A recent technical report from the European Food Safety Agency (EFSA) summarises the emerging chemical risks to food safety identified by the Agency and its corresponding processes for the period 2020-2023.
Emerging chemical risks are new or previously unrecognized hazards that have the potential to compromise the safety of food and feed. These risks can arise from a variety of factors, such as changes in agricultural practices, technological advances, environmental pollution and changes in consumer behavior. The dynamic nature of these risks poses significant challenges for food safety authorities and requires continuous monitoring and rapid response.
EFSA’s approach to identifying emerging risks
To identify and assess emerging chemical risks within the EU, EFSA uses a multidisciplinary approach, combining toxicological, chemical, epidemiological and other relevant data from a range of sources and stakeholders. EFSA’s Emerging Risks Exchange Network (EREN) is central to this work. EREN was established in 2010 to support risk identification by facilitating information exchange and scientific collaboration between risk assessors in EU Member States and EFSA. Also crucial to EFSA’s risk identification process is the Stakeholder Discussion Group on Emerging Risks (StaDG-ER), established in 2011 to regularly involve EFSA-registered stakeholder organisations in discussions on emerging food safety risks.
Given the uncertainty and ever-changing nature of emerging chemical risks to food safety, EFSA stresses the importance of horizon scanning, a technique for identifying potential risks by analysing trends and developments in science, technology and society. By anticipating future risks, EFSA can take preventive action. The cover story from the December 2022/January 2023 issue of Food Safety Magazinewhich can be read here, takes an in-depth look at the horizon scanning approach and its importance in an evolving food safety landscape, written by food safety officials from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
Identified emerging chemical risks
As a result of its emerging risk identification activities between 2020 and 2023, EFSA has identified several specific chemical risks arising from new agricultural practices, industrial activities, environmental changes and technological advances.
Regarding new chemical risks from pollution, EFSA first identified the accumulation of industrial chemicals, in particular per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), in food. PFAS are a growing global problem due to increasing evidence that they are ubiquitous in the environment and cause serious harm to human health, for example through endocrine disruption and cancer.
EFSA also identified environmental pollution by toxic heavy metals such as cadmium, lead and mercury as a significant risk, which is even more pronounced in regions with high industrial activity or in areas where mining and smelting operations predominate.
Certain residues from agricultural practices in food have also been identified as emerging risks. In particular, dietary exposure to pesticides and herbicides raises concerns about long-term health effects, as many of these chemicals have unknown or poorly understood toxicological profiles, particularly when new chemicals are developed and brought to market.
In addition, the presence of veterinary drugs such as antibiotics and growth promoters in food contributes to the critical global threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR).
Chemicals used in food processing and packaging can also contaminate food and are classified by EFSA as emerging chemical risks. For example, acrylamide – a chemical produced during high-temperature cooking processes such as frying, roasting or baking – has been classified as a potential carcinogen, raising concerns about its presence in processed foods.
The migration of chemicals such as bisphenol A (BPA) and phthalates from food packaging into food is also a major problem. These chemicals are known for their endocrine-disrupting properties and their potential health effects are currently being researched. The European Commission is considering a proposal to ban BPA in materials that come into contact with food.
Climate change and the globalisation of the food supply have also introduced new risks to food safety. For example, temperature and precipitation patterns caused by climate change may affect the occurrence and persistence of certain contaminants in the environment, such as mycotoxins in crops. The increasing globalisation of the food supply chain may also introduce new risks to regions not previously affected, particularly as food and feed originate from different regions with different regulatory standards for contaminants.
Finally, novel food production technologies entail many unknown risks. For example, although genetically modified organisms (GMOs) have been extensively studied, the continued development of new genetically modified crops may lead to unexpected interactions with other chemicals or unintended consequences by introducing new traits to crops.
In addition, synthetic biology – which involves the design and construction of new biological parts, devices and systems – also poses new chemical risks. The introduction of synthetic organisms into the food chain could lead to the production of new compounds with unknown health effects.
