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IRGC publishes policy brief on nanotechnology applications in food and cosmetics
Published: Thursday 28 May 2009
The International Risk Governance Council IRGC) has published the final deliverable of its 2nd project in nanotechnology in the form of a policy brief entitled ‘The Appropriate risk governance strategies for nanotechnology applications in food and cosmetics’.
Primarily addressed to policymakers in governments as well as regulators and risk managers in industry, the brief aims to provide a commentary on current developments which highlights some of the associated opportunities and risks, and presents the IRGC’s recommendations for ‘the improved risk governance of nanotechnology in food and cosmetics.’
In IRGC’s opinion, the most urgently required actions are:
- Development of a commonly-accepted definition of nanotechnology and nanomaterials in food and cosmetics.
- Design of standards, testing strategies, protocols and methodologies, including pre-market testing and life-cycle analyses, for assessing toxicity.
- Greater cooperation and exchange of information among and between major stakeholder groups. [...]
- Continuous dialogue on the appropriateness of existing regulatory provisions, which take into account new results in research as well as risk assessments concerning hazard, exposure and impacts on environment, health and safety (EHS).
- Modification of those regulatory provisions if they are found to be inadequate.
- Improved communication and education concerning both EHS risks and ethical, legal and social issues (ELSI). [...]
- In addition, research on ELSI needs to be intensified. [...]
[...] IRGC welcomes the initiatives of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) Working Party on Manufactured Nanomaterials and Working Party on Nanotechnology and the many projects that these two working parties are coordinating. IRGC hopes that these activities will provide a solid foundation for improving the risk governance of nanotechnology. [...] There [also] appears to be a particular role for the World Trade Organization (WTO) in establishing and monitoring the effectiveness of standards for the international trade of nanomaterials and products which contain them.
This policy brief follows the Publication of the Report entitled ‘Risk Governance of Nanotechnology Applications in Food and Cosmetics’ .
Follow these links to find out more about the IRCG’s activities in nanotechnology, to download the full IRGC Report (December 2009), or to download the full IRGC Policy Brief.