Acrylamide in food – EFSA to publicly consult on draft opinion in 2014

An statement by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) in 2005 noted that there may be a potential health concern with acrylamide, which is considered to be both carcinogenic and genotoxic in test animals. In September 2012, EFSA received a proposal from organisations belonging to four EU Member States (Denmark, France, Germany and Sweden) to consider new scientific findings on the possible carcinogenicity of acrylamide. Subsequently, EFSA accepted a request from the European Commission to provide a scientific opinion on the potential risks for human health of acrylamide in food.

Using the results of recent research, experts on EFSA’s Panel on Contaminants in the Food Chain (CONTAM Panel) will assess the toxicity of acrylamide for humans and update its estimate of consumer exposure through the diet. EFSA’s experts aim to complete this full risk assessment and publicly consult on their draft scientific opinion in mid-2014. The feedback received will assist the Panel in finalising its scientific opinion, scheduled for the first half of 2015.