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Assessment of risks related to the presence of contaminants in food: lessons from experience and a proposal for a methodological tool Volume 14, issue 1, January-February 2015

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ANSES - Agence nationale de sécurité sanitaire de l’alimentation, de l’environnement et du travail
14, rue Pierre et Marie Curie
94701 Maisons Alfort-cedex
France
* Tirés à part

Anses performs risk assessments related to the presence of contaminants in food. Because of the diversity of the contaminants studied and the contexts of contamination, as well as the variability of available data, each assessment may appear unique. Nonetheless, this article, based on analysis of experience with the evaluations of food contaminants published by Anses, presents a formal conceptual approach to risk assessments and a methodological tool to help risk assessors to conduct them. The successful validation of this conceptual tool on previously published opinions encourages us to apply this approach to upcoming risk assessments as well. The tool adopts a traditional approach while concentrating on the essential elements of health risk assessment (key stages, situation analyses, etc.). It will improve the methodological consistency and transparency of the risk assessments of food contaminants.