Risk Assessment Of Food Allergens

Risk Management for Food Allergy is developed by a team of scientists and industry professionals who understand the importance of allergen risk assessment and presents practical, real-world guidance for food manufacturers. With more than 12 million Americans suffering from food allergies and little indication of what is causing that number to continue to grow, food producers, packagers and distributors need to appropriately process, label and deliver their products to ensure the safety of customers with allergic conditions. By identifying risk factors during processing as well as determining appropriate "safe" thresholds of ingredients, the food industry must take increasingly proactive steps to avoid direct or cross-contamination as well as ensuring that their products are appropriately labeled and identified for those at risk. This book covers a range of critical topics in this area, including the epidemiology of food allergy, assessing allergen thresholds and risk, specifics of gluten management and celiac disease, and much more. The practical advice on factory risk management, catering industry practices, allergen detection and measurement and regulatory controls is key for food industry professionals as well as regulators in government and other public bodies. Science-based insights into the potential risks of food allergens Focused section on determining thresholds Practical guidance on food allergen risk management, including case studies

FAO and WHO reconvened a third meeting to review and evaluate the evidence in support of precautionary allergen labelling to address unintended allergen presence in foods. The Expert Committee at the third meeting reviewed the data on the current status and uses of the precautionary allergen labelling (PAL) and unanimously agreed that current PAL systems used in many countries needed to be improved as they were neither uniform nor informative and were not consistently risk based on amount and frequency of UAP found in food products. The Expert Committee also found that current PAL approaches led to widespread PAL that diminished information and value for consumers. The Expert Committee reviewed again the principles and basis of RfD from the second meeting and reached a consensus that the RfD for each priority allergen, as described by the HBGV and safety objectives, was a valid risk assessment endpoint for determining when sporadic or unexpected UAP posed more than appreciable risk to consumers and needed to be communicated to consumers by PAL.

The Codex Committee on Food Labelling (CCFL) requested scientific advice as to whether certain foods and ingredients, such as highly refined foods and ingredients, that are derived from the list of foods known to cause hypersensitivity can be exempted from mandatory declaration. The objective of this fourth meeting was to expand on the recommendations from the first meeting concerning derivatives of food allergens and establish a framework for evaluating exemptions for food allergens. A pro forma process has been developed and tested against allergen derivatives previously granted exemptions in various countries or regions and found to be effective for consideration in future exemption decisions. The Expert Committee recommends that the process outlined in the pro forma process be used to guide any future development and evaluation of derivative exemptions. Establishment of safety based upon this weight of evidence approach is dependent upon consideration of data quality, outcome of the exposure assessment for all intended ingredient uses (specified for exemption), and review by competent authorities (as needed). When safety is established, exemption can be justified.

Over the past 20 years, public concerns have grown in response to the apparent rising prevalence of food allergy and related atopic conditions, such as eczema. Although evidence on the true prevalence of food allergy is complicated by insufficient or inconsistent data and studies with variable methodologies, many health care experts who care for patients agree that a real increase in food allergy has occurred and that it is unlikely to be due simply to an increase in awareness and better tools for diagnosis. Many stakeholders are concerned about these increases, including the general public, policy makers, regulatory agencies, the food industry, scientists, clinicians, and especially families of children and young people suffering from food allergy. At the present time, however, despite a mounting body of data on the prevalence, health consequences, and associated costs of food allergy, this chronic disease has not garnered the level of societal attention that it warrants. Moreover, for patients and families at risk, recommendations and guidelines have not been clear about preventing exposure or the onset of reactions or for managing this disease. Finding a Path to Safety in Food Allergy examines critical issues related to food allergy, including the prevalence and severity of food allergy and its impact on affected individuals, families, and communities; and current understanding of food allergy as a disease, and in diagnostics, treatments, prevention, and public policy. This report seeks to: clarify the nature of the disease, its causes, and its current management; highlight gaps in knowledge; encourage the implementation of management tools at many levels and among many stakeholders; and delineate a roadmap to safety for those who have, or are at risk of developing, food allergy, as well as for others in society who are responsible for public health.