Category: Europe
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EFSA Announces Public Consultation on Feed Additive Guidance
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has launched two public consultations on draft guidance for feed additives. Issued by EFSA’s Panel on Additives and Products or Substances Used in Animal Feed (FEEDAP), the first draft document offers guidance “for the preparation of dossiers for the renewal of the authorization for feed additives.” Under Article 14…
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EFSA Recommends Improvements to Meat Inspection Procedures
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) recently published its recommendations for improving meat inspection procedures in the European Union (EU) after a previous assessment found that “traditional practices… are not always suitable for detecting the main meat borne hazards such as Campylobacter and Salmonella or contamination by chemical substances.” Billed as “a major piece of work…
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EC Seeks Input on REACH Nanomaterial Annexes
The European Commission (EC) has announced a public consultation on the Nanomaterial Annexes to the regulations governing the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemical (REACH) substances. As recommended in the General Review of REACH published in February 2013, the consultation will contribute to the Commission’s “impact assessment of relevant regulatory options, in particular possible…
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EU Prohibits Photos of Babies on Baby Formula
The European Parliament has reportedly passed legislation regarding the labeling and content of baby formula and other foods for special medical purposes. Included in the new rules, which reportedly take effect in 2016, is a ban on the use of images of babies on infant formula packaging. Specifically, the new rules state that the labeling,…
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WHO Report Champions Stricter Regulations for Food Marketing to Children
The World Health Organization (WHO) has published a new report, “Marketing of foods high in fat, salt and sugar to children,” that calls the marketing of “unhealthy” foods to children “disastrously effective,” alleging the food industry is driving rising obesity rates in children by using “cheap new marketing channels, such as social media and smart…
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EFSA Issues New Guidance for Environmental Risk Assessment of GM Animals
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has published new guidance on ways of assessing the potential risks of producing genetically modified (GM) animals, including fish, insects, mammals, and birds. Although EFSA reports that it has not yet received any applications for GM animals, the European Commission evidently requested that the agency develop environmental risk assessment (ERA) guidance…
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EFSA Reduces TDI for Phenol
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has lowered the tolerable daily intake (TDI) of phenol—a chemical used to make coatings, adhesives and inks in food contact materials—from 1.5 to 0.5 mg/kg bw/day. The action follows a request from the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment asking EFSA’s Panel on Food Contact Materials, Enzymes, Flavourings and…
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EFSA and ECDC Issue Report on Antimicrobial Resistant Bacteria
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and European Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (ECDC) have issued their third joint report “on antimicrobial resistance in zoonotic bacteria affecting humans, animals and foods.” Based on data collected by member states in 2011, the report notes the “continued presence of resistance to a range of antimicrobials in Salmonella and…