Journal of Medical Toxicology and Clinical Forensic Medicine

A scientific approach to prioritize chemical hazards in food raw materials based on global food intake

Management of contaminants in food raw materials is a key for producing safe foods. Complying with Health basedguidance values makes sure consumers being protected from contaminants of concern. This presentation will introduce a globally valid chemical risk assessment tool that provides the user with a priority rating in terms of which chemicals are important to manage in raw materials based on global dietary information. The process involves the use of decision trees that enable the determination of risk (or “likelihood to cause harm”) and severity using objective and transparent selection criteria. Thereafter, severity and risk are positioned in an HACCP-like matrix, informing on the prioritization level of each combination of chemical hazard and raw material. The developed model is intended to be adequately protective for consumer's health, as it considers a conservative food intake scenario, as well as various sources of contaminant exposure. The model's design is flexible and can easily be adapted to the needs of different food product categories and scenarios. The model was tested using several examples, the results of which are consistent with existing data in the literature. Case studies including heavy metal and mycotoxin will be presented to illustrate the feasibility of the approach

Author(s):

Yong Joo Chung

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