A perfect tool for implementing the allergen analysis as part of the food safety quality control assessment.It is well known that food allergies are an immune system reaction to a food or a substance in food. Even a tiny amount of allergy-causing food can trigger signs and symptoms such as digestive problems, hives or swollen airways. In some peopl [...]

New assay for measurement of gluten in oats and avoiding false negatives in the analysis of milk substitutes.  While there are many kits available for the detection of gluten from wheat, barley and rye, there has not been a reliable kit for the detection of oat prolamins until now.  ELISA Systems has recently released a kit for the detection of o [...]

An International Standard based Real-Time PCR detection portfolio.DNA based technology is a relatively new approach for the detection of food allergens, a field traditionally dominated by immunoassays. DNA methods are indirect methods to detect food allergens as they do not detect the allergenic protein itself, but the DNA sequences from the allerg [...]

Russian scientists and environmentalists have raised concerns that some food on the grocery shelves could be contaminated with agricultural chemicals. Abnormal bee mortality in Central Russia caused losses close to 1 trillion rubles (USD 5 billion) for farmers over the past few years according to official estimates from the Russian National Union o [...]

Dietary supplements: how natural contaminants may turn botanical remedies into a Pandora’s box.     Food supplements: a growing market trend  According to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA 2009), food supplements are “concentrated sources of nutrients or other substances with a nutritional or physiological effect that are marketed in [...]

A mandatory, unique, standardized register for all EU member States is necessary, despite the difficulties of implementation. However, such a register is still a long way off.    Introduction  While most people around the world can enjoy their meals without a second thought, for an unlucky few, what is on their plate could be a death sentence. A [...]

Since early 2021, we have stopped seeing the numerous recalls triggered by the presence of ethylene oxide (EO) in ingredients and food products. Quite “surprisingly”, a lot of certified organic food products were implicated in these recalls, and so-called locally-made foods have turned out to contain very non-local ingredients. But is it really [...]

Introducing alternative and sustainable sources of proteins in the human diet is crucial to guarantee nutrition security while reducing the impact on the environment. Allergenicity assessment of novel ingredients aims to provide safe food to consumers.    Introduction    The world population is increasing by 1% every year. From 7.8 billion peop [...]

Agrochemicals and pesticides as indirect actuators of antimicrobial resistance.Introduction  Agriculture is important for a country’s economy. With increasing industrialisation and growing populations, land resources for cultivation are decreasing. Large amounts of chemicals are used worldwide to control pests and weeds and to increase crop yiel [...]

European consumers spent years unknowingly eating eggs contaminated by a banned pesticide. Was it really unpredictable? Could it happen again?Egg production and the economic consequencesGlobal chicken egg production totals approximately 82 million tons per year (Statista.com 2019) with about 8% produced in the European Union (6.9 million tons). Eve [...]