Safeguarding public health, taking into account industry development and regulatory needs 

Our reporter Yang Xiaojing

A few days ago, the National Health Commission and the State Administration for Market Regulation jointly issued 36 new national food safety standards and 3 amendments, including one pollutant standard in the National Food Safety Standard for Contaminants in Foods (GB2762-2022)

The National Food Safety Risk Assessment Center pointed out in the interpretation materials that the "National Food Safety Standard for Contaminant Limits in Foods" (GB2762-2022) is a general food safety standard.

The revision work adheres to the purpose of safeguarding public health, focusing on food contaminants that pose a greater risk to the health of Chinese residents and food types that have a greater impact on residents' dietary exposure; based on risk assessment, refer to the International Codex Alimentarius The Commission (CAC) established principles for standards for contaminants in food, combining contaminant risk monitoring data and exposure assessment results to determine contaminants and their limits in related foods

Overview of domestic and foreign standards

According to the National Center for Food Safety Risk Assessment, contaminants in food are those produced in the process of food production (including crop planting and animal feeding), processing, packaging, storage, transportation, and sales, or are brought in by environmental pollution, and are not intentionally added.

Contaminants in food are one of the important factors affecting food safety and are the key content of food safety management

Major revisions

The National Food Safety Risk Assessment Center stated that this revision of the standard is based on the "National Food Safety Standard for Contaminant Limits in Foods" (GB2762-2017) and the No.

Revision of lead limits in food The Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the World Health Organization canceled the tentative tolerable weekly intake (PTWI) of lead in 2010, and advised member states to make efforts to reduce the content of lead in food , to protect the health of the country's residents

The revised limit of heavy metals in edible fungi and their products Edible fungi can be divided into cultivated edible fungi and wild edible fungi

This revision of the standard collects data on heavy metal pollution in common cultivated edible fungi and wild edible fungi in China, analyzes the enrichment characteristics of various types of edible fungi for different heavy metals, and carries out risk assessment of heavy metal exposure in edible fungi.

Relevant background of setting limit of cadmium in rice The National Expert Committee on Food Safety Risk Assessment has conducted a comprehensive risk assessment on the exposure to cadmium pollution in the diet of Chinese residents.

Revision of the limit of inorganic arsenic in rice According to the degree of husk removal, rice can be divided into rice, brown rice and rice

　　Revision of Arsenic Limits in Compound Seasonings The toxicity of arsenic compounds depends on their form, with inorganic arsenic being a carcinogen identified by the International Center for Research on Cancer (IARC), and organic arsenic compounds being less toxic, collectively referred to as total arsenic

　　Compound seasonings often include multiple food ingredients based on taste requirements

　　The revision of the application principle of "conversion limit of pollutants in dry products" is to solve the problems encountered in the implementation process of Clause 3.

　　The newly revised GB2762 adjusts the conversion principle of contaminant limits in dried meat products, dried aquatic products, dried edible fungi and other dried products to "the contaminant limit in dried products should be based on the contaminant limit in the corresponding fresh food combined with its dehydration rate.

　　Modify and improve the description of food category (name) in Appendix A.

Implementation of the standard

　　The National Center for Food Safety Risk Assessment proposed that food producers and operators should be encouraged to implement before the implementation date stipulated in the standard and to disclose the early implementation
.
GB2762 is the national food safety standard and is a mandatory standard
.
After the implementation of the standard, if other relevant provisions are inconsistent with this standard, this standard shall be implemented
.
From the date of implementation of the new standard, the "National Food Safety Standard Limits of Contaminants in Foods" (GB2762-2017) and the No.
1 Amendment Sheet will be repealed
.
Food that has been produced before the implementation date of the new standard can continue to be sold within the shelf life of the product
.

　　In addition, the implementation of GB2762 should follow the following principles: First, food production enterprises should organize production in strict accordance with laws, regulations and standards, and meet the requirements of food contaminant limit standards
.
Second, for other food contaminants not covered by the standard, or for which limit values ​​or control levels have not been established, food producers should take control measures to make the content of contaminants in food reach the lowest possible level
.
The third is to focus on the control of contaminants in food raw materials, and reduce and control contaminants in food from the source of food
.
The fourth is to strictly manage food safety in the production process, and encourage the adoption of stricter control requirements than GB2762 to reduce the content of contaminants in food
.

"China Food News" (03 edition on August 4, 2022)

　　(Editor-in-charge: Yang Xiaojing)