International Authorities
International Authorities
The Codex Alimentarius is the international organization created by the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and World Health Organization (WHO) to develop food standards, guidelines and other texts under the Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme to protect the health of consumers and ensure fair practices in food trade. As a nongovernmental organization with observer status IFT participates in meetings of select Codex committees and task forces.
With the mandate of raising levels of nutrition, improving agricultural productivity, bettering the lives of rural populations, and contributing to the growth of the world economy, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nation serves as a knowledge network, shares policy expertise, provides a neutral meeting forum for nations, and brings technical knowledge to the field.
As the directing and coordinating authority for health within the United Nations, the World Health Organization provides leadership on global health matters, shapes the health research agenda, sets norms and standards, articulates evidence-based policy options, provides technical support to countries, and monitors and assesses health trends.
Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) is an international expert scientific committee administered jointly by FAO and WHO. JECFA serves as an independent scientific committee which performs risk assessments on food additives, contaminants, naturally occurring toxicants and residues of veterinary drugs in food and provides advice for the CAC and its committees.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is a scientific risk assessment body of the European Union, providing scientific advice on food and feed safety, nutrition, animal health, plant protection, and plant health.
The Food Chemicals Codex (FFC) is a compendium of internationally recognized standards for the authenticity, purity and identity of food ingredients. The compendium features about 1,100 monographs, including food-grade chemicals, processing aids, foods, flavoring agents, vitamins, and functional food ingredients, as well as information on topics such as adulteration, analytical methods and more.
The FCC plays a key role in safeguarding commerce and public health by providing essential criteria and analytical methods to authenticate and determine the quality of food ingredients. FCC standards are beneficial to all stakeholders in the food industry as agreed standards between suppliers and manufacturers aid in distinguishing genuine products from inferior or adulterated ingredients and substances, thereby helping to make the food supply chain safer and assuring consumers of the quality of the food products they consume.
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) develops and publishes international standards relating to topics, including food ingredients, food safety and quality, and nanotechnology, through a network of national member standards institutes of 162 countries.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's (OECD) is an international organization that works to build better policies for better lives. Its goal is to shape policies that foster prosperity, equality, opportunity, and well-being for all. Together with governments, policy makers, and citizens, the OECD works on establishing international norms.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency's (CIFA) highest priority is mitigating risks to food safety, with the health and safety of Canadians the driving force behind the design and development of its programs. In collaboration and partnership with industry, consumers, and federal, provincial, and municipal organizations, CFIA works towards protecting Canadians from preventable health risks related to food and zoonotic diseases.
The Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) is a statutory authority in the Australian Government Health Portfolio. FSANZ develops food standards for Australia and New Zealand.
Health Canada is responsible for helping Canadians maintain and improve their health, ensuring that high-quality health services are accessible, and working to reduce health risks.
The U.K. Food Standards Agency is an independent government department working across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland to protect public health and consumers’ wider interests in food.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) ensures the safety, efficacy, and security of human and veterinary drugs, biological products, and medical devices, and ensures the safety of the nation’s food supply, cosmetics, and products that emit radiation. The FDA's role in food regulation involves ensuring the safety and proper labeling of the nation's food supply, excluding meat, poultry, and certain egg products which are regulated by the USDA. It sets standards, conducts inspections, enforces regulations, and responds to foodborne illness outbreaks to protect public health\.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture provides leadership on food, agriculture, natural resources, rural development, nutrition, and related issues. The USDA develops and enforces regulations related to agricultural practices, food processing, and nutrition, ensuring the overall health and well-being of the public. Through its Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), it oversees the safety, quality, and proper labeling of meat, poultry, and egg products.
This study systematically evaluated and compared the effects of six extraction methods, namely hot water extraction (HWE), ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE), microwave-assisted extraction (MAE), acid-assisted extraction (CAE), alkali-assisted extraction (AAE), and enzyme-assisted extraction (EAE), on the structural characteristics, in vitro biological activities, and cytotoxicity of polysaccharides from chestnut flowers (CFPs). The results show that CFPs extracted by different extraction methods have significant differences in terms of chemical composition, monosaccharide spectrum, molecular weight distribution, and surface morphology. However, their similar infrared spectra, crystal structures and thermal stabilities indicate that despite the different degrees of degradation, the main structure of CFPs remains basically intact in different extraction methods. It is worth noting that the CFPs produced by HWE have the strongest antioxidant activity (98.5 ± 0.48%, evaluated by the DPPH free radical scavenging assay), while the CFPs produced by EAE have the highest hypoglycemic activity (94.3 ± 0.4%, evaluated by the α-glucosylase inhibition assay). Furthermore, the CFPs of all extraction methods showed biocompatibility. Under the condition of conforming to physiological relevance, the selected cell concentrations all promoted the proliferation of RAW264.7 mouse macrophages, indicating their lack of cytotoxicity. These findings provide a theoretical basis for the selection of CFPs extraction methods with targeted biological activity. Specifically, HWE is recommended for the production of CFPs rich in antioxidants, while EAE is the best choice for preparing CFPs with hypoglycemic properties. This study also lays a foundation for further research on the in vivo biological activity of CFPs.
The separation of montmorillonite (Mt) clay platelets was achieved and optimized through organic modification using cationic (cetyltrimethylammonium bromide [CTAB]) and non-ionic (Tween80) surfactants. Organomodified Mt (oMt) was characterized via particle size analysis, zeta potential, conductivity measurements, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, and x-ray diffraction (XRD). Particle size analysis revealed synergy interaction between surfactants and clay. In CTAB-modified oMt, zeta potential shifted from negative to positive values, indicating increased surface potential. Conductivity decreased upon reaching critical micelle concentration (CMC) level, suggesting micelle formation. FT-IR confirmed the attachment of surfactant functional groups to Mt, whereas XRD verified clay platelet intercalation in both surfactant-modified organoclays. Optimized organoclays were incorporated into starch-based biomaterials, and overall migration as well as specific migration of aluminum (Al) from the resulting bionanocomposite films were assessed for food packaging in accordance with the European Union (EU) and Turkish regulations. The addition of organoclay in matrix effectively lowered overall migration results below the regulatory limit (10 mg/dm2) with hydrophilic and acidic food simulants, meeting strict food safety requirements. In specific migration analysis, it was found that although the incorporation of organoclay into biomaterial led to an increase in aluminum migration with acidic simulant, the results remained below the regulation limit (1 mg/kg); meanwhile, the migration levels with aqueous simulant were below the limit of quantification. Moreover, organoclay incorporation significantly decreased both the water absorption capacity and the water solubility of the resulting nanocomposite films. These findings highlight the potential applicability of the developed bionanocomposites for food packaging applications.
Mental health disorders like depression, anxiety, and stress (DAS) are rising globally. Understanding how diet and lifestyle influence these conditions is vital for targeted interventions. This study explores the potential of machine learning (ML) to identify key risk factors and improve mental health predictions in adult males. This cross-sectional study gathered dietary data from 400 adult males using the Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ). The dataset contained 59 predictor variables, and DAS was classified as either normal or indicative of some degree of disorder. The predictive performance of five ML models [bagging, boosting, Naive Bayes (NB), support vector machine (SVM), and random forest (RF)] was assessed using cross-validation. Metrics such as sensitivity, specificity, precision (positive predictive value, PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), accuracy, and the area under the curve (AUC) were used to evaluate performance. DAS were present in 103 (25.47%) of participants. Bagging, boosting, and RF models outperformed others, achieving over 70% in all metrics. Key prognostic factors for predicting DAS include fried fast food, physical activity (PA), body mass index (BMI), magnesium, sodium, and other dietary elements like butter/margarine, fructose, and vitamin K. Chromium and caffeine were significant predictors of depression and anxiety, while cholesterol and olive oil were strongly associated with stress. The study shows that the RF, boosting, and bagging algorithms outperformed other models in predicting DAS across all evaluation criteria. Key dietary and lifestyle factors, such as magnesium, sodium, BMI, caffeine, and cholesterol, were identified as significant predictors, highlighting the potential of ML for advancing targeted mental health interventions.
Ethyl carbamate (EC) is a natural carcinogen widely found in fermented alcoholic beverages. The compound is mainly generated through the reaction of urea and citrulline with ethanol. The transcription factor Btn2p may affect arginine metabolism, and thus regulate EC in different fermentation systems. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the effects of Btn2p on arginine metabolism in Saccharomyces cerevisiae in different culture systems and analyzed the potential regulatory mechanisms of EC formation. In addition, we studied the ethanol tolerance of BTN2-modified yeast to determine its applicability in huangjiu fermentation and to provide a theoretical basis for subsequent studies. We found that BTN2 knockout inhibited two major EC precursors, and the inhibitory effect was better in mixed cultures with Pediococcus pentosaceus. In addition, BTN2 knockout promoted the activities of urease and ornithine transcarbamoylase, but reduced the activity of arginine deiminase, which led to the reduction of urea and citrulline concentrations. The growth conditions of BTN2-modified strains under different ethanol concentrations were also studied for future applications in huangjiu fermentation. The results showed that BTN2 overexpression promoted cell growth and increased ethanol tolerance, whereas BTN2 knockout reduced the ethanol tolerance of cell. The findings indicated that Btn2p was involved in arginine metabolism, possibly through the regulation of urea and citrulline metabolism, and BTN2-knockout strains can be used as a potential target for EC reduction.
A common challenge in producing gluten-free beer from sorghum is the inefficient conversion of sorghum starch into fermentable sugars. This issue can be attributed to the high proportion of resistant starch and natural inhibitors that hinder starch digestibility in sorghum grains. To address this, an extrusion process was proposed to improve gelatinization and hydrolysis of sorghum starch. Two experimental designs were conducted, one with extrusion and one without, to assess the impact of utilizing two exogenous enzymes during mashing: papain and α-amylase. The results showed that the extrusion process significantly improved sorghum starch gelatinization and increased the concentration of fermentable sugars by an average of four times compared to trials without extrusion. By incorporating the extrusion process and utilizing 3% α-amylase and 0.1% papain, a high-quality wort with the desired concentration of fermentable sugars for yeast fermentation was obtained. This improvement was supported through the analysis of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS) by revealing changes in the structure and composition of gelatinized and hydrolyzed sorghum grains with and without extrusion.
This study systematically evaluated and compared the effects of six extraction methods, namely hot water extraction (HWE), ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE), microwave-assisted extraction (MAE), acid-assisted extraction (CAE), alkali-assisted extraction (AAE), and enzyme-assisted extraction (EAE), on the structural characteristics, in vitro biological activities, and cytotoxicity of polysaccharides from chestnut flowers (CFPs). The results show that CFPs extracted by different extraction methods have significant differences in terms of chemical composition, monosaccharide spectrum, molecular weight distribution, and surface morphology. However, their similar infrared spectra, crystal structures and thermal stabilities indicate that despite the different degrees of degradation, the main structure of CFPs remains basically intact in different extraction methods. It is worth noting that the CFPs produced by HWE have the strongest antioxidant activity (98.5 ± 0.48%, evaluated by the DPPH free radical scavenging assay), while the CFPs produced by EAE have the highest hypoglycemic activity (94.3 ± 0.4%, evaluated by the α-glucosylase inhibition assay). Furthermore, the CFPs of all extraction methods showed biocompatibility. Under the condition of conforming to physiological relevance, the selected cell concentrations all promoted the proliferation of RAW264.7 mouse macrophages, indicating their lack of cytotoxicity. These findings provide a theoretical basis for the selection of CFPs extraction methods with targeted biological activity. Specifically, HWE is recommended for the production of CFPs rich in antioxidants, while EAE is the best choice for preparing CFPs with hypoglycemic properties. This study also lays a foundation for further research on the in vivo biological activity of CFPs.
The separation of montmorillonite (Mt) clay platelets was achieved and optimized through organic modification using cationic (cetyltrimethylammonium bromide [CTAB]) and non-ionic (Tween80) surfactants. Organomodified Mt (oMt) was characterized via particle size analysis, zeta potential, conductivity measurements, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, and x-ray diffraction (XRD). Particle size analysis revealed synergy interaction between surfactants and clay. In CTAB-modified oMt, zeta potential shifted from negative to positive values, indicating increased surface potential. Conductivity decreased upon reaching critical micelle concentration (CMC) level, suggesting micelle formation. FT-IR confirmed the attachment of surfactant functional groups to Mt, whereas XRD verified clay platelet intercalation in both surfactant-modified organoclays. Optimized organoclays were incorporated into starch-based biomaterials, and overall migration as well as specific migration of aluminum (Al) from the resulting bionanocomposite films were assessed for food packaging in accordance with the European Union (EU) and Turkish regulations. The addition of organoclay in matrix effectively lowered overall migration results below the regulatory limit (10 mg/dm2) with hydrophilic and acidic food simulants, meeting strict food safety requirements. In specific migration analysis, it was found that although the incorporation of organoclay into biomaterial led to an increase in aluminum migration with acidic simulant, the results remained below the regulation limit (1 mg/kg); meanwhile, the migration levels with aqueous simulant were below the limit of quantification. Moreover, organoclay incorporation significantly decreased both the water absorption capacity and the water solubility of the resulting nanocomposite films. These findings highlight the potential applicability of the developed bionanocomposites for food packaging applications.
Mental health disorders like depression, anxiety, and stress (DAS) are rising globally. Understanding how diet and lifestyle influence these conditions is vital for targeted interventions. This study explores the potential of machine learning (ML) to identify key risk factors and improve mental health predictions in adult males. This cross-sectional study gathered dietary data from 400 adult males using the Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ). The dataset contained 59 predictor variables, and DAS was classified as either normal or indicative of some degree of disorder. The predictive performance of five ML models [bagging, boosting, Naive Bayes (NB), support vector machine (SVM), and random forest (RF)] was assessed using cross-validation. Metrics such as sensitivity, specificity, precision (positive predictive value, PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), accuracy, and the area under the curve (AUC) were used to evaluate performance. DAS were present in 103 (25.47%) of participants. Bagging, boosting, and RF models outperformed others, achieving over 70% in all metrics. Key prognostic factors for predicting DAS include fried fast food, physical activity (PA), body mass index (BMI), magnesium, sodium, and other dietary elements like butter/margarine, fructose, and vitamin K. Chromium and caffeine were significant predictors of depression and anxiety, while cholesterol and olive oil were strongly associated with stress. The study shows that the RF, boosting, and bagging algorithms outperformed other models in predicting DAS across all evaluation criteria. Key dietary and lifestyle factors, such as magnesium, sodium, BMI, caffeine, and cholesterol, were identified as significant predictors, highlighting the potential of ML for advancing targeted mental health interventions.
Ethyl carbamate (EC) is a natural carcinogen widely found in fermented alcoholic beverages. The compound is mainly generated through the reaction of urea and citrulline with ethanol. The transcription factor Btn2p may affect arginine metabolism, and thus regulate EC in different fermentation systems. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the effects of Btn2p on arginine metabolism in Saccharomyces cerevisiae in different culture systems and analyzed the potential regulatory mechanisms of EC formation. In addition, we studied the ethanol tolerance of BTN2-modified yeast to determine its applicability in huangjiu fermentation and to provide a theoretical basis for subsequent studies. We found that BTN2 knockout inhibited two major EC precursors, and the inhibitory effect was better in mixed cultures with Pediococcus pentosaceus. In addition, BTN2 knockout promoted the activities of urease and ornithine transcarbamoylase, but reduced the activity of arginine deiminase, which led to the reduction of urea and citrulline concentrations. The growth conditions of BTN2-modified strains under different ethanol concentrations were also studied for future applications in huangjiu fermentation. The results showed that BTN2 overexpression promoted cell growth and increased ethanol tolerance, whereas BTN2 knockout reduced the ethanol tolerance of cell. The findings indicated that Btn2p was involved in arginine metabolism, possibly through the regulation of urea and citrulline metabolism, and BTN2-knockout strains can be used as a potential target for EC reduction.
A common challenge in producing gluten-free beer from sorghum is the inefficient conversion of sorghum starch into fermentable sugars. This issue can be attributed to the high proportion of resistant starch and natural inhibitors that hinder starch digestibility in sorghum grains. To address this, an extrusion process was proposed to improve gelatinization and hydrolysis of sorghum starch. Two experimental designs were conducted, one with extrusion and one without, to assess the impact of utilizing two exogenous enzymes during mashing: papain and α-amylase. The results showed that the extrusion process significantly improved sorghum starch gelatinization and increased the concentration of fermentable sugars by an average of four times compared to trials without extrusion. By incorporating the extrusion process and utilizing 3% α-amylase and 0.1% papain, a high-quality wort with the desired concentration of fermentable sugars for yeast fermentation was obtained. This improvement was supported through the analysis of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS) by revealing changes in the structure and composition of gelatinized and hydrolyzed sorghum grains with and without extrusion.