Risk assessment by the scientific committee of the Belgian Federal Agency for the Safety of the food chain

peer reviewe

Sulfation mechanism and catalytic behavior of manganese oxide in the oxidation of methanethiol

This work studies the behavior of a manganese dioxide catalyst during the total oxidation of methanethiol. Modifications of the working gamma-MnO2 catalyst were characterized by XPS, XRD, DRIFTS, and potentiometric measurements after reactions at different durations and at different temperatures. At temperatures below 200 degreesC, sulfur adsorbs on gamma-MnO2 in the form of sulfate species and poisons CH3SH adsorption sites. Accordingly, the methanethiol conversion is strongly inhibited. At higher temperatures (260-280 degreesC), gamma-MnO2 is strongly reduced and is converted to a moderately active manganese sulfate phase while the reaction proceeds. This contribution also shows that the activity and selectivity of the manganese sulfate phase formed in situ at high temperature are comparable to those of a commercial manganese sulfate. The variation of the reaction temperature between 280 and 150 degreesC controls the reversible hydration/dehydration of the manganese sulfate phase and its associated activation/deactivation. This important change in activity is accompanied by a change in the main byproduct formation. At 280 degreesC, the dehydrated manganese sulfate phase is fairly active and favors the production of dimethyl disulfide. On the contrary, the hydrated phase that exists only in the lower-temperature region is much more reactive and promotes the production of methanol

Food Additives & Contaminants: Part A Risk ranking priority of carcinogenic and/or genotoxic environmental contaminants in food in Belgium Risk ranking priority of carcinogenic and/or genotoxic environmental contaminants in food in Belgium

This paper focuses on the risks of environmental carcinogenic and/or genotoxic contaminants in food. It describes, for each contaminant studied, the carcinogenicity and genotoxicity, the toxicological reference values, the exposure and the risk characterisation. The compounds studied were classified into 3 categories based on a risk assessment. Effects others than carcinogenicity and/or genotoxicity (e.g. endocrine disruption activity) were also taken into account for the classification. Given the low margin of exposure values for arsenic and lead, these two compounds are classified as priority 1 (high concern) for food safety and as a first priority to take actions to reduce exposure. Cadmium, methylmercury, dioxins and dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), non-dioxin-like PCB and toxaphene are classified as priority 2 (medium concern). Polybrominated biphenyls, chlordane, heptachlor, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) and metabolites, hexachlorobenzene, hexachlorocyclohexane (lindane included), polychlorophenols and their salts are classified as priority 3 (low concern)

Dietary cadmium intake by the Belgian adult population.

&lt;p&gt;The aim of this study was to estimate the dietary cadmium (Cd) intake of the Belgian adult population, to compare this dietary Cd exposure to the tolerable weekly intake (TWI) recently established by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and to determine the major food groups that contribute to dietary Cd exposure in Belgium. Food consumption data were derived from the 2004 Belgian food consumption survey (two 24 h recalls, 3083 participants). Cadmium concentrations in food items (n = 4000) were gathered from the control program of the Belgian Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain for the period 2006-2008. Dietary intake per individual was calculated from consumption data and median Cd concentrations. The population mean, median and 95th percentile of the dietary intake values were 0.98, 0.85 and 2.02 &amp;micro;g kg⁻&amp;sup1; body weight per week respectively. Two percent of the Belgian adult population has a dietary Cd intake above the recent TWI of 2.5 &amp;micro;g kg⁻&amp;sup1; body weight established by EFSA in 2009. Cereal products and potatoes contribute for more than 60% to Cd intake.&lt;/p&gt;</p