Ethical considerations in the food chain

There are numerous questions to be discussed which are linked to agricultural ethics. Raw material production, animal husbandry, food production, commercialization and consumption have several ethical aspects. Nevertheless, up to now we have not dealt with ethical issues related to agricultural and food sciences comprehensively and institutionally. The agricultural ethics must find its proper place in the system of modern ethics along with bioethics. environmental ethics, business ethics and engineering ethics. All of us are interested in foods, their availability, safety, nutritional status and wholesomeness. Our survival, health and welfare depend on the food supply, the production, processing and distribution of safe and healthy foods. In the developed world nowadays the question is not if we have enough to eat but more if the product is of high quality, safe and if it has been produced in a sustainable way while the environment and biodiversity was protected. Owing to the technical and technological accomplishments of the 20th century, the domination of man has immensely grown on the environment. The activities of the participants of the food chain effect not only the natural but the sociocultural environment as well. Has mankind utilised rationally the available natural resources serving as a substantial background for the agricultural production and in this way for its own supply? Does our quality of life improve with our growing wealth? Should we further burden the environment for our economic welfare? What will be the result of wasting the available and nonrenewable resources? Can we meet the increasing demand of consumer society? Must we satisfy these expectations? Who has the right to decide which technology we may apply to achieve these goals? Are we aware of all the possible consequences of the new technology made by us? (Bánáti, 2008). This paper reflects on some topics and questions of agricultural ethics such as global population growth, food security, rural-to-urban migration, ecological footprint, environmental concerns, consumption habits, food waste, biodiversity and new technologies which need more thorough discussion and debating in order to develop a long-term approach for a sustainable agriculture as the safeguard of future generations is needed. Of course, there are further ethical matters such as animal welfare, international trade or the question of bio fuels and brain drain which needs unfolding, however, this paper does not touch on these points

Mikotoxinok: kockázat-kommunikáció és a fogyasztók kockázat-érzékelése

Az EU 25 tagállamában egyidejűleg végzett felmérés szerint a fogyasztók meghatározónak tartják az élelmiszerekkel kapcsolatos kockázatokat más kockázatokkal összehasonlítva. A válaszadók 42%-a gondolja úgy, hogy az elfogyasztott élelmiszerek károsít(hat)ják az egészségüket. Magyarországon ez az arány nagyobb. Az európai fogyasztók jelentős része szerint az elmúlt 10 évben javult az élelmiszerbiztonság, de hasonló azoknak az aránya is, akik szerint nem változott vagy romlott a helyzet. A megkérdezett magyar fogyasztók 44%-a szerint inkább romlott az élelmiszerbiztonság, közel harmaduk szerint nem változott és csak ötödrészük szerint javult. A 25 EU tagállam átlagát tekintve elmondható, hogy a fogyasztók 38%-a javulónak ítéli meg az élelmiszerbiztonsági helyzetet, 29% szerint az nem változott az elmúlt 10 évben, 28% viszont úgy ítéli meg, hogy rosszabb lett. A magyar vizsgálatok során megkérdezett fogyasztók a megadott élelmiszerbiztonságot veszélyeztető tényezők közül a mikotoxinok esetleges jelenlétét az élelmiszerekben a negyedik legjelentősebb kockázatként értékelték. According to a survey carried out simultaneously in the 25 member states of the European Union, consumers consider risks factors related to foodstuffs more crucial than risks factors of other origin. In the EU, 42% of the respondents hold an opinion that foodstuffs consumed can be or are harmful to health. This ratio is higher in Hungary. Other European consumers have an opinion that food safety has been improved during the last decade however, at the same time, the ratio of those who judge this situation unchanged or worse was similar. 44% of the Hungarian consumers participating in this survey guess that food safety is slowly improving, approximately third of them thinks that it remained unchanged and only one fifth of the consumers considers that it is appropriate. If we look at EU as a whole with its 25 member states it can be stated that 38% of the consumers judge that food safety has been improved during the last 10 years, 29% of them think that it remained unchanged and 28% of the respondents reckon that the situation became worse. Consumers involved in the Hungarian survey consider that mycotoxins are the fourth risk factor, which threaten our health and endanger the safety of our foodstuffs

Viruses in food - in the light of the new coronavirus pandemic

In the relation to the 2019-2020 years pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2), this manuscript compiles a summary of the characteristics, mode of transmission and economic significance of human pathogen viruses related to food and food chain safety. In the initial period of the pandemic, it was uncertain whether SARS-CoV-2 could be spread through food. All major European and world food safety and epidemiological organizations (EFSA, WHO, CDC, FDA, etc.) claim that SARS-CoV-2 does not spread through food. However, we know that the virus is stable in aerosols and on certain surfaces for a few hours to days (up to 3 days). At the same time, the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on food, nutrition, health, the environment, and the entire food network are very diverse, which the author briefly reviews

Flexitarianism - the sustainable food consumption?

Flexitarians became the largest dietary group after omnivores, they play a significant role when it comes to effectively reducing the consumption of meat and other animal-derived products and thus in fighting climate change. Looking at all those, who actively reduce or fully exclude at least some animal products, including vegetarians, pescetarians and flexitarians, the group in total represents 30.8% of the population: 10 to 30 % of Europeans no longer consider themselves full meat-eaters anymore. However, there are substantial differences in the proportion of consumers considering themselves and/or categorised as flexitarian. Furthermore, the lack of a definition or at least a wide consensus on what to be considered a flexitarian diet makes it even more difficult to estimate the size of this consumer group. Why could the classification of flexitarianism still be useful and support a sustainable food consumption? Instead of following strict rules, strengthening consumers’ efforts to pursue a more sustainable diet according to their own intention (such as following a flexitarian eating pattern) may be more effective. Different food consumption patterns are described in this article from omnivores via reducetarians, flexitarians, vegetarians to vegans, where possible definitions and data are provided on the proportion of consumers following such diet patters

Veggie burgers, vegan meats? : the ruling of the European Parliament paved the way for meat substitutes with meat denominations

Our food system is no longer fit for the 21st century. The ways we grow food and process it can undermine our health, and are not fit to meet the needs of a growing global population. Cellular agriculture and plant-based alternatives are on the rise. The production of lab-grown meat is gaining momentum and attracts investors. Plant-based diets are gaining importance both for health-and environment-conscious consumers and from sustainability point of view. Demand for plant-based protein products is rapidly expanding beyond just burger analogues to new and novel products in several countries. Alternative meat products, such as ‘vegan burgers’, ‘soy meat’, ‘tofu sausage’ and others continue to evolve. There has been an intense dispute about names of meat substitute products in the European Union. The question was whether designations like “veggie burgers” or “soy sausages” were misleading. The European Parliament decided recently, that plant-based food products should be allowed to carry names which have traditionally been used for meat of animal origin. However, for the European Parliament, “meat” can be vegetable, milk cannot. Purely plant-based products cannot, in principle, be marketed with designations such as ‘milk’, ‘cream’, ‘butter’, ‘cheese’ or ‘yoghurt’, which are reserved by EU law for animal products. Hungarian, German, Spanish etc. consumers are traditionally meat-eaters. Eating meat and meat products is part of these countries’ culture. Taken the traditional approach of these consumers to food and the role of meat in their food and gastronomic culture, it is doubtful whether the recent decision of the European Parliament would not result in confusion once an „impossible burger” would be put on their plate

Terminology of plant-based meat alternatives : a survey among Hungarian food science, food technology and nutrition experts

In order to contribute to the correct information of consumers, we sought the most appropriate, objective and widely used name in the literature for foods that are similar to meat products and are made exclusively from plant-based ingredients, called plant-based meat alternatives or meat analogues. It is necessary to use terms that are not misleading, objective and informative, but at the same time easy to understand. A personal questionnaire survey was carried out with 58 native Hungarian-speaking food science, food technology and nutrition professionals to find the most professionally accepted, consensus-based Hungarian terms for the product group.Based on the results of our survey, we recommend the use of the terms substitute and substitute for (meat), as opposed to kind, analogue, alternative and imitation for (meat), which were generally rejected. The adjective structure vegetable is generally more accepted than the adjective structure vegetable

Risk perception of food additives in Hungary

On the basis of international surveys, Hungarian consumers stated serious aversion against food additives. The aim of our work was to get more detailed information about Hungarian consumers' risk perception with special regard to food additives. For this purpose a self-administrated questionnaire was developed. Four hundred respondents completed the questionnaires in 2009. The collected data were analysed by the SPSS 18.0 statistical software. Respondents expressed serious aversion against food additives amongst different risk factors. The responses on different statements highlighted that consumers did not have proper knowledge about food additives. In order to explore the directly not perceptible connections, factor analysis was done, but the "goodness-of-fit test" did not show significant fitting. So with the help of the factor analysis' results 5 principal components were created. According to the results it can be slated that - similarly to previous studies - Hungarian respondents felt food additives to be hazardous. On the basis of the principal components respondents who were not satisfied with the quantity of the information about food additives, had mixed and ambiguous knowledge about food additives. Thus Hungarian consumers need more authentic information to help their food choice to be more established and be more conscious

Risk perception of food additives in Hungary

On the basis of international surveys, Hungarian consumers stated serious aversion against food additives. The aim of our work was to get more detailed information about Hungarian consumers' risk perception with special regard to food additives. For this purpose a self-administrated questionnaire was developed. Four hundred respondents completed the questionnaires in 2009. The collected data were analysed by the SPSS 18.0 statistical software. Respondents expressed serious aversion against food additives amongst different risk factors. The responses on different statements highlighted that consumers did not have proper knowledge about food additives. In order to explore the directly not perceptible connections, factor analysis was done, but the "goodness-of-fit test" did not show significant fitting. So with the help of the factor analysis' results 5 principal components were created. According to the results it can be stated that - similarly to previous studies - Hungarian respondents felt food additives to be hazardous. On the basis of the principal components respondents who were not satisfied with the quantity of the information about food additives, had mixed and ambiguous knowledge about food additives. Thus Hungarian consumers need more authentic information to help their food choice to be more established and be more conscious

Vega hamburgerek, vegán húsok? : az Európai Parlament döntése a növényi alapú húspótló élelmiszerek elnevezéséről

A jelenlegi élelmiszer-ellátó rendszer nem felel meg a XXI. század követelményeinek. Az egészségünket veszélyeztetheti az a mód, ahogyan termeljük és feldolgozzuk az élelmiszereket, sőt a világ növekvő népességét sem tudjuk így ellátni. A laboratóriumban előállított hús és a növényi alapú húshelyettesítők egyre népszerűbbek. A Petri-csészében növekvő hússzövet egyre több befektető érdeklődését felkeltette. A növényi alapú étrend egyre fontosabbá válik mind az egészségtudatos, mind pedig a környezettudatos fogyasztók számára, sőt hozzájárul a fenntarthatósághoz. Számos országban gyorsan növekszik a növényi alapú fehérjék iránti igény, nemcsak hamburger alternatívák, hanem egyéb új, innovatív termékek formájában is. Sorra jelennek meg alternatív hús termékek, például a ’vegán burgerek’, a ’szója steak’, a ’tofu kolbász’ és hasonlók. Az Európai Unióban heves vita bontakozott ki a hús helyettesítő termékek elnevezését illetően. Kérdésessé vált, hogy az olyan elnevezések, mint ’vegetariánus hamburger’ vagy ’szója kolbász’ nem tévesztik-e meg a fogyasztót. Az Európai Parlament a közelmúltban úgy döntött, hogy a ’hús’ lehet növényi alapú, ugyanakkor csak az állati eredetű tejet szabad tejnek nevezni. A növényi alapú termékeket nem szabad tejnek, tejszínnek, vajnak, sajtnak vagy joghurtnak nevezni, mert a jogszabályok szerint azok csak állati eredetű élelmiszerek elnevezései lehetnek. A magyar, német, spanyol és más nemzetek hagyományosan sok(féle) húst fogyasztanak. A húsok, húskészítmények fogyasztása része ezen népek kultúrájának; hagyományosan nagyra értékelik a húsok szerepét. Kérdéses, hogy az EP mostani döntése vajon nem vált-e ki értetlenséget és ellenállást, amint egy ’lehetetlen növényi hamburger’ kerül az asztalukra