The Food Standards Agency (FSA) have recently updated their guidance on how risk analysis keeps food and feed safe.

Since leaving the EU the FSA and Food Standards Scotland (FSS) have taken on responsibility for assessing food and animal feed safety in the UK. This increased responsibility for risk analysis in the UK has led to them enhancing their guidance with new elements including:

• A clearer separation between the scientific analysis of risk (risk assessment) and the ways risks are controlled (risk management)
• An expanded role for the FSA’s Independent Scientific Advisory Committees
• A new process to advise government ministers on authorising regulated food and feed products for sale in England, Wales and Scotland

Note: current food and feed safety rules haven’t changed as European legislation has moved into UK law. However, when rules on food and feed marketed in Great Britain (GB) do need to change the FSA will now use their own risk analysis process rather than the EU’s process.

The process is different for Northern Ireland (NI) where Annex 2 of the Northern Ireland Protocol means that if you wish to market food or feed in NI you need to continue to follow EU food and feed safety and hygiene regulations.

You can access the guidance here

Anaphylaxis Campaign Allergy Awareness Week

Anaphylaxis Campaign are running their Allergy Awareness Week from 24^th-31^st May. The event aimed to raise awareness of their cause to empower the allergic community by giving them the support needed to be positive and confident about managing their allergies.

During Allergy Awareness Week, the Anaphylaxis Campaign also made several webinars available to watch on their website.  One of the webinars covers the subject of ‘Food Allergen Legislation Changes’ where Dr Helen Arrowsmith – Principal Food Law Adviser and Allergen Specialist from Campden BRI joins the Anaphylaxis Campaign for a 20-minute session on food labelling changes, including how the legislation works post EU exit and a short version of the PPDS requirements. Certainly one to have a look at!

For more information on the webinars available, click here.

About the Anaphylaxis Campaign

Anaphylaxis Campaign is the only UK wide charity operating solely for the growing numbers of people at risk from severe allergic reactions and anaphylaxis.

Their ultimate aim is to create a safe environment for all people with allergies by working with and educating the food industry, schools, pre-schools, colleges, health professionals and other key audiences. With a focus on medical facts, food labelling, risk reduction and allergen management.

They actively campaign to raise awareness of anaphylaxis with the general public and with the relevant authorities for better allergy care and treatments.

Read their Impact Report for more information on the differences they’ve made to the allergic community in the past year.

If you haven’t already done so, we would recommend having a look at their website where you will find a wealth of information ranging from support for those who are living with Anaphylaxis, information and training, Covid-19 advice, webinars on a range of topics as well as information on events and campaigns to help support the charity and raise awareness. The Campaign provides tailored services for individual and clinical professional members and also has a corporate membership programme.

Food safety is vitally important for the industry and especially so for the allergic community represented by the Campaign. The Anaphylaxis Campaign work with their Corporate Members to deliver a better understanding of allergies and anaphylaxis. With over 125 Corporate Members including most retailers, major food distributors, food service operators, allergy testing companies and pharmaceuticals. The excellent links they have with the food industry, industry regulators, healthcare professionals and the allergic consumer makes the Charity and the support and guidance they provide, unique.

Membership

If you would like to find out more about the Anaphylaxis Campaign corporate member, click here.

This update on sugar reduction and the wider reformulation programme has been released as part of the regular updates that Public Health England (PHE) publishes on the reduction and reformulation programme.

Stakeholder engagement during this period has been more limited than usual due to fulfilling support to the government’s ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the challenges experienced by the food and drink industry in response to social distancing restrictions. The phased engagement with the eating out of home sector has been paused due to the COVID-19 response.

To read the full update about sugar, calories and salt, as well as the product ranges aimed at babies and young children, click here.

The Food Standards Agency have now published the latest findings of their COVID-19 Consumer Tracker.

This monthly tracker monitors attitudes, experiences and behaviours of consumers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland in relation to food during the COVID-19 pandemic

Key findings include:

Food insecurity            

Concerns about food availability, food affordability and skipping meals for financial reasons were high in April 2020 but declined significantly in August 2020. They have since risen again to their current level in March 2021.

The proportion of respondents who reported use of food banks or charities also dropped in August 2020. Otherwise, this proportion has remained relatively stable across all waves.

Participants from larger households (4+), those in younger age groups (aged 16-24), and households with a child present were more likely to be ‘food insecure’, across all these measures of food insecurity.

Food purchasing, nutrition and food safety behaviours      

Trends in food purchasing, eating, food safety and hygiene behaviours in the home have remained stable. They are consistent since the tracker began in April 2020.

Consumer food concerns                

28% of respondents reported being concerned about the quality of food produced in the UK in March 2021, whilst 50% reported being ‘concerned’ about the quality of food imported from outside the UK. These were consistent across all collected waves.

In March 2021, 22% of participants reported having a concern about the food they eat at the moment. The biggest concerns selected by participants were:

• the ‘healthiness’ of food in my diet (53%)
• animal welfare (52%)
• the ethical treatment of producers and farmers (50%)
• food freshness (50%)
• hormones, steroids or antibiotics in food (50%)

EFSA has updated its safety assessment of the food additive titanium dioxide (E 171), following a request by the European Commission in March 2020.

After conducting a review of all the relevant available scientific evidence, EFSA concluded that a concern for genotoxicity of TiO₂ particles cannot be ruled out. Based on this concern, EFSA’s experts no longer consider titanium dioxide safe when used as a food additive. This means that an Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) cannot be established for E171.

Titanium dioxide (E 171) is authorised as a food additive in the EU according to Annex II of Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008.  The main food categories contributing to dietary exposure of E171 are fine bakery wares, soups, broths and sauces (for infants, toddlers and adolescents); and soups, broths, sauces, salads and savoury based sandwich spreads (for children, adults and the elderly). Processed nuts are also a main contributing food category for adults and the elderly.

EFSA’s evaluation is related to the risks of TiO₂ used as a food additive, not to other uses.

EFSA is not banning the use of E171, their role was limited to evaluating the risks linked to titanium dioxide as a food additive. This included an assessment of relevant scientific information on TiO₂, its potential toxicity, and estimates of human dietary exposure.

Any legislative or regulatory decisions on the authorisations of food additives are the responsibility of the risk managers (i.e. European Commision and Member States).

To read more, click here.