Journal article
Development and evolution of risk assessment for food allergens
Unilever1
University of Nebraska2
International Life Sciences Institute Europe3
Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research4
University Medical Centre Utrecht5
Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition6
National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark7
Division of Toxicology and Risk Assessment, National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark8
The need to assess the risk from food allergens derives directly from the need to manage effectively this food safety hazard. Work spanning the last two decades dispelled the initial thinking that food allergens were so unique that the risk they posed was not amenable to established risk assessment approaches and methodologies.
Food allergens possess some unique characteristics, which make a simple safety assessment approach based on the establishment of absolute population thresholds inadequate. Dose distribution modelling of MEDs permitted the quantification of the risk of reaction at the population level and has been readily integrated with consumption and contamination data through probabilistic risk assessment approaches to generate quantitative risk predictions.
This paper discusses the strengths and limitations of this approach and identifies important data gaps, which affect the outcomes of these predictions. These include consumption patterns among allergic individuals, analytical techniques and their application, severity-dose relationships, and the impact of extraneous factors which alter an individual’s physiology, such as infection or exercise.
Nevertheless, application of these models has provided valuable insights, leading to further refinements and generating testable hypotheses. Their application to estimate the risk posed by the concurrent consumption of two potentially contaminated foods illustrates their power.
Language: | English |
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Year: | 2014 |
Pages: | 262-276 |
ISSN: | 18736351 and 02786915 |
Types: | Journal article |
DOI: | 10.1016/j.fct.2014.01.032 |
ORCIDs: | Madsen, Charlotte Bernhard |
Food allergy Probabilistic modelling Public health Reference close Risk Assessment SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-being Thresholds
Allergens Food Contamination Probability Reference dose Risk assessment Uncertainty