EFSA has published the results of its two pilot assessments on the risks posed to humans by residues of multiple pesticides in food.

The assessments – one considering chronic effects on the thyroid system and the other acute effects on the nervous system – are the culmination of a multi-year collaboration between EFSA and the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM).

The documents were finalised following a two-month consultation period during which EFSA received valuable feedback from a variety of stakeholders, including national institutions, academia, non-governmental organisations and commercial associations. A meeting was also held with stakeholders in Brussels to help clarify the methodology and explain the results of the work.

The overall conclusion for both assessments is that consumer risk from dietary cumulative exposure is, with varying degrees of certainty, below the threshold that triggers regulatory action for all the population groups covered. (See FAQ for more information on the use of uncertainty analysis in the assessments.)

Assessments covering the effects of pesticides on other organs and body functions will follow in the coming years. EFSA is currently defining a comprehensive implementation plan with the European Commission.

The substances considered in the assessments were identified by EFSA’s pesticide experts using a methodology specially devised for classifying pesticides into “cumulative assessment groups” (CAGs).

The EU regulation on maximum levels of pesticides in food (MRLs) stipulates that decisions on MRLs should take into account cumulative effects of pesticides as and when the methods to assess such effects become available. In addition, the regulation covering the placing of pesticides on the market stipulates that pesticides should have no harmful effects – including cumulative effects – on humans.

EFSA has published a scientific opinion on public health risks related to the presence of ochratoxin A (OTA) in food – a mycotoxin naturally produced by moulds that can be found in a variety of foodstuffs including cereals, preserved meats, fresh and dried fruit, and cheese.

New data that have become available since the last assessment in 2006 suggest that OTA can be genotoxic by directly damaging the DNA. Experts also confirmed that it can be carcinogenic to the kidney. Therefore experts calculated a margin of exposure (MOE). This is a tool used by risk assessors to consider possible safety concerns arising from the presence in food and feed of substances which are both genotoxic and carcinogenic.

In its previous opinion, EFSA established a tolerable weekly intake (TWI) based on toxicity and carcinogenicity to the kidney.

Experts have now used a more conservative approach by calculating MOE and concluded that there is a health concern for most consumers groups. EFSA’s scientific advice will inform the European Commission in the ongoing discussion on maximum levels of OTA in foodstuffs.

EFSA consulted stakeholders and different parties on its draft opinion and comments received were considered when finalising it.

The globalisation of trade combined with the boom in travel and movement of people mean that plant pests can travel from one side of the globe to the other in a matter of days. So how do risk assessors and plant health officers keep track of the pests of tomorrow? The answer is horizon scanning.

In collaboration with the European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC) and EU Member States, EFSA screens media and scientific articles to identify new, emerging or recurring pests that might be of concern to the EU territory.

A monthly media newsletter published in the EFSA Journal highlights the most relevant news on plant pests worldwide. New pests identified through the monitoring are evaluated according to the risk they pose, and the information is shared with the European Commission and Member States. A second newsletter, focusing on scientific publications, is being developed and will also be published in the EFSA Journal.

Find out more by registering for EFSA’s special webinar on “Horizon scanning for plant health”. The webinar, to be held on 9 June, is the first in a series being hosted by EFSA’s plant health team to mark the International Year of Plant Health.

EFSA has assessed the risks to public health from Listeria contamination of vegetables that are blanched – scalded in hot water or steam for a short time – before they are frozen. They conclude that the risks associated with the consumption of these products is lower than for ready-to-eat foods such as smoked fish, cooked meat, sausages, pâté, soft cheese – which are usually associated with listeria contamination.

Food business operators often blanch vegetables before freezing them because this stops enzyme actions which can cause loss of flavour, colour and texture.

EFSA’s experts identified relevant control activities that food business operators can implement to lower the risks of contamination of frozen vegetables. These range from cleaning and disinfection of the food producing environment to water, time and temperature control at different processing steps, and accurate labelling.

They stress the importance of monitoring the food producing environment for Listeria monocytogenes. This is because Listeria can persist in the food processing environment from which it can contaminate food.

EFSA also makes recommendations on how to reduce risks at home. The key is to maintain good hygiene practices such as storing frozen or thawed vegetables in a clean freezer or refrigerator at the appropriate temperature and following the instructions on labelling for safe preparation. In general, risks are much lower if vegetables are cooked properly after defrosting.

This work was triggered by a multi-country outbreak that affected 53 people and caused 10 deaths between 2015 and 2018.

Listeria

Listeria is a family of bacteria that contains ten species. One of these, Listeria monocytogenes, causes the disease listeriosis.

According to the latest European Union One Health Zoonoses Report from EFSA and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), the number of people affected by listeriosis in 2018 is similar to 2017 (2,549 cases reported in the EU in 2018 against 2,480 the previous year). However, the trend has gone up over the past ten years.

Listeriosis symptoms vary, ranging from mild flu-like symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea to more serious infections such as meningitis and other potentially life-threatening complications. The disease primarily affects the elderly, pregnant women, new-borns and people with weak immune systems.

EFSA has published its annual report on pesticide residues found in food in the European Union. The report is based on data from the official national control activities carried out by EU Member States, Iceland and Norway and includes both targeted and random sampling.

A total of 91,015 samples were analysed in 2018, 95.5% of which fell within legally permitted levels. For the subset of 11,679 samples analysed as part of the EU-coordinated control programme (random collection), 98.6% of samples were within legal limits.

The report gives a snapshot of the presence of pesticide residues in food in the EU and any possible risk to consumer health. It also provides risk managers with important information on which to base decisions regarding future control measures.

Bernhard Url, EFSA’s Executive Director, said: “For many years this report has supported the work of the European Commission and Member States in ensuring the proper use of pesticides in line with EU legislation and targets. Efficient collection and rigorous analysis of such data will continue to be of central importance in ensuring the safety of food sold in the European Union.”

The section on randomly collected data is particularly useful as it covers the same basket of products on a three-year rotation, which means upward or downward trends can be identified for specific goods.

For example, between 2015 and 2018 the proportion of samples with residue exceedances increased in bananas (from 0.5% to 1.7%), sweet peppers (1.2% to 2.4%), aubergines (0.6% to 1.6%) and table grapes (1.8% to 2.6%). On the other hand, exceedances fell in 2018 compared to 2015 for broccoli (from 3.7% to 2%), virgin olive oil (0.9% to 0.6%) and chicken eggs (0.2% to 0.1%).

This year EFSA has translated the results of the coordinated programme into browsable charts and graphs, to make the data more accessible to non-specialists.

The national control programmes are risk-based, targeting products that are likely to contain pesticide residues or for which legal infringements have been identified in previous years. These programmes give important information to risk managers but – unlike the data from the EU coordinated programme – they do not provide a statistically representative picture of the levels of residues that one would expect to find in food on the shelves in shops across Europe.

EFSA carried out a dietary risk assessment as part of its analysis of the results. This suggested that the food commodities analysed in 2018 are unlikely to pose a concern for consumer health. However, a number of recommendations are proposed to increase the efficiency of European control systems, thereby continuing to ensure a high level of consumer protection.

The 20 pests on the list published by the European Commission in October 2019 are quarantine pests that have been identified as top priorities for EU Member States based on the severity of the economic, social and environmental problems they can cause. They include Xylella fastidiosa, the Japanese beetle, the Asian long-horned beetle, citrus greening and citrus black spot.

Globalisation and climate change are redrawing the landscape of plant pest distribution. This trend poses a threat to natural and managed environments, agricultural and forestry production, ecosystems and biodiversity in the European Union territory. In the past decade the EU has been confronted with several large-scale outbreaks of new plant pests that have had significant impacts, such as Xylella fastidiosa and Hymenoscyphus fraxineus (the fungus that causes ash dieback). Against this background, the EU Plant Health legislation has been revised with the adoption of Regulation (EU) 2016/2031, commonly known as the Plant Health Law, which comes into effect in December 2019. Among the measures included in this legislation is the establishment of a list of the most dangerous pests on the EU’s umbrella list of quarantine pests.

The list is based on impact assessments carried out by EFSA and the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) on a number of pests identified by the Commission. The assessments considered a number of indicators such as impact on crop yields, damage to trade and the cost of control measures; social consequences such as unemployment, reduced food safety and security, and impact on landscapes and cultural heritage; and damage to the environment such as reduced biodiversity and ecosystem services. The pests were then ranked according to how highly they “scored” across the different criteria.

For each pest, EFSA provided a report containing data on the following:

The information was derived from the most complete, up-to-date, pest categorisation(s) and/or pest risk assessment(s) carried out by EFSA, the European Plant Protection Organization (EPPO), and other European or non-European institutions. Additional information and data were obtained via literature search and complemented by expert contributions. Expert knowledge elicitations (EKEs) were conducted with groups of risk assessors and pest experts to estimate probability of impact, spread and time to detection. More information about the methodology used by EFSA can be found here.

For each of the listed pests, EU Member States will be required to carry out annual surveys, draw up and keep up to date a contingency plan, perform simulation exercises, communicate with the public, and adopt an eradication plan for any of the listed pests that are present in the Union territory. This means that the EU territory has a coordinated, harmonised preparedness strategy for protecting agriculture, the environment and the economy from dangerous pests.

“The whole EU territory is at risk from Xylella fastidiosa, and the more the scientific community works together on this issue, the quicker we’ll be to find solutions to tackle this pest.” That was how Claude Bragard, chair of EFSA’s Panel on Plant Health, summed up the importance of the conference on X. fastidiosa held in Corsica this week.

Around 350 plant health specialists from around the world attended the conference for two days of intensive discussions on how science can help find solutions to the plant pest that is causing environmental and economic damage across Europe. Hundreds of people followed proceedings via a special live web streaming of the event.

Prof Bragard praised the commitment of the conference participants, saying: “Science should not be kept in an ivory tower, and is better used when shared to inform collective knowledge.”

Giuseppe Stancanelli, head of EFSA’s plant health team, added: “This was yet another successful conference – following on from the event we held in Mallorca two years ago – with hundreds of experts from many countries coming together to discuss what is known about Xylella and what research still needs to be done.

“What we know today paves the way for the prioritisation of new research and new scientific findings to help us better understand and control one of the most dangerous plant bacteria in the world.”

The conference was organised jointly by EFSA; the French National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA); the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health and Safety (ANSES); the Office de l’Environnement de la Corse (OEC) through its department the Conservatoire Botanique National de Corse; the EU-funded projects POnTE, XF-ACTORS, CURE-XF and EuroXanth; and the Euphresco network for phytosanitary research coordination and funding.

To mark the International Year of Plant Health, EFSA has launched a special website highlighting the work it is doing with its partners to combat plant pests and protect Europe’s cultivated and wild plants.

The website will be updated throughout the year with news and information on activities aimed at raising awareness about plant health in Europe and beyond.

Take a look: Working together to protect Europe’s plants

EFSA’s website is now available in Spanish, one of the most widely spoken languages in the world. The addition of Spanish means that all EFSA’s essential information, news stories and background materials are accessible in five languages – the content is already available in English, French, German and Italian.

The launch of a Spanish version of the website marks the beginning of the gradual introduction of full EU-24 multilingualism to EFSA’s communications.

In addition to the 46 million citizens of Spain, there are around 400 million Spanish native speakers in the word. After Mandarin Chinese, Hindustani and English, Spanish is the most widely spoken language in the world.

As well as broadening the reach of EFSA’s communications, the addition of Spanish is also a response to the new European Transparency Regulation, which emphasises the need for EFSA and other EU bodies to be as clear and accessible as possible when communicating with the general public.

EFSA Linguistic Services worked hand in hand with the Translation Centre for the Bodies of the European Union (CdT), which translated a wide selection of the most popular EFSA web pages.

Basic information about EFSA is already available in all the official EU languages in EFSA’s Corporate Brochure “Science protecting consumers from field to fork”. The document is available on the EFSA website as well as on the EU Bookshop website. All EFSA vacancy notices for recruiting staff are available in all 24 EU official languages.

English, as the EU lingua franca, remains the main language used for all EFSA communications externally and in-house.

EFSA is a forward-looking organisation keen to have a state-of-the-art approach to communications, one of the main pillars of its mandate. To pursue this goal, EFSA is planning to avail itself of new technologies such artificial intelligence and automated translation in its current and future approach to multilingualism.

EFSA evaluates the safety of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) before they can be authorised for use as food or feed and/or for cultivation in the EU. This includes GM plants, GM microorganisms and GM animals.

Applications are submitted to the national competent authority of a Member State, which forwards the application to EFSA. The technical dossier of an application must be compiled according to EFSA’s guidance.

EFSA assesses the scientific basis of nutrition and health claims submitted for authorisation in the EU. Work in the area of nutrition related to applications also includes the evaluation of novel foods, infant formulae and food allergens. The European Commission and Member States then decide whether to grant authorisation.

In the case of health claims applications are submitted to the national competent authority of a Member State. This includes applications for authorisation of a new health claim or for the modification of an existing authorisation. An applicant who intends to place on the EU market a novel food submits an application to the European Commission. The European Commission (EC) receives applications also for infant formulae and food allergens.

The competent authority or the EC pass on the application and any supplementary information to EFSA, which carries out the scientific evaluation.

EFSA has assessed the safety of green tea catechins from dietary sources, following concerns regarding their possible harmful effects on the liver. EFSA concluded that catechins from green tea infusions and similar drinks are generally safe. When taken as food supplements, however, catechin doses at or above 800 mg/day may pose health concerns.

Green tea is widely consumed for its purported health benefits, but there have also been reports in the EU and beyond of possible harmful effects. EFSA’s assessment of green tea catechins was triggered by concerns from Nordic countries following reported cases of liver damage possibly associated with the use of green tea products.

Catechins are substances naturally present in green tea, the most abundant of which is epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). In its safety assessment, EFSA looked at possible links between the consumption of EGCG in green tea infusions and food supplements and liver damage.

No concerns for infusions

For green tea infusions, EFSA’s experts concluded that there is generally no indication of liver damage even after high consumption, and that the few cases of liver damage reported in humans are likely due to rare and unpredictable reactions. Experts therefore considered catechins from green tea infusions brewed with hot water, and instant and ready-to-drink green tea beverages with similar catechin content, as generally safe.

For food supplements, EFSA’s experts concluded – on the basis of human studies conducted with volunteers under medical supervision – that doses of EGCG at 800 mg/day may be associated with initial signs of liver damage. While there was no indication of liver injury for doses below 800 mg/day from green tea supplements, experts were unable to identify a safe dose based on available data.

Catechin contents differ

Food supplements containing green tea catechins provide a daily EGCG intake ranging from 5-1000 mg. These food supplements are generally intended for adults. The average daily intake of EGCG resulting from the consumption of traditional green tea infusions ranges between 90 and 300 mg, but may reach up to 866 mg in adults who consume large quantities of these drinks.

Catechins in green tea extracts used in food supplements may be more concentrated, or have a different composition and pattern of consumption compared to catechins from green tea infusions. For example, infusions tend to be consumed together with food and spread throughout the day, while supplements, especially for slimming, are more likely to be taken in a fasting state and as a single daily dose.

Recommendations and next steps

To improve consumer protection, EFSA has recommended that further studies on the effects of green tea catechins be carried out. Experts also proposed clearer labelling of green tea products (in particular food supplements) regarding catechin content and their possible health risks. EFSA’s advice is now being forwarded to the European Commission, which will decide on the most appropriate risk management follow-up.

EFSA evaluates the safety of regulated food ingredients before they can be authorised for use on the European market. Food ingredients are chemical substances which are used as food additives, food enzymes, flavourings, smoke flavourings and sources of vitamins and minerals added to food. EFSA assesses the safety of new substances and of new proposed uses for currently authorised substances.

There are different application procedures and technical requirements for the various food ingredients.

Enzymes are protein molecules that are present in all living things. They speed up and target chemical reactions, in many cases increasing the rate of reaction millions of times. For example, they aid digestion, metabolise and eliminate waste in humans and animals, and play a crucial role in muscle contraction.

Enzymes have been used unknowingly in food production, e.g. dough making, for centuries. They can be obtained by extraction from plants or animals or by fermentation from micro-organisms. They are usually purified but may contain varying traces of the other naturally occurring constituents of these three sources. They are normally added to perform a technological function in the manufacture, processing, preparation and treatment of foods. Examples include enzymes used to break down the structure of fruit so that manufacturers can extract more juice, or to convert starch into sugar in alcohol production.

Historically enzymes are considered to be non-toxic and not of safety concern for consumers since they are naturally present in ingredients used to make food. However, food enzymes produced industrially by extraction from plant and animal tissues, or by fermentation of microorganisms, are assessed for safety.