Eoin Ryan
Question:608 Mr. Eoin Ryan asked the Minister for Health and Children if the food safety authorities have issued any comments on the safety of acrylamide in food. [1029/03]
Written Answers. - Food Safety.
In April 2002, following the release by the Swedish National Food Administration of the initial information concerning the formation of acrylamide during the cooking of starch-based foods, the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) issued an information note to food safety enforcement officers. The note provided details of the properties of acrylamide and gave advice on reducing exposure to acrylamide through healthy eating. The advice given was that consumers could minimise the risk to their health by maintaining a well-balanced diet and avoiding large quantities of fried foods such as chips and potato crisps. This information was also made available on the FSAI website, together with answers to a series of questions likely to be of most concern to consumers.
The information was updated in June 2002 to provide an overview of the international scientific discussions, which had taken place on the issue since April 2002. These included the views of the EU Scientific Committee for Food and the results of the World Health Organisation's consultation with scientific experts on the matter. Information on acrylamide has also been provided on two occasions in the FSAI newsletter.
In November 2002 the FSAI organised a seminar on acrylamide in food, attended by representatives of the Irish food industry and enforcement officers, at which international experts spoke on the matter. A press release was issued at that time. The FSAI has also commented on the safety of acrylamide in food in a number of media interviews and has provided advice directly to callers to its help line.
The authority will continue to monitor scientific developments related to acrylamide in food and will provide information on these developments at regular intervals during 2003. In this regard the Public Analyst Laboratories, at the request of the FSAI, have developed methodologies for the determination of acrylamide in food and are currently surveying foods on the Irish market for acrylamide content.
It should also be noted that the Food Safety Promotion Board, one of the North-South implementation bodies established under the British-Irish Agreement Act 1999, is sponsoring a research project based in Queens University Belfast, which involves the design of a rapid and accurate test for acrylamide. It is hoped over the next few years to design and produce two antibody-based tests for acrylamide that can be used over a wide range of foods and in every human blood type, giving accurate and rapid results. It is hoped that these tests will be made available worldwide and will aid the understanding of acrylamide formation in food and its impact on human health.