Multiple
toxin detection tests may be on the horizon
By Jane Byrne, 06-Jan-2009
Source of Article: http://www.foodproductiondaily.com/Quality-Safety/Multiple-toxin-detection-tests-may-be-on-the-horizon A four
year €4m European Commission funded project aims to develop multiple toxin
detection tests for use by food manufacturers within processing plants.
The project, Conffidence, is being lead by the RIKILT Food Safety
Institute in the The project claims
Professor Chris Elliott, director of the He said that one of
the major concerns of governments, food producers and consumers is the
presence of chemical contaminants in food and feed that may be harmful to our
health, and, consequently, regulatory authorities and the food/feed
industries spend large amounts on tests to ensure product safety. Long term exposure The true effects of
long term exposure to these toxins, continued Elliott, are far from clear and
may present significant health risks. He argues that many of
the currently used tests to determine the presence of toxins
are complicated, time-consuming and expensive, making it difficult to
intervene and take corrective actions during the food production process. “There is an urgent
need for replacement of current methods by validated screening tools that are
simple, inexpensive and rapid and are able to detect as many chemical
contaminants in parallel as possible,” said Elliott. He said that the
project partners aim to devise testing methods to screen for toxins in a wide
range of foods including meat, poultry, milk, seafood and cereals. Processing plant usage Elliott told
FoodProductionDaily.com that food manufacturers collaborating on the project
will be able to trial new detection tool prototypes in their processing
facilities during the lifetime of Conffidence,
following on from which the tests will be commercially available. The project, he
continued, will be focusing on the development of dipstick style tests,
similar to those used for pregnancy testing, as well as low-cost high-volume
laboratory based methods which will aim to replace bio assay animal-based
testing. The role of Queen’s
University in the scheme, according to Elliott, will be to develop tests
specifically aimed at detecting natural toxins in three categories: algae
derived phycotoxins; fungi derived mycotoxins; and plant alkaloids. He added that the
results of the project will feed into European legislation on toxins, as well
as informing international food surveys that will measure consumer exposure
to chemical contaminants. |
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