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Listen to this siteMonday 14 October 2002
Your questions answered of the report on the risk assessessment of mixtures of pesticides and similar substances.
QA
Over 350 active substances are approved as pesticides in the United Kingdom (UK), and other compounds may be present in food imported from other EU states and elsewhere. Many pesticides and veterinary medicines contain only one active ingredient. However, some may contain more than one active ingredient and individual foods (either crops or foods of animal origin) may have been treated with a number of pesticides or veterinary medicines.
Furthermore, in any one meal, individuals may eat a variety of foods that may have been treated with a number of different pesticides or veterinary medicines. This means that our diet may contain residues of a number of different pesticides and veterinary medicines, often described as a cocktail.
Consumers and interested organisations have been concerned for some time about the possible implications of interactions between the components of mixtures of chemicals dubbed the 'cocktail effect'. The Food Standards Agency had also carried out a telephone consultation of consumer groups that highlighted concern about the cocktail effect, particularly when children could be consuming foods possibly containing multiple residues of pesticides and veterinary medicines.
Consequently, shortly after it was established, the Food Standards Agency announced its intention to set up a group of independent experts from the Committee on the Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment (COT) to consider the cocktail effect.
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Work carried out by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the United States has produced draft guidelines outlining its approach to the risk assessment of combinations of pesticides, referred to as a cumulative risk assessment. Very little work had been carried out at a national (UK), European or international level in this area.
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The Working Group began in December 2000 with a trawl of the existing scientific literature in order to establish a base of information from which to start. This was developed over time, as the issues on which the Group needed to focus became clearer. The Group also recognised from the outset the need to appreciate the concerns held by stakeholders, so that these could be addressed in the report. An open meeting was held in April 2001 at the Food Standards Agency.
Presentations were made by invited experts and interested organisations (Friends of the Earth and the Crop Protection Association). Individuals and others - mainly scientific experts - were also able to present information directly to the Group, for the Group to discuss in subsequent meetings.
In total, nine meetings of the Group were held (including the open meeting) prior to the publication of a draft report for public consideration. There was then a six-week consultation period in which written comments were invited and a further open consultation meeting was held in Norwich to enable interested individuals and organisations to comments on the draft report.
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The main conclusions of the COT Working Group are:
QA
The Committee made recommendations in four areas:
Regulatory
Implementation of these recommendations will require the use of available but presently unused methods, which are in turn contingent on data.
Surveillance
There is a need for additional data from surveillance programmes of residues and from other sources
Research
New research has been recommended to look at:
Public Information
QA
The Report made a number of recommendations and a large number of these have called for further research. The Food Standards Agency has responded to this at an early stage by establishing an Action Group comprising of officials from the Agency, Pesticides Safety Directorate, Veterinary Medicines Directorate, and Health and Safety Executive to prepare a plan of action for the implementation of the Report’s recommendations.
The Action Plan is being finalised and is expected to be published shortly. The Agency is also advertising for a Programme Co-ordinator to oversee the research programme.
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