Handbook Of International Food Regulatory Toxicology

Summaries and references decisions and recommendations of the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives, the Joint FAO/WHO Meeting on Pesticide Residues, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), and the Scientific Committee for Food of the Commission of the European Communities.

Covers all aspects of food safety--science, regulation, and labeling requirements--integrating major developments in the fields of toxicology, analytical chemistry, microbiology, hygiene, and nutrition. Designed to be a reference that bridges the gaps between science, regulation and control of food safety. While this might have been a rather ambitious aim, in putting together this book, the editors have certainly succeeded in gathering a group of experts from industry, government agencies, academia, consumer groups and the media whose knowledge and expertise reflect the complex and multisectoral/multidisciplinary nature of food safety." ---Food Science and Technology

As with the beginning of the twentieth century, when food safety standards and the therapeutic benefits of certain foods and supplements first caught the public’s attention, the dawn of the twenty-first century finds a great social priority placed on the science of food safety. Ronald Schmidt and Gary Rodrick’s Food Safety Handbook provides a single, comprehensive reference on all major food safety issues. This expansive volume covers current United States and international regulatory information, food safety in biotechnology, myriad food hazards, food safety surveillance, and risk prevention. Approaching food safety from retail, commercial, and institutional angles, this authoritative resource analyzes every step of the food production process, from processing and packaging to handling and distribution. The Handbook categorizes and defines real and perceived safety issues surrounding food, providing scientifically non-biased perspectives on issues for professional and general readers. Each part is divided into chapters, which are then organized into the following structure: Introduction and Definition of Issues; Background and Historical Significance; Scientific Basis and Implications; Regulatory, Industrial, and International Implications; and Current and Future Implications. Topics covered include: Risk assessment and epidemiology Biological, chemical, and physical hazards Control systems and intervention strategies for reducing risk or preventing food hazards, such as Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) Diet, health, and safety issues, with emphasis on food fortification, dietary supplements, and functional foods Worldwide food safety issues, including European Union perspectives on genetic modification Food and beverage processors, manufacturers, transporters, and government regulators will find the Food Safety Handbook to be the premier reference in its field.

One of the striking features of our times is the increasing utilization of chemical products in different fields of human activities, as a result of the spectacular progress of chemical research. Our food supply has not been spared from this general trend, however, and chemical sub stances are being continuously incorporated in foodstuffs. Some of these substances are added to food for technological purposes such as pre serving food from bacterial deterioration (antimicrobials), protecting it from oxidative changes (antioxidants), and improving its organoleptic characteristics (sweeteners, flavors, and flavor enhancers), or texture (stabilizers, emulsifiers, colorants). These substances are generally referred to as intentional food additives. Chemical substances may also be found in food as a result of environ mental or accidental contamination. Between these two categories of chemicals, a third class occupies an intermediate position, represented by chemical products utilized to control insect or fungus pests in agri culture and ectoparasites in animal husbandry. These products are cur rently referred to as pesticides and, due to some of their properties, such as chemical stability associated with scarce hydrosolubility, they may be found as residues in or on food from plant and animal origin. In addition, certain drugs that stimulate growth for accelarating productivity in animals may also be found as residues in edible animal tissues. These substances are referred to as unintentional food additives.

From health and economic consequences to exposure assessment and detoxification, this reference comprehensively covers the formation, characteristics, and control of various toxins that occur in the production, storage, handling, and preparation of food. The author discusses toxin sources, mechanisms, routes of exposure and absorption, and their chemical and biochemical components to prevent contamination of food products and reduce epidemics of foodborne disease. The book contains more than 3000 references to facilitate further research, as well as recent guidelines from the FDA and World Health Organization regarding food hygiene and safety.