The most important emerging issues in food and agriculture and their implications for food safety are brought into focus by the FAO 2022 report‘Thinking about the future of food safety – A foresight report‘. From new foods, such as edible insects, to new technologies, such as blockchain, every advance must be managed with a view to ensuring food safety and food security, is the premise. (1)
According to the United Nations, more than 800 million people suffer from hunger and most of them live in developing countries. In addition, 151 million children under the age of 5 suffer from stunting (reduced height for their age), 51 million suffer from low weight for their height, and 38 million are overweight. This points to the need to change global agrifood systems so as to achieve sustainable development, where food security is a key part.
The FAO report covers eight broad categories of drivers and trends: climate change, new food sources and production systems, growing number of farms and gardens in our cities, changing consumer behavior, circular economy, microbiome science, technological and scientific innovation, and food fraud.
1) Climate change
Climate change has impacted 80 percent of the earth’s surface. Among the main contributors to the rise in temperature is methane, a gas produced in large quantities by animal husbandry. In 2021, by signing the Global Methan Pledge 105 countries pledged to reduce methane emissions and invest in technologies to measure emissions more effectively.
Combating food waste is also important in reducing the effects of climate change. (2) According to a 2019 FAO report, 14 percent of the food produced is disposed of before it even reaches the large-scale retail trade due to contamination problems. One of the strategies to reduce food waste is to give clear and correct information to consumers about the expiration date as stated in EFSA guidelines (3).
The increase in temperature has direct consequences for foodsecurity and food safety. In fact, the reduction of available water decreases food availability and increases the risk of biological contamination (4).
Climate change has an impact on global food systems that implies a unified response to the growing challenges, with an integrated, cross-cutting approach that includes all disciplines involved in agri-food systems.
2) Consumer Behavior/Preferences.
Consumption habits have changed, mainly as a result of Internet access and especially since the pandemic. Many consumers are looking for healthy, sustainable products that ensure social responsibility, but they are also influenced by fads.
Online resources can be a very useful tool to help consumers make more informed choices by learning how to read labeling correctly and learning more about production processes. However, they can also convey incorrect or false information capable of leading to improper diets, with the resulting health problems caused by nutrient insufficiency or excess. One example comes from trends in consumption of nutraceuticals, which consumers seek to improve their health, and for many of which the full health risks have not yet been assessed (5). In this era, all it takes is for an influencer to talk about a “wonderful new diet” to make billions of people around the world change their consumption habits, leading to the purchase of foods that can cause various health harms and are not sustainable. (6, 7)
Another problem that needs to be solved is the responsibility of intermediaries in the food system, for example in food ecommerce web platforms.
Extensive resources and collaboration among all actors in the food supply chain, appropriate regulatory frameworks, effective communication strategies are required: promoting media literacy, providing evidence-based knowledge appropriately, guiding viewers to reliable sources.
3) New food sources and food production systems.
To meet the growing demand for food, by the year 2050 global production is expected to increase by 70 percent over 2009 production (FAO, 2009).
Agriculture is not enough to meet this demand because of the need for water and land. It is therefore essential to include new food sources.
3.1) Edible insects, algae and jellyfish
The consumption of insects, algae and jellyfish, traditional in several countries, is also emerging in Europe for its nutritional and sustainability benefits. As of 2021, EFSA has given the green light for some of them (8). As it is already part of the food culture of many countries, this could be one of the most viable options in the short term to obtain protein (9), however, it is necessary to regulate production, to avoid the risk of contamination by agrochemicals present in the crops where they grow, or certain nitrates that may be present in some algae, and still there is no regulation on maximum levels of nitrate in algae.
3.2) Plant-based alternatives
Using vegetables to make foods that resemble those of animal origin has been one of the most widely used techniques in order to decrease greenhouse gases. Some studies, however, indicate that this diet should be complementary and not substitutive in terms of nutrients, because minerals and amino acids may be less bioavailable-an aspect to consider especially in vulnerable populations. The advantages of this alternative include reducing food waste by using the by-products of processing others as raw material.
3.3) Production of cell-based foods.
There is no internationally harmonized terminology for this type of food product or the production process, so various terms are currently in use: cultured, cell-based, animal-free, slaughter-free, in vitro, cultured, lab-grown, cruelty-free, cell agriculture, among others. These new technologies aim to produce animal protein without the need for large areas of land, without the production of greenhouse gases and by decreasing animal suffering.
There are two techniques used in cell agriculture: cell culture, which is done by growing cells obtained from animals through biopsies, and precision fermentation, which uses microorganisms that have undergone genetic modification (10)
In cell culture, the initial cell lines are constantly under cultured, and because of this there is a risk of genetic or epigenetic deviations occurring (11). Inulin and sorbitol are used for cell storage (12), and it must be checked that they are not carried into the final product at concentrations that may cause a health hazard.
Cell-based meat production can help decrease the emission of methane gas produced by cattle breeding. In contrast, it requires a large amount of energy, which produces a large amount of CO2.
4) Urban farming
According to the FAO, by 2050 two-thirds of the world’s population will live in urban areas. An important point in the transformation of agri-food systems is to minimize the distances to get food to the consumer, which in turn must reduce waste, energy consumption and greenhouse gas production from transportation, storage, etc. Urban agriculture is a technique with many advantages because it can help cool cities in summer, provide habitat for bees and other pollinators, and retain rainfall thus providing flood risk mitigation. Urban agriculture can also include non-food plant production and animal husbandry, beekeeping, aquaculture and insect farming.
Advantages include the ability to create vertical gardens, which require small spaces, and water reuse. Disadvantages include the risk of chemical contamination of vegetables or farmed animals from heavy metals found in urban soils or water, as well as microbiological risk from the use of non-potable water for irrigation or lack of good hygiene practices.
Urban agriculture could be a useful tool in improving access to healthy and sustainable food, but appropriate regulatory frameworks and strategies need to be developed to carry this technique forward in a safe and sustainable manner.
5) Circular economy and plastic recycling
Most plastics used in the food industry are used once and do not have proper disposal, especially when the packaging is composed of different materials that complicate sorting. It is estimated that in 2015, only 9 percent of the approximately 6300 metric tons of plastic waste generated globally was recycled, resulting in severe environmental and health impacts (13, 14, 15, 16).
The approach of a circular economy for plastic food packaging is based on redesign-reduce-reuse-recycle by keeping resources in use as long as possible to obtain maximum value and minimize impact.
It is essential that appropriate regulatory frameworks be established in which financial, logistical, research and technological resources need to be dedicated. On the topic, he expects the signatory countries of the resolution End plastic pollution: Towards an international legally binding instrument (17) to present their strategies to address this challenge.
6) Microbiome, a food safety perspective.
The microbiome is a complex network of microorganisms (bacteria, viruses, fungi, protozoa) that live in symbiosis with organisms (human, soil, plant, water, animal) (18). Several studies show the correlation between the gut microbiome, nutrition and health status (19,20).
The nonhuman microbiome also affects the health status of ecosystems and therefore also food safety and quality. A holistic understanding of microbiome-environment-host interactions will provide a better understanding of health risks, better assessing microbiological and chemical hazards and enabling new legislation on maximum thresholds for veterinary drugs and pesticides, food additives, etc.
The World Health Organization (WHO) in the Global Plan of Action (GAP) on AMR (antimicrobial resistance) (WHO, 2015) recognizes the role of agri-food systems in combating AMR.
7) Technological innovations
Technological advances are changing agribusiness systems by providing better tools for processing, packaging, traceability, contaminant detection, etc. However, all the challenges and opportunities of these technologies are still not well understood.
7.1) Packaging
Active packaging and smart packaging (21) are two terms that have emerged with advances in the food industry to reduce waste by extending the useful life of products. Many of these packages use nanomaterials to improve mechanical strength and barrier properties, or for its potential for sensitivity in active packaging to detect pathogens, however, they can be a risk to health or on the environment (22, 23).
7.2) 3D printing of food products
It is another of the technologies under development, which generally involves the use of extrusion of a food formulation: chocolate, cornstarch, sugar, insect meal, seaweed, fruits, etc. To form a predetermined food pattern.
This technology has begun to be developed in the past 15 years, but it has not yet undergone risk assessment.
7.3) Blockchain, Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data, Artificial Intelligence (AI), automation
These are the new technologies that will help prevent fraud, improve traceability, combat the use of pesticides and other harmful substances, predict the risk of microbiological or chemical contamination in crops, as well as prevent the exploitation of workers (24).
Technological innovations are key in the transformation of the agrifood system, will enable faster trade in goods and ensure food safety. And yet, in the absence of adequate rules on the governance of data rights, privacy, etc. can lead to misuse of these data, or unequal competition between developed and developing countries.
8) Food fraud
There is no single definition for food fraud (25), which can be classified as deceptive activities carried out for the purpose of cheating the system for economic advantage. They are one of the major problems that arise in agrifood systems where all actors, governments, industry, and consumers are affected.
Despite the technological advances mentioned above, there is no easy solution to combat this problem. The FAO report outlines five regulatory strategies that countries can use to address food fraud and increase confidence in their food systems:
– Regulatory framework in food quality and safety
– Consumer protection legislation
– Read contractual
– Criminal regulatory framework
– Public-private collaboration.
Strategic cooperation in all levels of governance along the food supply chain is critical in the implementation of strategies to combat food fraud.
Conclusions
Agrifood systems need to move toward resilience, inclusion and sustainability with the use of science, technology and innovation with the participation of all actors in the food supply chain, governments, GDO, farmers, public and private investment and consumers. Only in this way can the climate and food crisis be addressed.
Isis Consuelo Sanlucar Chirinos
Notes
(1) Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, FAO. Thinking about the Future of Food Safety, a foresight report. 2022 https://www.fao.org/3/cb8667en/cb8667en.pdf
(2) Dario Dongo, Marta Strinati, Food waste, understand and act. Webinar 16.11.20 by EIT Food. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 12.11.2020, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/consum-attori/spreco-alimentare-comprendere-e-agire-webinar-16-11-20-di-eit-food
(3) Dario Dongo, Expiration date and TMC, EFSA guidelines for reducing food waste. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade). 12/20/20, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/etichette/data-di-scadenza-e-tmc-linee-guida-efsa-per-la-riduzione-degli-sprechi-alimentari
(4) Dario Dongo, Giulia Caddeo. Climate change, the IPCC report for the united nations. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade). 12.08.2019, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/idee/cambiamento-climatico-il-rapporto-ipcc-per-le-nazioni-unite
(5) Dario Dongo, Andrea Adelmo Della Penna. Nutraceuticals. One, none and a hundred thousand. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 30/07/20, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/salute/nutraceutica-uno-nessuno-e-centomila
(6) Dario Dongo. Influencer marketing, our report to the Antitrust Authority. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 07/25/20, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/consum-attori/influencer-marketing-la-nostra-segnalazione-all-antitrust
(7) Dario Dongo, Selena Travaglio. Influencer marketing, what rules? GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade). 07/23/20, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/consum-attori/influencer-marketing-quali-regole
(8) Dario Dongo, Insects on the table, Novel Food approvals in EU. The state of the art. (Great Italian Food Trade). 02.13.22, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/innovazione/insetti-a-tavola-autorizzazioni-novel-food-in-ue-lo-stato-dell-arte
(9) Dario Dongo, Marta Strinati. Microalgae and insects the search for protein-sustaining foods in Horizon 2020. 05/27/20, GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade) https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/innovazione/microalghe-e-insetti-la-ricerca-di-proteine-sostenibili-in-horizon-2020
(10) Dario Dongo. Imagindairy, the “milk” from cellular agriculture. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 12/24/21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/innovazione/imagindairy-il-latte-da-agricoltura-cellulare
(11) GIFT Editors, NBT, the dark side of new editing techniques. Scientific Review. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 06.03.21 https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/sicurezza/nbt-il-lato-oscuro-delle-nuove-tecniche-di-editing-rassegna-scientifica
(12) Marta Strinati. Sorbitol and other polyols, the bulk sweeteners. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 04.04.2018, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/dolcificare/sorbitolo-e-altri-polioli-i-dolcificanti-di-massa
(13) Marta Strinati, Dario Dongo, Plastic pollution, the responsibilities of Big Food. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade). 12.01.22, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/imballaggi-e-moca/inquinamento-da-plastica-le-responsabilità-di-big-food
(14) Marta Strinati, Microplastics, infants and children 10 times more exposed than adults. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade). 02.11.21 https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/sicurezza/microplastiche-neonati-e-bambini-10-volte-più-esposti-rispetto-agli-adulti_1
(15) Marta Strinati. Plastic water bottles, high levels of chemical migration. 12.02.22. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade) https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/imballaggi-e-moca/borracce-in-plastica-alti-livelli-di-migrazione-di-sostanze-chimiche
(16) Marta Strinati, Stop plastic bottles. Greenpeace’s petition. 20.09.21. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade) https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/consum-attori/stop-alle-bottiglie-di-plastica-la-petizione-di-greenpeace
(17) Isis Consuelo Sanlucar Chirinos. Historic United Nations agreement against plastic pollution. 05.03.22. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade) https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/progresso/storico-accordo-delle-nazioni-unite-contro-l-inquinamento-da-plastica
(18) Dario Dongo, Carlotta Suardi. Prebiotics and probiotics, microbiome and immune system. 28.04.22, GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade) https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/salute/prebiotici-e-probiotici-microbioma-e-sistema-immunitario
(19) Marta Strinati. Gut microbiota, two Italian researches funded by Batasiolo wines. 04.11.21. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade) https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/progresso/microbiota-intestinale-due-ricerche-italiane-finanziate-dai-vini-batasiolo
(20) Marta Strinati, Dario Dongo. Correlations between diet, gut microbiome, and health. Scientific study of 1098 individuals. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 01/15/21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/salute/correlazioni-tra-dieta-microbioma-intestinale-e-salute-studio-scientifico-su-1098-individui
(21) Dario Dongo, Ylenia Patti Giammello. Active and intelligent packaging. Rules, state of the art, the ENEA brief. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade) 7/16/20, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/imballaggi/imballaggi-attivi-e-intelligenti-regole-stato-dell-arte-il-brevetto-enea
(22) Dario Dongo. Junk food, tilt Immune system. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 29.01.18, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/salute/cibo-spazzatura-tilt-sistema-immunitario
(23) Marta Strinati, Nanomaterials, shadowy area tropes, according to ANSES. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 06/14/21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/salute/nanomateriali-troppe-zone-d-ombra-secondo-anses
(24) Dario Dongo. Blockchain agribusiness, from Walmart to FDA in the US, Wiise Chain in Italy. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade). 09.02.22 https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/idee/blockchain-agroalimentare-da-walmart-alla-fda-in-usa-wiise-chain-in-italia-verso-il-web-3
(25) Dario Dongo, Giulia Baldelli. Food fraud, an unsolved problem. ‘EU Food Fraud Network’ report. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 04/30/19 https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/sicurezza/frodi-alimentari-un-problema-irrisolto-rapporto-eu-food-fraud-network
Graduated in food engineering at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, she is attending the master's degree in 'Food Safety Lawyer and Consultant' at Alma Mater, University of Bologna.
