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A Specific Support Action to Investigate the Risk Benefit Analysis for Foods

General description
The project follows up the EC FUFOSE, PASSCLAIM and FOSIE projects. The outcome of FOSIE was a risk assessment framework for chemicals in food; FUFOSE and PASSCLAIM specifically focused on benefit assessment. A European network will be set up involving expertise in risk assessment, nutrition, and risk/benefit analysis with representatives from academia, regulatory agencies and the food industry. A methodology group will review and assemble the methodologies available; collaborate with 3 case study groups to integrate the methodological findings in their area and develop a framework applicable to a wide range of foods and food compounds. Specific measures will be taken to ensure dissemination and provide education to stakeholders and other interested parties.
 
The project’s work packages are closely interconnected. WP1 deals with the co-ordination of the project and is consequently responsible for all the other work packages. WP 2 will represent the Steering Committee to manage the project. WP3 will develop a methodology to measure benefits and risks related to food. WP3 will collect existing methods, review applicability to WPs and will provide the draft framework for use in WPs 4-6. WPs 4-6 will investigate risk benefit analyses for the following food groups: fish and soy (natural foods); folic acid and macronutrient replacers (dietary interventions); heat processed compounds. A total of 3 groups will review the literature to undertake a risk analysis, a benefit assessment, an exposure evaluation and quantitative net health impact assessment on selected cases. Results will be shared in workshops following each step. Publications are planned after each of these steps: methodological review, 3 worked examples and the proposed framework. WP7 will form a consensus based on the results of WPs 3-6. WP8, which will disseminate the results of the project and provide education to relevant stakeholders, requires input from WP2-WP6. 
 
Work Package 3 (Methodologies for the Risk Benefits Analysis in Foods and Food Compounds). This work package will bring together methodologies from several disciplines relevant to the evaluation of risks and benefits in food. Much of the primary data required for this evaluation will exist in a form that may be only partially useful and these will require remodelling so as to derive better estimates of risks and benefits. The reprocessing of available data to achieve a standard representation of inputs and outputs (costs and consequences) will be required which in turn will necessitate the formulation of agreed guidelines that are common to all constituent elements of the project. WP3 will also provide guidance for WP8 by identifying key messages that need to be further communicated to stakeholders and risk managers. Apart from Quality Adjusted Life Year (QALY) type of measurements, dietary reference standards will also be used for the assessmentof risk of inadequate or excessive intake of micronutrients and will be incorporated into a quality analysis framework. There are difficulties in estimating the prevalence of both inadequate and excessive intake and there is currently no adequate system for determining excessive intake. 


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