Dioxins and Dioxin-like Compounds in the Food Supply Strategies to Decrease Exposure (2003) / Chapter Skim
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8. Risk-Management Recommendations and Research Priorities
8. Risk-Management Recommendations and Research Priorities
Pages 202-216
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From page 202... ...
other risk-management interventions that deserve consideration, and (4) research and technology development to support risk management.
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From page 203... ...
Given that the risk assessments that have been conducted have raised concerns about the health impacts of DLCs, and that there is no benefit but possible harm from DLC exposure through foods, the committee considers it appropriate for the federal government to focus its efforts on exposure reduction strategies. To move effectively toward reducing human exposure to DLCs through foods, the federal government should begin by pursuing the following strategic courses of action: (1)
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Department of Health and Human Services collaborate in developing the government's Dietary Guidelines for Americans, and both departments have nutrition education programs. In addition, the Food and Nutrition Service within USDA sets policy for the National School Lunch Program and other government feeding programs, while USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service acts as the government's purchasing agent for these programs.
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From page 205... ...
There will be a need to establish clearly defined leadership for the effort, accountability for results, and mechanisms for on-going collaboration and coordination. Foster Collaboration Between the Government and the Private Sector to Reduce DLCs in the Food Supply Justification No one desires the presence of DLCs in food, and no one set of participants in the food system can fairly be assigned sole responsibility and accountability for their presence or for actions needed to reduce foodborne exposure to DLCs.
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reducing DLC exposure in girls and young women in order to protect fetuses and breastfeeding infants from exposure to DLCs. Interrupt the Cycling of DLCs Through Forage, Animal Feeds, and Food-Producing Animals Justification As discussed in Chapter 4, animal forage and feeds are primary pathways for DLC contamination of the human food supply.
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From page 207... ...
on the levels of DLCs in animal feeds, the committee is not recommending such regulatory action at this time. This is due to the current lack of data to support binding tolerances, the consequences of trying to establish limits without adequate supportive evidence, and the committee's belief that there is a need for collaboration between the government and the animal production industry to develop alternative feeding practices and to overcome other practical obstacles to reducing DLCs in animal forage and feeds that may obviate the need for regulatory action in the future.
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From page 208... ...
The committee further recommends that the government, in collaboration with the animal production industry, identify means to achieve the reduction or elimination of DLC-containing animal fat as a component of animal feeds. This would require, among other things, the development of criteria for determining what constitutes an acceptable use of animal fat and economically feasible analytical methods for distinguishing acceptable from unacceptable animal fat.
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From page 209... ...
If a limit were established for saturated fat in individual meals served in the National School Lunch Program, more lean meat, poultry, and seafood products would be used in place of high-fat versions of these foods, which would lower levels of animal fat (and thus DLCs) in school lunches.
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This could be pursued initially as an element of the collaborative effort with the animal production industry to reduce DLC contamination of animal forage and feeds. The committee has not examined whether there are practicable regulatory interventions to address this potential source of DLCs in the environment.
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In addition, the physical removal of fat from meat products through trimming prevents DLCs from entering the human food supply. Recommendation The committee recommends that the government explore, with the food industry, practicable steps to reduce, during processing, the DLC contamination of food.
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The committee further recommends that the government consider linking, in its Dietary Guidelines and associated information campaigns, the saturated fat reduction message based on cardiovascular disease and cancer with the message that reducing saturated fat has the added benefit of reducing exposure to DLCs and other lipophilic contaminants. The committee recognizes that
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Recommendation The committee recommends that the government invest in the development of cost-effective analytical methods that will make possible a significantly larger volume of DLC testing to support risk management. As part of this effort, the committee recommends that the government review the current toxicity equivalents assessment standards to ensure that the standards accurately reflect the most current knowledge of the toxicity contribution of various DLC congeners, particularly for low-level exposures from foods.
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Recommendation The committee recommends that the government sponsor research on the economics of animal production and current animal feeding practices, with a view toward identifying economically feasible alternatives to current practices that will result in significant reductions in DLC contamination of animal forage and feeds. To complement the economic research, the committee recommends that the government sponsor research on disposal possibilities and alternative uses of animal fat, including use as a biofuel.
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Behavioral Research on Achieving Dietary Change Justification and Recommendation To the extent that the government's risk-management strategy relies on achieving dietary changes to reduce DLC exposure, the committee recommends that it sponsor behavioral research to better understand how such changes can be brought about. It is clear from experience over the past decade that formulation and communication of a scientifically sound message about diet and health is not enough to change long-established dietary patterns.
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From page 216... ...
In designing interventions to reduce DLC exposure through food, it is important to be able to model the movement of DLCs and their ultimate biomagnifications through the food chain, as well as to be able to predict how proposed interventions will affect levels in food and, in turn, human exposure and body burdens. Recommendation The committee recommends that the government sponsor research to develop improved predictive modeling tools and that it apply them in studies aimed at assessing the DLC-reduction effects of potential interventions.
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