Future Challenges in Food Analysis from a food safety perspective

Transcription

1 Future Challenges in Food Analysis from a food safety perspective Jan Alexander MD, PhD, Professor Norwegian Scientific Committee of Food Safety slo, Norway

2 Disclaimer: The views or positions expressed in this presentation does not necessarly represent the official positions of The Norwegian Scientific Committee for Food Safety (VKM)

3 Access to safe and nutritious food is basic requirement for human health Food analysis is a key element in ensuring Safe food Nutritious food Quality of food

4 Setting Globalisation of food trade Food and food safety problems travel over long distances Industrialised food production Use of chemicals Gene modified organisms (GM) Extensive development in techniques for microbiological and chemical analysis Genetic techniques Instrumental techniques in separation, spectroscopy and hyphenated approaches

5 The risk of unsafe food is substantial Harmful agents Parasites, bacteria, virus and prions Allergens Chemical compounds adioactive substances Health problems Infectious diseases Enteric diseases, hepatitis and sequelae Non-communicable dieseases Impaired development (e.g. lead) Cancer (e.g. aflatoxin) Allergy

6 Linking unsafe food to health WH initiative Estimate the Global Burden of Foodborne Diseases Start final report expected in 2015 World Health Day 7 April 2015: Food Safety

7 The Mad Cow Chaos Avian Influenza

8 Nordic countries

9 Foodborne infections and food analysis Challenge: link source with disease in human outbreaks Genetic based technology Moving from culture based to culture independent techniques (based on DNA/NA profiles or sequences) Sensitive, detection of pathogens with low infective dose specific and rapid Verification by culturing is not always possible DNA method might have a higher sensitivity False positive Method does not distingish between dead or living organisms Presence of virulence genes in non-pathogens/ bacteriophages

10 Emerging importance of food associated viruses Noroviruses, rotaviruses, hepatitis A and other relevant viruses Determination of viruses in food matrixes is feasible, but variable efficiency Methods need to be improved.

11 Food allergens Prevalence for any food: self-reported 3-35% (ona et al. 2007), 3-6% (Sicherer 2011). Dependent on diagnostic tool Nature of reaction: Mild severe anaphylaxis Minute amounts are needed to cause a reaction Natural constituents of foods Cross-contamination of foods

12 Food allergens Incidents of food allergy Identification and quantification of allergens in the food samples Linking intake of allergens to allergic reactions

13 Chemicals in food and food analysis Chemicals used in food production and distribution and chemicals deliberately added to food: Plant protection products, veterinary medicines, food additives, food packaging materials etc. Environmental contaminants Persistant pollutants, industrial chemical, chemical products Toxins of natural origin Mycotoxins, marine biotoxins, inherent plant toxins

14 Chemical Contamination and Food Crises Dioxins several incidents eggs (Germany), pork meat (Ireland), chocolate (Belgium) Melamine in milk powder (China) Mineral oil in vegetable (sunflower) oil (Ukraine)

15 Maximum levels Chemicals used in food production Use and/or maximum levels Environmental contaminants Maximum levels for several substances established for food and feed Natural toxins Maximum levels for some substances established for food and some for feed

16 Environmental Chemical Contaminants A large number of persistant organic pollutants (PPs) have been phased out and banned Still residues in the environment Hexachlorobenzene in Breast milk

17 Brominated compounds in Breast milk New emerging PPs Perfluorinated chemicals (PFC)

18 Environmental contaminants and natural compounds What is the hazard and occurrence in food? Who owns the problem?

19 Aflatoxin disease burden Mycotoxin: Aspergillus flavus Potent liver carcinogen (with chron. hepatitis B) May play a causative role in cases of liver cancer each year, world wide ( %) (Liu and Wu 2010)

20 ecycling of products and waste May eventually end up in the food chain These aspects should be considered as a part of the evaluation of new products

21 Migration of mineral oil from printing ink in recirculated paper board to rice New paperboard 8 month storage ice EFSA / Grob. K

22 alkanes naphthenes normal octane 2-methyl-heptane 2,2,3-trimethyl-pentane ( iso-octane ) Mineral hydrocarbons (MH) mono-naphthenes di-naphthenes Complex mixtures tri-naphthenes aromatics mono-aromatics di-aromatics Food standards: physical chemical parameters not chemical composition tri-aromatics tetra-aromatics Penta-aromatics

23 Complexity of food grade MH 2D GC K Grob, personal com

24 Complex structures Natural toxins Lack of standards Several analogues

25 Moving from animal bioassays to chemical analysis Algal toxin analogues Algae species Secondary metabolites Shellfish Algal toxin analogues Algal parent compounds Biotransformation products Variable biological activity

26 Complexity of chemical structures of marine biotoxins 4 4 H 7 H H 1 31 H 3 H H H H 2 kadaic acid group 2 H H A B H C D H 3 H H 1 H E H H NH I H G F H n 3 H 3 S A H H N H Domoic acid Azaspiracid group H K C H Yessotoxin group H H 44,55-diHYTX 44 H H 3 S 1 3 H n 1 m/z 1175 Me Me H H H H H H H Me 1 Me 1 H 1 + H 2 N N N H NH NH H 2 3 H Saxitoxin group Me Me 7 Me H Me Me Me H Me Me Pectenotoxin group 7 Me NH 2 + PTX1: CH 2 H PTX2(1): CH 3 PTX3: CH PTX4: CH 2 H PTX6: CH PTX7: CH C-7 S S C-7 PTX2SA (2): 7-epi-PTX2SA (3): S

27 Metal speciation - arsenic Health risk assessed in relation to inorganic arsenic Global disease burden new cancer cases per year: Skin, lung and bladder for each about What about organic arsenic? Major part of arsenic in seafood organic

28 rganic arsenic i seafood

29 Linking exposure to health Presence of chemical substances in food What is the risk to the consumer? What do we know about hazard (ability to cause harm)? What do we know about the exposure? Are susceptible groups (e.g. pregnant women, children)?

30 isk Assessment Hazard identification Concentration in food Consumption of food Hazard characterisation Exposure via food Exposure biomarker isk characterisation

31 Linking exposure to health Toxicological studies Traditional animal studies resource demanding New development High throughput screening in in vitro systems Epidemiological studies bservational studies Exposure assessment Long time from exposure chemicals to health outcome

32 Meeting future challenges in food safety and analysis A multidisciplinary approach is needed: Analysts Microbiologists Epidemiologists Toxicologists Nutritionists Food consumption specialists Statisticians

33 Thank you for listening!