Tiny technology

Nanotechnology has been around for years now, but as its potential applications become of more interest to the food industry, questions inevitably arise as to its safety. NGF explores the hopes and hazards of this small-scale science.

When new technologies are introduced, a certain amount of scepticism and apprehension is to be anticipated, if only for the fact that people are unsure of what to expect. Food, of course, is one area where people are particularly sensitive to change and advances are often met with resilience and even hostility, particularly when it comes to the scientific manipulation of food. This may be due to the fact that for most people, food is not seen in purely functional terms; rather, it is part of a much bigger social and psychological picture that includes attitudes to health, the environment, and science.

It comes as no surprise then to see that the developments in nanotechnology in the food industry are eliciting concerns from the public. However, as we have learnt from past experiences, many new technologies - once they overcome the fear factor - can offer consumers a number of benefits. The mandatory pasteurisation of milk was fiercely resisted in the 1930s and 1940s when it was introduced, despite the fact that it prevented approximately 2500 deaths from bovine tuberculosis a year in the United Kingdom.

Steffi Friedrichs is Director General of the Nanotechnology Industries Association and she believes that public perception is without a doubt one of the main hurdles to further development of nanotechnologies in the food industry. "Consumer perception is that if it is called technology it's something to do with it being new and artificial and therefore it has to be bad.

"In the food area in particular, because people are ingesting it, the use of words that imply innovation are not normally what consumers would associate with the current drive for nostalgic, natural and healthy eating. When you're saying that vegetables are much more healthy than processed foods, and at the same time you want consumers to buy something that has been enhanced by technology, there is a contradiction in terms," says Friedrichs.

However, if the public had a better understanding of what nanotechnology actually is and its potential benefits, their perception of it may likely be a little less negative. After all, without a positive reception from the public, the future of nanotechnology within the food sector is anything but certain. Until now though, this information has not really been communicated with the public and industry has erred on the side of caution regarding the amounts of information being released.

In short, nanotechnology is the study of the controlling of matter on an atomic and molecular scale. Within this size-range, materials can exhibit new and unusual properties, such as altered chemical reactivity, or changed electronic, optical or magnetic behaviour. Such materials therefore have applications in many sectors, ranging from healthcare to construction and electronics. In the food sector, there are various possible applications for nanotechnology that would have wide-ranging benefits for both consumers and industry.

Beate Kettlitz, Director of Food Policy, Science and R&D at the Confederation of Food and Drink Industries of the EU, says: "Food packaging products that are currently under development, such as nanosensors in plastic packaging, for example, can detect gases given off by food when it spoils and the packaging itself changes colour to alert you that food has gone bad.

"Plastic films are being developed that will allow the food to stay fresher longer. These films are packed with silicate nanoparticles to reduce the flow of oxygen into the package and the moisture that leaks out of the package," says Kettlitz.

"Nanoparticles are also being used to deliver vitamins or other nutrients in food and beverages without affecting the taste or appearance. Research is also being conducted to develop nano-capsules containing nutrients that would be released when nanosensors detect a deficiency in your body. Basically this research could result in a super vitamin storage system in your body that gives you just what you need, when you need it," she explains.

Another potential use includes the development anti-microbial and anti-stick surfaces for use in food manufacturing processes, which would reduce the tendency for machinery to clog, and as a result, the amount of downtime required for cleaning. The agricultural sector could also benefit from the development of nanotechnology in applications such as novel delivery systems for the more effective use of pesticides and the development of slow-release fertilizers.

Currently, it is difficult to gauge precisely the extent to which nanotechnologies are being used in the food sector. According to the Food Standards Agency (FSA), "it is not possible to provide a definitive list of nanofoods and nanoscale food contact materials on the EU market, primarily because of the absence of an EU-wide register or inventory".

The UK House of Lords Science and Technology Committee recommended in their 1st Report of Session 2009-10 entitled Nanotechnologies and Food that the FSA develop a confidential database of information on nanomaterials in development in the food sector to assist in the development of appropriate risk assessment procedures.

Kettlitz stresses that no engineered nanomaterials are currently being used by CIAA members in Europe, to the best of her knowledge. She also emphasizes the need to distinguish between the natural occurrence of nanoparticles (such as in protein, fat or sugar molecules), their presence through conventional processing techniques ( such as milling, homogenizing and emulsifying) and where particle size has been deliberately engineered to behave differently.

Companies may not actually be putting nanomaterials into food on the European market at the moment but this may well change in coming years as the technology develops. Food packaging involving the use of nanomaterials is the application that will most likely appear first in the mass market. But professionals working in the field anticipate the availability of healthier food as a result of the application of nanotechnologies in the relatively near future.

In 2007, Cientifica produced a report in which it predicted that the value of products containing nanotechnologies in the food sector worldwide would grow from $410 million in 2006 to $5.8 billion in 2012, a growth of 1400 percent within six years. Estimates also suggest that 400 companies worldwide are currently involved in research into the applications of nanotechnologies in food or food packaging.

However, until more is known on the issue of nanotechnology and its uses in the food industry, particularly with regards to the potential health and safety risks, widespread commercialisation of such products is unlikely. Concerns have arisen regarding the novel properties of nanomaterials and how such materials may react with the body following ingestion.

The small size of nanomaterials may be a cause for concern in itself, irrespective of any novel properties, due to their ability to breach cellular barriers. The exceptional mobility of nanomaterials, both inside and outside cells, is a particular worry for the scientific community as it presents the possibility for nanomaterials to accumulate in certain organs. Nanomaterials also have a large surface area to mass ratio, which tends to make them very reactive and can be harmful.

However, there are also numerous gaps in our knowledge of the risks associated with the use of nanomaterials. Further research is said to be needed in the following areas: characterization and detection of nanomaterials; behaviour of nanomaterials in the gut; effects on the human foetus; food specific research; subsequent movement of nanomaterials within the body; chronic effects; and development of validated toxicological tests.

In order to fill these knowledge gaps Friedrichs believes that a greater degree of co-operation is required. "Obviously there is a lot of money going into safety research now, but what we would like to see is a strengthened and consolidated safety approach rather than piecemeal monies here and there.

"Because of the uncertainties that are unfolding with regard to what we need to know, nanotechnologies and nanomaterials are something that could only be dealt with on a global scale. So we are calling for a consolidated approach at OECD level. The OECD is in fact now running a project where it is looking into 40 different nanomaterials that have been identified as being of specific interest," says Friedrichs. And she is not alone in taking this view. Support for increased international cooperation on information-sharing and driving forward a shared research agenda appears strong.

However, simply filling the knowledge gaps is not sufficient to ensure safety and regulation clearly plays a role here too. Until now, regulatory efforts in Europe have concentrated on applying existing regulations to nanotechnologies and amending them as necessary. Questions have therefore arisen as to whether existing regulation is in fact adequate enough to protect consumers from the potential risks of nanotechnologies.

Kettlitz has total faith in the system. "Engineered nanomaterials require prior approval in the EU before they can be used. We trust that EFSA will evaluate potential applications and address any potential risk that could occur due to new properties," she says. "The regulatory framework is appropriate both with EFSA and well-experienced risk assessors and we all agree that Europe has one of the strictest food regulation systems in place in the world."

Friedrichs tends to agree: "The regulation in Europe at the moment is enough to protect the consumer from any health and safety risks with regard to nanotechnology because it guarantees the safety of the product. There might need to be additional guidelines as to how that regulation is implemented, but the regulation as such is sufficient."

However, as the technology advances, many are asking whether current regulation will be able to adequately control the next generation nanotechnologies and nanomaterials. Whilst some experts believe that general legislation provides an adequate safety net for consumers, others disagree saying that it may well prevent companies from knowingly placing unsafe foods on the market, but at the same time it offers no protection in situations where companies are not aware that their product may be unsafe.

In response to these concerns, the House of Lords Science and Technology Committee has recommended that the FSA formally review the suitability of legislation every three years to ensure that regulatory oversight and risk assessment keeps pace with developments in this technology.

However, even if the there were no doubts regarding the suitability of legislation, the issue of enforceability is still cause for concern. It is up to individual Member States to ensure that legislation in enforced and there are two major issues of concern that have been raised in this area. Firstly, there is the issue of risk assessment and secondly that of imports and the availability of products over the internet.

The potential long-term effects of any new technology can be difficult to assess and it is therefore important that no products reach the market before undergoing thorough risk assessments by the relevant authority, which is usually EFSA. In order to provide consumers with the greatest security and ensure that products can be fully safety
assessed, risk assessments must be carried out on a case-by-case basis and products assessed on their own merits.

Regarding imports, the Member States of the EU have a legal duty to ensure that all food products brought into the European meet the necessary food safety requirements. However, this system is not without its weaknesses, especially when it comes to the internet, which is far harder to monitor and regulate. Furthermore, although local authorities have the power to check any food products that arrive at European ports, they do not currently have the tools to check for nanomaterials in imported foods.

This situation makes it clear that any regulations governing these technologies really need to be developed in a harmonized manner due to the fact that the resulting regulatory system will undeniably affect global food trade. The obvious body for ensuring this is the Codex Alimentarius, which held an expert consultation on the matter in June 2009. Other international bodies that may well play a role are the United Nations Environmental Programme and the WHO.

A number of experts have also raised the issue of a register of applications of nanotechnology in the food sector, which could be used as an information tool to help clarify the state of the market. Amongst academic circles this idea has garnered a fair amount of support, whilst industry has already proven to be less than enthusiastic about the proposal. The idea of forcing companies to disclose commercially sensitive information about their research could have a negative effect on R&D and many now fear a migration of nanotech research to other countries where no such obligation exists.

The issue of nanotechnology in the food industry is clearly a complex one fraught with hazards. But at the same time it holds great hope for the future, depending on how things play out. Time will tell what direction it will take.

Nanoscience is the science of the very small. A nanometre (nm) is one thousand millionth of a metre. A sheet of paper is about 100,000 nm thick, a red blood cell is about 7,000 nm in diameter and an atom of gold is about 1⁄3 nm wide. Three hundred million nanoparticles, each 100 nm wide, could fit on to the head of a single pin.

Source: House of Lords January 2010 report Nanotechnologies and Food

The concept of nanotechnology was first envisaged by Professor Richard P Feynman, winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics 1965, in his 1959 lecture There’s Plenty of Room at the Bottom in which he explored the possibility of arranging matter at the atomic level. The term ‘nanotechnology’ was not coined however until 1974, when Professor Norio Taniguchi of Tokyo Science University used it to refer to the ability to engineer materials precisely at the nanoscale.

Source: House of Lords January 2010 report Nanotechnologies and Food

Current food sector legislation

Novel Foods Regulation
Regulation EC/258/97 applies to novel food and food ingredients. Novel foods are defined as foods and food ingredients that have not been used for human consumption to a significant degree in the European Community before 15 May 1997 and the Regulation subjects all novel foods and foods manufactured using novel processes to a mandatory pre-market approval system.

In January 2008, the European Commission published a proposal to revise and update the Novel Foods Regulation. Various proposals have been discussed by the Commission, Parliament and Council. (The draft regulation is currently going through the co-decision procedure. A definition of nanomaterials has been introduced at the request of the European Parliament, and supported by the Council. Discussions are continuing on how to bring nanotechnologies specifically into the revised regulation.


Food additives
Food additives are regulated under Directive 89/107/EC and associated legislation. The Directive is based on the principle that only additives which are explicitly authorised may be used in food.

From early 2010, a list of approved additives, including vitamins and minerals, will come into force. Inclusion of additives on the list will be decided by the Commission on the basis of an Opinion from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). Those included will often have limits set on their use, for example restrictions on the quantities permitted for use. The new regulations also specify that where the starting material used, or the process by which an additive is produced, is significantly different (for example, through a change in particle size), it must go through a fresh authorisation process, including a new safety evaluation.

Food contact materials
Regulation EC/1935/2004 covers all materials which are intended to come into contact with foodstuffs, either directly or indirectly. The Commission or Member States may request the EFSA to conduct a safety evaluation of any substance or compound used in the manufacture of a food contact material. Certain materials, including plastic, are subject to additional measures. The Commission has proposed updating the Regulation governing food contact plastics to specify that a deliberately altered particle size should not be used, even behind a migration barrier, without specific authorisation.

Food supplements
Food supplements are regulated under Directive 2002/46/EC, which states that only vitamins and minerals on an approved list may be used as food supplements. New substances may be considered for inclusion on the list, but only after a safety assessment by EFSA.

Source: House of Lords January 2010 report Nanotechnologies and Food