Food allergies to food waste, EU funds massive food projects

Food allergies are on the up, pressure is mounting to reduce food waste, and more consumers want to know where and how their food is produced.

And in the wake of massive food recalls, public concern about contaminants in food is also growing.

Dr Clare Mills from the UK's Institute of Food Research will co-ordinate EuroPrevall​, a project involving 16 European member states, that aims to generate research findings to help individuals, industry and policy-makers manage and reduce food allergies.

More specifically, EuroPrevall aims to characterise the patterns and prevalence of food allergies across Europe in infants, children and adults.

The scientists hope to identify risk factors, for example, environmental, microbial or genetic, and novel predictive markers - biochemical and genetic - for food allergies, which would allow implementation of preventive measures, for example during pregnancy.

The project will also set out to determine the impact of food allergies on the quality of life, and its economic cost for food allergic people and their families, workplace and employers, and healthcare.

An estimated 4 per cent of adults and 8 per cent of children in the EU - the total population tops 380 million - suffer from food allergies, according to the European Federation of Allergy and Airways Diseases Patients' Associations.

Keeping a pace with the rise in allergies, new legislation brought into the EU at the end of 2004, and enforced in November this year, imposes considerable label requirements to curb the risk for food allergy sufferers.

Directive 2003/89/EC, amending Directive 2000/13, essentially means food makers must flag up a host of possible allergen ingredients and their derivatives on food labels: cereals containing gluten, fish, crustaceans, egg, peanut, soy, milk and dairy products including lactose, nuts, celery, mustard, sesame seed, and sulphites.

Hammering the message home about supply chain food safety, a further EU project called Trace​ will aim to "improve the health and well-being of European citizens"​, by delivering improved traceability of food products along the entire food chain.

The project, led by Dr Paul Brereton at the UK's Central Science Laboratory hopes to develop cost effective analytical methods, for example geo- and bio-climatic mapping, to ensure food can be traced to its source.

Some of the work will focus on "added value" products labelled 'as of designated origin' or 'organic'.

Trace will also assess European consumer perceptions, attitudes, and expectations regarding food production systems and their ability to trace food products, together with, consumer attitudes to designated origin products, food authenticity and food fraud.

According to the EU, a programme of "demonstration activities performed by the food industry"​ will critically appraise the developed traceability systems to ensure they are cost effective and fit for use.

"Technology transfer activities"​ will train industry, regulatory bodies and analysts in the new systems and methods.

With a budget of €18.9 million (EC funding €11.96 million), the project involves 47 European organisations - research institutes, universities and private companies (of which 12 are SMEs) - from 12 EU member states and three associated countries.

Believed to be the "largest food safety project of its kind in the world"​, research into food contaminants will be led by Professor Chris Elliott from the Veterinary Sciences Division, of Belfast's Queen's University.

The BioCop​ initiative has received EU funding of £6.7 million to screen a variety of foodstuffs for multiple chemical contaminants, including pesticides, toxins and drugs.

The research team from Northern Ireland will be joined in the five-year project by thirty-two different partners.

A fourth project​ will tackle the urgent matter of food waste.

Food processors and producers are under increasing pressure to reduce their disposal of surplus co-products. Such residues are biologically complex, and if discarded as waste can often be environmentally unfriendly, and often microbiologically unstable.

Around 3.4 million tonnes of spent grain from the brewing industry, and over one million tonnes of vegetable trimmings from the vegetable processing industry (Eurostat), are produced in the EU every year.

Their improved exploitation will, say the EU researchers, reduce the environmental impact of food waste (reducing landfill, lessening noxious residues and odours).

In addition, improvements would enhance the sustainable management of organic matter from food production and processing; and contribute to integrated resource and waste management.

Of particular interest for food firms, better exploitation of waste could provide natural ingredients for the food and feed industries.

Finally, again of absolute significance for the food industry, the fifth project will seek to create "a single authoritative source of food composition data in Europe."​ Dr Paul Finglas at the Institute of Food Research will co-ordinate Eurofir​.