 | This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations .(January 2016) |
The Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR) is one of the independent scientific committees managed by the Directorate-General for Health and Consumer Protection of the European Commission, which provide scientific advice to the Commission on issues related to consumer products.
The SCENIHR provides scientific opinions on questions concerning emerging or newly identified risks on non-food products, as well as on broad, complex or multidisciplinary issues requiring a comprehensive assessment of risks to consumer safety or public health not covered by other risk assessment bodies.
Examples of areas of activity include new technologies (such as nanotechnologies), medical devices, antimicrobial resistance, physical risks (such as noise and electromagnetic fields), and methodologies of risk assessment.
SCENIHR's scientific advisory procedures are based on the principles of scientific excellence, independence and transparency.
The Directorate-General for Health and Consumer Protection also manages two other independent Scientific Committees on non-food products:
For questions concerning the safety of food products, the European Commission consults the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).
A biocide is defined in the European legislation as a chemical substance or microorganism intended to destroy, deter, render harmless, or exert a controlling effect on any harmful organism. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) uses a slightly different definition for biocides as "a diverse group of poisonous substances including preservatives, insecticides, disinfectants, and pesticides used for the control of organisms that are harmful to human or animal health or that cause damage to natural or manufactured products". When compared, the two definitions roughly imply the same, although the US EPA definition includes plant protection products and some veterinary medicines.
The minister of health is the minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who is responsible for overseeing health-focused government agencies including Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada, as well as enforcing the Canada Health Act, the law governing Canada's universal health care system. The current minister is Jean-Yves Duclos.
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) is an agency of the European Union (EU) in charge of the evaluation and supervision of medicinal products. Prior to 2004, it was known as the European Agency for the Evaluation of Medicinal Products or European Medicines Evaluation Agency (EMEA).
The Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) is a committee of the European Parliament. It has 81 full members and is currently chaired by Pascal Canfin.
The Joint Research Centre (JRC) is the European Commission's science and knowledge service which employs scientists to carry out research in order to provide independent scientific advice and support to EU policy. The JRC is a Directorate-General of the European Commission under the responsibility of Mariya Gabriel, European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth. The current Director-General of the JRC is Stephen Quest, who took office on 01/05/2020, succeeding Vladimír Šucha. Its Board of Governors assists and advises the Director-General on matters relating to the role and the scientific, technical and financial management of the JRC.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is the agency of the European Union (EU) that provides independent scientific advice and communicates on existing and emerging risks associated with the food chain. EFSA was established in February 2002, is based in Parma, Italy, and for 2021 it has a budget of €118.6 million, and a total staff of 542.
A food safety agency or food administration is a kind of agency found in various countries and international organizations with responsibilities related to food, primarily with ensuring the safety of food sold or distributed to the population, and with ensuring that food sellers inform the population of the origins and health qualities and risks associated with food being sold.
The European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines & HealthCare (EDQM) is a Directorate of the Council of Europe that traces its origins and statutes to the Convention on the Elaboration of a European Pharmacopoeia.
The Beef Hormone Dispute is one of the most intractable agricultural controversies since the establishment of the World Trade Organization (WTO).
The Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS) is one of the independent scientific committees managed by the Directorate-General for Health and Consumer Protection of the European Commission, which provide scientific advice to the Commission on issues related to non-food issues. It is the successor to both the Scientific Committee on Consumer Products (SCCP) and the Scientific Committee on Cosmetic Products and Non-Food Products (SCCNFP).
The Scientific Committee on Health and Environmental Risks (SCHER) is one of the independent scientific committees managed by the Directorate-General for Health and Consumer Protection of the European Commission, which provide scientific advice to the Commission on issues related to consumer products.
Because of the ongoing controversy on the implications of nanotechnology, there is significant debate concerning whether nanotechnology or nanotechnology-based products merit special government regulation. This mainly relates to when to assess new substances prior to their release into the market, community and environment.
The Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety, until 2014 known as the Directorate-General for Health and Consumers, is a Directorate-General of the European Commission. The DG is responsible for the implementation of European Union laws on food safety and health. It is headed by European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety Stella Kyriakides and Director-General Sandra Gallina.
The Non-GMO Project is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization focusing on genetically modified organisms. The organization began as an initiative of independent natural foods retailers in the U.S. and Canada, with the stated aim to label products produced in compliance with their Non-GMO Project Standard, which aims to prevent genetically modified foodstuffs from being present in retail food products. The organization is headquartered in Bellingham, Washington. The Non-GMO label began use in 2012 with Numi Organic Tea products.
Genetically modified canola is a genetically modified crop. The first strain, Roundup Ready canola, was developed by Monsanto for tolerance to glyphosate, the active ingredient in the commonly used herbicide Roundup.
The regulation of genetic engineering varies widely by country. Countries such as the United States, Canada, Lebanon and Egypt use substantial equivalence as the starting point when assessing safety, while many countries such as those in the European Union, Brazil and China authorize GMO cultivation on a case-by-case basis. Many countries allow the import of GM food with authorization, but either do not allow its cultivation or have provisions for cultivation, but no GM products are yet produced. Most countries that do not allow for GMO cultivation do permit research. Most (85%) of the world's GMO crops are grown in the Americas. One of the key issues concerning regulators is whether GM products should be labeled. Labeling of GMO products in the marketplace is required in 64 countries. Labeling can be mandatory up to a threshold GM content level or voluntary. A study investigating voluntary labeling in South Africa found that 31% of products labeled as GMO-free had a GM content above 1.0%. In Canada and the USA labeling of GM food is voluntary, while in Europe all food or feed which contains greater than 0.9% of approved GMOs must be labelled.
The Norwegian Scientific Committee for Food and Environment (VKM),, conducts open, independent, scientific risk assessments regarding safe food, food production and the environment upon request of the Norwegian Food Safety Authority and the Norwegian Environment Agency. VKM also carries out risk assessments on animal health, plant health, animal welfare and cosmetics for the Norwegian Food Safety Authority, and on microbiological products and alien organisms and trade in endangered species (CITES) upon request from the Norwegian Environment Agency. In addition, the Committee makes environmental risk assessments of genetically modified organisms for the Norwegian Environment Agency. The assessments are used as a basis for knowledge for the various ministries in Norway. The assessments also provide a basis for knowledge which the Norwegian Food Safety Authority uses to provide advice and determine regulations. The committee may raise matters on its own initiative. Risk assessments are made on an independent basis in accordance with internationally established methods. The scientific committee itself is to carry out risk assessments on their own initiative. The risk assessments are used by the Norwegian Food Safety Authority and the Norwegian Environment Agency when giving advice to Norwegian ministries, and when the Norwegian Food Safety Authority is developing new laws and regulations.
The German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, abbreviated BfR, is a body under public law of the German federal government with full legal capacity. The institute comes under the portfolio of the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture and has the task of providing scientific advice to the federal government on issues relating to food safety, product safety, chemical safety, contaminants in the food chain, animal protection and consumer health protection. Further technical supervision is performed by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety and the Federal Ministry of Transport.
A pesticide, also called Plant Protection Product (PPP), which is a term used in regulatory documents, consists of several different components. The active ingredient in a pesticide is called “active substance” and these active substances either consist of chemicals or micro-organisms. The aims of these active substances are to specifically take action against organisms that are harmful to plants. In other words, active substances are the active components against pests and plant diseases.
The Spanish Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition (AESAN) is a regulatory agency of the Government of Spain responsible for promoting food safety and for providing guarantees and objective information to consumers and economic agents of the Spanish agrifood industry.
 | This article about the European Union is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |