Press Releases on August 10, 2015

EFSA provides preliminary advice on health risks of goat milk and derived products with regards to BSE/TSE

Following the announcement by a research group in France of a suspected case of BSE in a goat slaughtered in 2002, EFSA immediately commissioned work in view of updating previous scientific opinions concerning TSEs in small ruminants ,2. EFSA launched a …

EFSA GMO Panel reconfirms that the use of the nptII gene as a selectable marker in GM plants does not pose a risk to human or ...

According to the EMEA information, aminoglycosides comprise a class of antibiotics that has become increasingly important in the prevention and treatment of serious invasive bacterial infections in humans. This is because bacteria, such as tuberculosis …

Green light for appointment of EFSA scientists

Stuart Slorach, Chairman of the Board, was very pleased with the result. ‘Being able to select from over a thousand scientists made it possible to choose highly qualified experts for our Scientific Committee and Panels,’ he said. ‘Although we were unable …

EFSA consults on the assessment of allergenicity of GM food and feed

GMOs could contain quantities of new or existing proteins which might cause food allergies in people and animals. EU legislation therefore requires that the allergenicity of GM foods be assessed before they can be placed on the market. In the report, the …

Inaugural meeting of EFSA’s new Management Board

Commenting on this first meeting, the newly elected Chair, Patrick Wall, affirmed: “Board members look forward to the challenges ahead and to supporting and guiding EFSA to achieve its aim to enhance consumer protection. EFSA is a phenomenal resource for …

EFSA to further evaluate study on food colours and behaviour - Panel to prioritise safety assessment of six study colours

The AFC[1] Panel considering the new research will ask for additional information from the UK Food Standards Agency and, to assist the Panel in its work, EFSA has provided it with a preliminary evaluation of the study’s statistical design based on …

EFSA publishes new study on bee mortality in Europe

The report makes recommendations on how to improve bee surveillance systems and says further studies are needed to better understand the factors that affect honey bee health. EFSA has been working on colony losses in honey bees since 2008, when it began …

EFSA evaluates TSE risk from small ruminants’ milk

EFSA’s study follows a request of the European Commission to deliver an opinion on a recent scientific article from Konold et al.[1], published on 8 April, 2008 in BMC Veterinary Research, which concluded that classical scrapie can be transmitted to …

Increased cooperation in food safety assessment

One of the most important tasks of the European Food Safety Authority is to cooperate closely with competent bodies in the different EU Member States in order to better integrate the EU approach to food safety assessment. Therefore, the most appropriate …

EFSA opinion on avian influenza vaccines in domestic poultry

The AHAW Panel’s opinion focused on the high pathogenic (HP) strains of avian influenza of H5 and H7 subtypes, as specifically requested by the European Commission in its mandate. The opinion was prepared with the support of international experts from …

EFSA Executive Director meets representatives of the Genetic Rights Foundation and Coalizione Italia-Europa “Liberi da OGM”

Catherine Geslain- Lanéelle explained the role of EFSA in advising European Union risk managers on the safety of GMOs. EFSA’s experts make an independent scientific assessment of GMO applications. It is then up to Member States and the European Commission …

New Mathematics Advances the Frontier of Macromolecular Imaging

Structures to the left are models of the pentameric ligand-gated ion channel (pLGIC), which mediate fast synaptic communication by converting chemical signals into an electrical response. The structures on the right are reconstructions of pLGIC from FXS …

Xylella: new studies assessed

In addition, there is no published evidence that treatment of fungal disease will reduce the establishment, spread and impact of Xylella, although good orchard management is generally beneficial for plant health.  The papers examined by EFSA observe that …

EFSA responds to Commission’s urgent request on dioxins in Irish pork

EFSA’s key conclusions are: In the most likely scenario, if someone ate an average amount of Irish pork each day throughout the period of the incident (90 days), 10% of which was contaminated at the highest recorded concentration of dioxins[1], the body …

EFSA Panel advises on how to avoid microbiological risks in infant formulae, at home and in hospital

Infants and young children are particularly vulnerable to food borne infections; therefore, the microbiological safety of infant and follow-on formulae is of utmost importance. Studies demonstrate that contamination of powdered infant formula with E. …

EFSA consults on the evaluation of safety and effectiveness of substances used for removal of microbial surface contamination

The guidance includes data and examples of study designs for the evaluation of these substances with regard to their safety for consumers and the environment and their effectiveness in decreasing the level of microbial contamination. The guidance also …

EFSA-ECDC report shows Campylobacter cases in humans on the rise, while salmonellosis is in decline; listeriosis remains of ...

In 2007, infections from Campylobacter were again the most frequently reported zoonotic disease in humans across the European Union with 200,507 cases compared to 175,561 in the previous year, an increase of 14.2%. Regarding Salmonella, although the number …

Emerging risks in food safety: Learn from the past, prepare for the future, Budapest

Catherine Geslain-Lanéelle   Dear Chair, members of the Advisory Forum, distinguished guests,  Introduction I am very grateful for the opportunity to address this scientific conference on emerging risks and I would like to thank the Hungarian Food Safety …

EFSA announces November Scientific Forum as part of Five Year Anniversary

This unique international event is an opportunity for expert scientists and other interested parties from the EU and beyond to debate cutting edge food safety issues with EFSA. Agenda items will include nanotechnology, animal cloning, chemical and …

Live broadcast of EFSA’s 33rd Management Board meeting