In an article published on January 18, 2017 the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) informed about its new database called OpenFoodTox which provides access to “information from over 1,650 EFSA scientific outputs about the toxicity of chemicals found in the food and feed chain.” EFSA scientist Jean-Lou Dorne, the toxicologist who led the development of the database, explained that OpenFoodTox compiles “the summary toxicological information used by EFSA in its risk assessments since 2002.” Jane Richardson, EFSA’s lead scientist on open data, added that the database contains “over 4,000 chemical substances, related EU legislation, the EFSA output identifying their critical effects and the safe levels set by EFSA scientific panels, such as tolerable or acceptable daily intakes.” The database covers chemicals “from all the different areas in which EFSA is responsible for chemical risk assessment: pesticides, food additives, flavourings and nutrient sources, feed additives and both natural and man-made contaminants,” Richardson explained. She further noted that OpenFoodTox is a “tool for scientists and decision-makers to search and access key toxicity information by substance” and is also “useful to civil society groups, food operators and members of the general public who want to gain more detailed insights on the assessment of the safety of chemicals in food.”
An editorial published in the EFSA Journal on January 18, 2017 describes how to use the database.
Read more
EFSA (January 18, 2017). “OpenFoodTox: EFSA’s new one-click tool for information on chemical hazards.”
EFSA (January 18, 2017). “Editorial: OpenFoodTox: EFSA’s open source toxicological database on chemical hazards in food and feed.” EFSA Journal 15(1):e15011.
