Hazard and Risk in Food Science

Hazard and Risk

  • Presented by Edhi Nurhartadi, Dept. Food Science and Technology, Universitas Sebelas Maret.

Key Concepts: Hazard vs. Risk

  • Hazard: Something with the potential to cause harm.
  • Risk: The likelihood of a hazard causing harm; risk is related to exposure.

Questions Addressed

  • Without exposure, a risk does not become a hazard.
  • Even with low exposure, a hazard can still pose a risk.
  • How to assess whether a hazard can become a risk:
    • Investigate if exposure to the hazard may actually occur, and at what level; compare that level to toxicity data.
    • Investigate whether the level of exposure is high enough to induce an adverse effect.
    • Investigate the type of adverse effect a chemical may cause and judge if that effect is a serious effect.

Chemical Hazards in Food

  • Environmental pollutants:
    • Heavy metals (Arsenic, Cadmium, Lead, Mercury).
    • Organic compounds (Dioxins, Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs)).
    • Sources: soil, water, and air contamination of food and seafood.
  • Pesticide residues and agricultural chemicals:
    • Resulting from application of pesticides (Insecticides, Fungicides, Herbicides) and veterinary drugs (Antibiotics, Hormones).
    • During growing, harvesting, postharvest, production, and storage of agricultural food crops and animals.
  • Cleaning, disinfecting, and sanitizing agents:
    • Detergents, soaps, solvent cleaners (degreasers), acid cleaners, bleach, and ammonia.
  • Food additives:
    • Intentionally added to achieve certain functions during food processing.
    • Preservatives (e.g., Benzoic Acid) inhibit microbial growth.
    • Color retention agents (e.g., Ascorbic Acid) retain or stabilize original food pigments.
  • Harmful chemicals created during food processing:
    • Acrylamide: potential carcinogen formed naturally from chemical reactions in certain types of starchy foods after cooking at high temperatures.
    • Foods with higher levels of acrylamide: French-fries, potato chips, foods made from grains (breakfast cereals, cookies, and toast), and coffee.
  • Personal hygiene and grooming products:
    • Perfumes, colognes, deodorant, hair spray, etc.
  • Pest control substances:
    • Pesticides and baits used for the reduction or elimination of pests (mice, rats, flies, cockroaches, and other insects).
  • Naturally occurring toxins:
    • Produced by algae, sealife, molds, mushrooms, plants, and some other food items.
    • Can cause dangerous reactions in allergic individuals.
      • Aquatic Biotoxins (algae, shellfish, fish).
      • Aflatoxins (fungi which grow in soil, decaying vegetation, hay).
      • Mycotoxins (molds).
      • Plant Biotoxins.

Specific Chemical Hazards

  • Pesticides: Thousands of substances. Reference link: https://food.ec.europa.eu/plants/pesticides/eu-pesticides-database_en
  • Carcinogens: Mycotoxin, Alkenylbenzenes Derivatives, Methyl Eugenol, Formaldehyde, etc.
  • Natural Toxins: Dioxin, Polyaromatic Hydrocarbon (PAH), Benzo[a]pyrene.
  • Artificial coloring. Reference links:
    • https://www.fda.gov/industry/color-additives
    • https://food.ec.europa.eu/safety/food-improvement-agents_en

Examples of Specific Chemical Hazards

  • Deoxynivalenol
  • Ochratoxin A
  • Patulin
  • Dioxin
  • Acrylamide (C<em>3H</em>5NOC<em>3H</em>5NO)
  • E300, E102, E124, E133, E132, 143, Fusarium, Aspergillus, Penicillium

Food Sources of These Hazards

  • Cereal Grains
  • Grape
  • Apple
  • Cereal Based
  • Fermented Beverage
  • Wine & Grape Juice
  • Apple Juice

Health Effects

  • DNA Damage
  • Toxicity
  • Liver Damage
  • Kidney Damage
  • Nerve Damage
  • Immune Deficiency
  • Cancer
  • Allergies

Acrylamide Details

  • Foods where acrylamide can be found:
    • Coffee
    • Cakes and biscuits
    • Bread and toast
    • Crisps and chips
  • How Acrylamide forms when food is cooked:
    • Water, sugar, and amino acids in food combine to create colors, aromas, and flavor.
    • This causes the browning of the food, which produces acrylamide.
  • Acrylamide Levels in Foods (ppm):
    • Various data from European and FDA sources for categories like breads, crispbread, crackers and biscuits, cereal, other grains, potato chips, other salty snacks, French fries, other potato products, other veg and fruit products.
  • Examples of Acrylamide levels:
    • Soft bread: 22 ppm
    • Pre-cooked chips: 629 ppm
    • Instant coffee: 691 ppm
    • Crisps: 2015 mean acrylamide level 214μg/kg\mu g/kg (FSA Food Survey January 2017) for processed foods

Acrylamide: Organic vs. Non-Organic

  • Acrylamide (AA) levels in organic food are not significantly different from levels in other foods because acrylamide formation is due to cooking processes.

Acrylamide Health Effects

  • Carcinogen and mutagen (Oral cavity, pharynx, larynx, kidney, breast, ovary).
  • Neurotoxic.
    • Intake level affecting nervous system and fertility = 0.5mg/kg0.5 mg/kg body weight/day, which is 500 times higher than the average dietary intake of acrylamide (1μg/kg1 \mu g/kg body weight/day).

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs)

  • Formed from pyrolysis of fats at very high temperatures.
  • Food can get contaminated with PAHs when smoking or barbecuing meat or fish at open coals.
  • PAHs are formed by contact of dripping fat with the hot surface of the coals which are then transported with the smoke to the meat or fish.

Dioxins

  • Environmental pollutants
  • Acute toxic exposure symptoms:
    • Lack of appetite
    • Physical weakness
    • Chronic tiredness
    • Depression
    • Weight loss
  • Associated diseases:
    • Cancer
    • Chloracne
    • Porphyria
    • Diabetes
    • Damaging the immune system
  • References: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/dioxins-and-their-effects-on-human-health, https://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/topics/topic/dioxins-and-pcbs, https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/MEMO01270

Mycotoxins in Foods

  • Naturally occurring, poisonous compounds produced from filamentous fungi or molds.
  • Humans are exposed through consumption of contaminated foods.
  • Negative health effects: acute toxicity to chronic symptoms, such as kidney damage, liver damage, immune deficiency, and cancer.
  • Commonly identified mycotoxins in fruit juices and beverages: Aflatoxins (AFs), Ochratoxin A (OTA), Patulin (PAT), Fumonisin (FB), Trichothecenes (TCs), Zearalenone (ZEN), and the Alternaria toxins.
  • Mainly produced by Aspergillus (AFs, OTA, PAT), Penicillium (OTA and PAT), Fusarium (DON, ZEN, FB), Byssochlamys (PAT), and Alternaria species.
  • Most mycotoxins are immunosuppressive substances categorized as neurotoxins, nephrotoxins, hepatotoxins, or carcinogens. Reference: https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins13050323

Aflatoxin B1

  • Produced by the fungi Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus.
  • These fungi can be present on cereal grains, legumes, tree nuts, or corn.
  • Aflatoxins mainly arise in food because of improper conditions during postharvest storage, making the growth of these fungi possible.
  • Contaminated foods: pistachio nuts, peanut butter, or beer. Exposure can also occur via milk or milk products.
  • Aflatoxin B1 is a very potent liver carcinogen.
  • Proper postharvest storage conditions are important to keep aflatoxin levels in food as low as possible.
  • Products that may contain aflatoxins are regularly checked, and measures are taken when aflatoxin levels are above established limits.

Food Allergens

  • Food intoxication: the whole population can be affected by the risk.
  • Food sensitivity: an individual adverse health reaction due to consumption of a specific food product.
  • Food allergens can cause food intolerance.
  • The immune system reacts to the allergen as if it were an infection of the patient’s body.
    • Examples: Lactose sensitivity due to chronic disease (Lactose intolerance), peanut allergy, coeliac symptoms (an immune reaction to eating gluten - a protein found in wheat, barley, and rye).
  • In some cases, adverse health effects are not correctly attributed to a food sensitivity reaction. A typical example is histamine intoxication after consumption of deteriorated fish.

Major Food Allergens (FDA)

  • Eggs
  • Fish
  • Crustacean Shellfish
  • Tree Nuts
  • Peanuts
  • Wheat
  • Soybeans
  • Milk
  • Sesame
  • Symptoms of Allergies: Runny or congested nose, raised itchy rash (hives), eczema flare, skin flushing, itchy mouth, stomach cramps, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, swelling of the eyes, face, and lips.
  • Severe symptoms (anaphylaxis): Swollen tongue, hoarse voice or cry, difficulty talking, chest tightness, breathing difficulties, persistent cough, wheeze, low blood pressure, feeling faint, collapse, pale and floppy (babies and small children).

Avoidable vs. Unavoidable Chemicals

  • Avoidable:
    • Food additives: food colorant, food preservation, food emulsions, etc.
    • Pesticide residues on crop products.
    • Antibiotics.
    • Food allergens.
  • ADI: Acceptable Daily Intake
  • Unavoidable:
    • Heavy metals: lead, cadmium, methylmercury, copper, arsenic, etc.
    • Dioxin in meat, dairy products, fish, etc.
    • Mycotoxin.
    • Acrylamide.
    • Food allergens (bioactive peptides).
  • TDI: Tolerable Daily Intake

Genotoxic vs. Non-Genotoxic Chemicals

  • Genotoxic Chemical:
    • Can cause cancer by causing damage to the DNA, resulting in mutation or the initiation of tumor formation.
    • Changes to the DNA can lead to mutations and play a role in the regulation of cell growth and cell division.
    • No threshold and no safe exposure level.
    • Food additives which can cause genotoxic effects will be banned in the market.
  • Non-Genotoxic Chemical:
    • Do not cause damage to the DNA.
    • Toxicity effect by a different mode of action.
    • Threshold might need a certain amount of the chemical to induce the adverse effect.
    • If the exposure is below the critical level, the adverse effect will not occur, leading to safe exposure levels.

Genotoxic Chemicals: Practice Questions

  • A genotoxic chemical damages the DNA.
  • A genotoxic chemical is of concern because it may cause cancer.
  • Genotoxic chemicals in the food chain are unavoidable.
  • Mycotoxin aflatoxin B1 is a genotoxic chemical.

Heating of Food and Genotoxic Chemicals

  • Heating of food may result in the formation of genotoxic chemicals in food.
  • When preparing food, you can influence the level of formation of these genotoxic carcinogens.
  • Examples of genotoxic chemicals formed in food upon heating at high temperatures are acrylamide and heterocyclic amines like PhIP.
  • To judge the actual cancer risk from the presence of these chemicals in food, a risk assessment is required.

Acute vs. Chronic Exposure

  • Acute Chemical Exposure: a short-term exposure to a chemical, lasting anywhere from seconds to hours.
    • Health effects show up immediately or soon after the exposure and can range from minor irritations to serious eye damage or loss of consciousness.
  • Chronic Chemical Exposure: a continued or repeated exposure to a toxic substance over an extended period of time (months or years).
    • The effects of chronic exposure may not be apparent for years, sometimes only manifesting long after the exposure has ceased. In many cases, the effects of chronic chemical exposure are permanent.
  • Acute risks: microbiological, phycotoxins, some phytotoxins. Pesticide residues and food additives can be either high or low risk based on exposure.
  • Chronic risks: mycotoxins, anthropogenic contaminants, some phytotoxins, unbalanced diet, food additives and pesticide residues can be either high or low based on exposure.

Case Study: Indomie and Ethylene Oxide (EtO)

  • Indomie product recall in Taiwan due to differences in standards for pesticide residue EtO.
  • Taiwan does not permit EtO in food, while Indonesia does.
  • Taipei health authorities reported EtO levels in 'Indomie Rasa Ayam Spesial' at 0.187mg/kg0.187 mg/kg (ppm).
  • BPOM (Indonesia's FDA) stated the analysis method used by Taiwan (FDA) determines 2-Chloro Ethanol (2-CE), which is then converted to EtO.
  • EtO level of 0.187 ppm is equivalent to 2-CE level of 0.34 ppm.
  • Indonesia regulates the Maximum Residue Limit (MRL) of 2-CE at 85 ppm. (Keputusan Kepala BPOM RI Nomor 229 Tahun 2022).
  • Established purity criteria for various polyoxyethylene compounds.

Pesticide Residue and Maximum Residue Levels (MRLs)

  • European Commission database for MRLs in food.
  • Ethylene oxide (sum of ethylene oxide and 2-chloro-ethanol expressed as ethylene oxide) MRLs for fruits, fresh or frozen, and tree nuts.
  • The Barometer shows the wide safety margins used in the MRL setting process.
  • MRL compliance, legal for trade, safe for human health.
  • ADI (Acceptable Daily Intake): the estimated amount of a substance in food that can be ingested daily over a lifetime by humans without appreciable health risks.
  • ARfD (Acute Reference Dose): the estimated amount of a substance in food, which can be ingested in a single meal by humans without appreciable health risks.
  • NOAEL (No Observable Adverse Effect Level): the greatest concentration of a substance that causes no detectable adverse changes.
  • LOAEL (Lowest Observable Adverse Effect Level): a level similar to the NOAEL, but where an effect can be observed.