests of the Codex Committees. After extensive discussion, the expert committee reached a consensus on reference doses (RfD) for priority allergenic foods, meeting the criterion for HBGV that they should reflect a range of exposure without appreciable health risk.

World Food Safety Day aims to draw attention and inspire action to help prevent, detect and manage foodborne risks, contributing to food security, human health, economic prosperity, agriculture, market access, tourism and sustainable development. This report gives a taste of the initiatives held for World Food Safety Day 2022 and shows how far-reaching this international observance has become. More than 450 initiatives took place in 106 countries including conferences, webinars, training sessions, workshops, quizzes, videos and more. Food safety advocates raised awareness and inspired action online and in person. The day also saw comprehensive coverage by media outlets across the world.   Learn more about this year’s celebrations on the World Food Safety Day website, or find out about food safety more generally...

Plastic contamination in the environment is one of the most currently discussed topics. In addition to environmental matrices, microplastics have been detected in fisheries and aquaculture species, but also in other important food commodities. Food consumption is considered as one of the main and most important pathways of human exposure to microplastics. Concerns might arise not only from the exposure to the plastic polymer itself which, although generally considered as biologically inert, might still contain some reactive monomers in its structure, but also to associated chemicals. Many researchers have reported oxidative stress and immunotoxicity among the main consequences of exposure to virgin micro and nanoplastic particles, with the least having a longer retention time within the organism. Moreover, many studies...

Although Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) have been isolated from a variety of food production animals, they are most commonly associated with ruminants from which we derive meat and milk. Because of the widespread and diverse nature of ruminant-derived food production, coupled with the near ubiquity of STEC worldwide, there is no single definitive solution for controlling STEC that will work alone or in all situations. Instead, the introduction of multiple interventions applied in sequence, as a “multiple-hurdle scheme” at several points throughout the food chain (including processing, transport and handling) will be most effective. This report summarises the review and evaluation of interventions applied for the control of STEC in cattle, raw beef and raw milk and raw milk cheese...

Since the publication of the 2004 risk assessment, outbreaks of illness and resultant deaths due to L. monocytogenes continue to occur across the globe. Continued effort is needed to summarize and critically evaluate the most recent information on L. monocytogenes in RTE foods. New data to improve and further inform the 2004 Risk Assessment is available for nearly every factor considered previously, including new quantitative data on L. monocytogenes contamination of foods. To facilitate this work, an FAO/WHO expert meeting was held by virtual means from 20 October to 6 November 2020 to review and discuss the available data and background documents, and to assess the need to modify and update risk assessment models/tools. This report focuses on the deliberations and...

Considering the unique outlook for cell-based food production, many countries may put in place various regulatory requirements for cell-based food products to be sold in the markets. Some may require a pre-market authorization process, which often entails assessment of their safety for human consumption and compliance with national regulations. As of 2022, while there is only a limited number of products authorized in one country only, it is just a matter of time before cell-based food starts being authorized elsewhere and/or transported and traded across borders. It is therefore important to first understand the existing frameworks under which cell-based food products may be regulated. It is also important to identify some specific regulations for food safety purposes, so that some...

Food allergy can represent a serious human health issue. The observed rise in regional incidence and global prevalence of food allergies raise, among other, also questions about the risks related to the consumption of new, modified, and alternative protein sources. As we strive towards transforming food systems to match our need for sustainability, food security and adequate nutrition, we cannot lose sight of the importance of food safety. Population growth, socioeconomic development, and urbanization, among other factors is putting increasing pressure on the global food supply in general, and on protein sources in particular. New protein sources, such as plant-based meat alternatives and edible insects, while promising to be sustainable protein sources, can also potentially expose allergic and non-allergic consumers to...

The world production of marine macroalgae, or seaweed, has more than tripled since the turn of the millennium, increasing from 10.6 million tonnes in 2000 to 32.4 million tonnes in 2018. Increased cultivation and utilization of seaweed are expected to be important pillars of sustainable food security and a robust aquatic economy in the coming years. It is important, therefore, to consider the food safety implications of (increased) seaweed use for food. Many factors can affect the presence of hazards in seaweed, including: the type of seaweed, its physiology, the season in which it is produced, production waters, harvesting methods and processing. Several hazards such as heavy metals and marine biotoxins have been reported to be (potentially) associated with seaweed....