Perchlorate in fruit and vegetables opinion re-published

Published:

26 May 2015

2 minutes read

EFSA has re-published its scientific opinion Opinions include risk assessments on general scientific issues, evaluations of an application for the authorisation of a product, substance or claim, or an evaluation of a risk assessment on the risks to public health from perchlorate in food, particularly in fruit and vegetables. Adopted in September 2014, the opinion has been revised because of a technical error. EFSA’s experts have re-assessed dietary exposure For the purposes of risk assessment, measurement of the amount of a substance consumed by a person or animal in their diet that is intentionally added or unintentionally present (e.g. a nutrient, additive or pesticide) to perchlorate using corrected data on perchlorate levels in food and taking into account more recently available occurrence The fact or frequency of something (e.g. a disease or deficiency in a population) happening data.

Perchlorate is a contaminant Any substance occurring in foodstuffs that was not added intentionally. Contaminants can arise from packaging, food processing and transportation, farming practices or the use of animal medicines. The term does not include contamination from insects or rodents present in the environment naturally and as a result of human activity. The use of natural fertilisers and perchlorate contaminated irrigation water may lead to substantial concentrations in leafy vegetables.

EFSA’s experts established a tolerable daily intake An estimate of the amount of a substance in food or drinking water which is not added deliberately (e.g contaminants) and which can be consumed over a lifetime without presenting an appreciable risk to health. ( TDI The tolerable daily intake (TDI) is an estimate of the amount of a substance in food or drinking water which is not added deliberately (e.g contaminants) and which can be consumed over a lifetime without presenting an appreciable risk to health. ) of 0.3 micrograms per kilogram of body weight per day, based on the inhibition of thyroid iodine uptake in healthy adults. The TDI is an estimate of the amount of a substance that people can consume on a daily basis during their whole life without any appreciable risk to health.

EFSA estimated chronic and ‘short-term’ exposure Concentration or amount of a particular substance that is taken in by an individual, population or ecosystem in a specific frequency over a certain amount of time to perchlorate. A single exposure to perchlorate at levels found in food and water is unlikely to cause adverse effects on human health, including the more vulnerable groups of the population Community of humans, animals or plants from the same species. Overall, chronic dietary exposure to perchlorate is of potential concern, in particular for high consumers in the younger age groups of the population with mild to moderate iodine deficiency A lack of a necessary factor in, for example, the diet or the environment which results in harm to the growth of an organism. Exposure to perchlorate may be of concern for infants breast-fed by iodine-deficient mothers. The re-assessment of dietary exposure did not affect these overall conclusions.

Scientific Opinion on the risks to public health related to the presence of perchlorate in food, in particular fruits and vegetables

Notes to editors

Building upon EFSA’s scientific advice, in March 2015 European Commission updated the levels of perchlorate in food to be used as a reference for intra-Union trade.