Food News

The Catalan Food Safety Agency`s (ACSA) report 'The Future of Food Safety in Catalonia'. Trends and Risk Scenarios for the Next 10 Years', analyses how these factors could transform food safety risks through to 2036.

One of the main challenges will be shifting the focus from controlling known hazards to monitoring emerging risks more proactively.

Risks that could become increasingly relevant include:

• Climate change: rising temperatures and extreme weather events could favour the spread of pathogenic microorganisms and alter the occurrence of mycotoxins and other naturally occurring contaminants.
• Emerging contaminants: There will be an increasing need to strengthen the monitoring of perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), pesticides, metals, mineral hydrocarbons, plasticisers and process contaminants using increasingly sensitive, multi-residue analytical methods.
• New foods and protein sources, such as insects, algae, new plant-based proteins and foods produced using innovative technologies, may introduce new hazards, allergens or contaminants while increasing the need for molecular identification.
• Circular economy and water reuse: The use of reclaimed water and by-products may create new exposure pathways for microbiological and chemical contaminants.
• Antimicrobial resistance will remain a priority risk, requiring a One Health approach that integrates surveillance across the human, animal and environmental sectors.

This new scenario requires the food industry to anticipate risks by strengthening control over raw materials, processes and finished products. To this end, analytical strategies adapted to new hazards and capable of detecting contaminants and microorganisms at low levels will become increasingly important.

The laboratory therefore becomes a strategic partner for the food industry, providing the necessary information to identify emerging risks, ensure product safety, and enable a rapid response to new scenarios.

YOUR PLUS: Thanks to our broad technological capabilities, European network of specialised laboratories and continuous adaptation of methods and services to the evolving food safety risk landscape, our laboratories are prepared to meet these new analytical challenges. We provide increasingly sensitive, comprehensive and industry-focused analytical solutions. This enables AGROLAB to transform analytical monitoring into a tool for anticipating and preventing risk.

Author: Dr Isabel Gómez, AGROLAB Iberica