CONffIDENCE

Context

RASFF, the rapid alert system on food and feed shows that controls on chemical contaminants in food and feed are essential for food safety in Europe. Chemical contaminants are also a major consumer concern in terms of dietary risks. Moreover the General Food Law regulation (Regulation (EC)178/2002), makes industries responsible for the safety of their products. Current analytical methods are often expensive and can detect only one substance at a time. There is thus an urgent need to develop screening methods which are straightforward, inexpensive and rapid and that can detect several contaminants at the same time. In this context, a 56 months European collaborative project (CP) funded by the 7th Framework Programme has been launched in May 2008. This project CONffIDENCE (proposal-211326) was entitled "Contaminants in Food and Feed: Inexpensive Detection for Control of Exposure".

Objectives

The strategic objectives from the CONffIDENCE project are: 
1° Develop new simplified inexpensive detection methods for chemical contaminants from farm to fork in order to assure chemical safety and quality in the European food supply;
2° Develop new detection tools for EFSA recognised key and emerging risks;
3° Improve the exposure assessment based on a better idea about average contaminant levels thanks to increased monitoring data by simplified and more cost-efficient detection tools;
4° Contribute to the validation of risk benefit and predictive hazard behaviour models in accordance with the strategic agenda of the European Technology Platform (ETP) Food for Life;
5° Disseminate the new detection methods to all relevant stakeholders, including industrial and governmental end-users as well as students.

Expected results

The project aimed to provide long-term solutions to the monitoring of persistent organic pollutants (POPs), perfluorinated compounds (PFCs), pesticides, veterinary pharmaceuticals (coccidiostats, antibiotics), heavy metals and biotoxins (alkaloids, plant contaminant, marine toxins, mycotoxins) in high-risk products like fish and fish feed, cereal-based food/feed and vegetables. Several new methods were developed, based on novel multiplex technologies such as dipsticks, flow cytometry with functionalised beads, surface plasmon resonance optical (SPR) and electrochemical biosensors, cytosensors or near infrared hyperspectral imaging. After validation, the new methods were applied in demonstration activities which helped to assess contaminants exposure and validate the risk models. Dissemination to scientists and to relevant stakeholders, including the food and feed industry, regulatory control (DG-SANCO, EFSA) and normalisation bodies (CEN), the Community reference laboratories (CRLs), the routine laboratories and the consumers were assured by a website, an electronic Newsletter, press articles, public workshops, open days, lectures at international conferences, publications and training modules.

Results obtained

All these results can be found in the section “Project output” of the CONffIDENCE website (http://www.conffidence.eu ). In particular, regarding the CRA-W contribution; the protocol and the validation of the NIR hyperspectral imaging method for the detection and quantification of ergot contamination in cereals dedicated for food and feed has been described in detail and published (Food Additives and Contaminants, 2012). The decision tool is based on chemometics discrimination models and morphological identification rules applied on the NIR hyperspectral images. The hyperspectral imaging method has been successfully rounded off with testing and demonstrating the system at an industrial site (see figure here below). The validation and the transferability of this methodology have been presented and demonstrated at several events and opendays organized in the framework of the CONffIDENCE project and will be shortly published in a special issue of the Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry journal dedicated to the outputs of the project. This technology can be used to detect and quantify ergot contamination in large samples of cereals in both the laboratory and in the processing industry, where accurate and fast inspection is needed. The classical microscopy method can be used as confirmatory method on reduced samples. The line scan NIR hyperspectral imaging system allows to analyse a sample of 250 g in one minute. In comparison, the existing microscopy method requires 30-60 minutes to analyse the same sample. The next challenge will be to demonstrate the potential of the methodology for multicontaminants detection in particular in the organic productions.

Contribution

The CRA-W led the workpackage on training, dissemination and exploitation of the results including the development of the website. The CRA-W was also member of the project management board and was involved in the project management by setting up and maintaining the CONffIDENCE intranet. Moreover, CRA-W played a key role in the development of a near infrared imaging based analytical method for detection of ergot (claviceps purpurea) in cereals. Ergot was selected because of its increasing presence in recent years in samples of cereals or compound feeds.

Partners

The CONffIDENCE project was coordinated by RIKILT. The consortium consists of 17 partners from 10 countries, representing 9 research institutes, 5 universities, 2 large food and feed industries and 1 SMEs.
- RIKILT-Institute of food safety (NL)
- ICT-Institute of Chemical Technology (CZ)
- CSIC- National Council of Scientific Research (SP)
- CVUA - Chemisches und Veterinäruntersuchungsamt (DE)
- EC-JRC-IRMM-European Commission, Joint Research Centre, Institute for Reference Materials and Measurements (BE)
- CSL-Central Science Laboratory (UK)
- DTU-Food-Technical University of Denmark (DK)
- RIVM- National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (NL)
- QUB- Queen's University Belfast (UK)
- ISPA-Institute of Sciences of Food Production (IT)
- CRA-W- Walloon Agricultural Research Centre (BE)
- TUT-Tampere University of Technology (FI)
- NUTRECO Holding N.V. (NL)
- NESTLE (CH)
- USC- University of Santiago de Compostelle (SP)
- CER-Centre d'Economie Rurale (BE)
- UNISENSOR (BE)

CRAW off coordinator

Funding

• CE - DG Research - FP7