Concern over children's exposure to toxins in honey

The European Commission asked the European Food Safety Authority to deliver a scientific opinion on pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PA) in food and feed, taking into account new data since a previous assessment back in 2007.

PAs are toxins that are produced naturally by some plants, including ragwort (Senecio​ spp.) and borage (Borago officinalis​). The UK’s Food Safety Agency said there is a potential for these toxins to be transferred to honey by pollinating bees, but notes information regarding the transfer of PAs from ragwort and borage to honey is limited.

EFSA, meanwhile, said the results for 13,280 bulk honey and 1324 retail honey samples were provided to it by one member state only. And the agency cautions that as such they “cannot be regarded as representative for the occurrence of PAs across Europe.”​

Age assessment ​

In its assessment, EFSA’s Panel on Contaminants in the Food Chain (CONTAM Panel) said it performed estimates of both acute and chronic exposure to PAs through honey for three different age groups.

Three representative age groups, it explained, were selected for the exposure analysis, toddlers from 1 to 3 years of age, other children from 3 to10 years and adults from 18 to 65 years. “Since there was little difference in consumption patterns between adults on the one hand and adolescents, elderly and very elderly population groups on the other, there was no need to present consumption data separately for these latter groups,” ​report the experts.

Other sources of PA exposure ​

The Panel notes that although there might be other sources of PA exposure, due to lack of data it was not able to quantify dietary exposure from food other than honey.

It reported that foods containing honey as an ingredient also contains PAs, but due to the lack of data, these cannot be taken into account in calculating total PA-exposure.

The experts also noted that that the maximum PA levels found in retail honey were only 10% or less of the levels found in bulk honey and that pollen used as food supplements may contain PAs at concentrations 30 to 100 times higher than corresponding honey samples.

Conclusions ​

Based on current knowledge of metabolism, activation, DNA adduct-formation, genotoxicity and carcinogenicity, the CONTAM Panel concluded that 1,2-unsaturated PAs may act as genotoxic carcinogens in humans.

The scientists found that, in an acute scenario, it seems possible that PA exposure in toddlers could reach up to 114 ng/kg body weight (b.w.) during one day at a mean PA concentration in retail honey. Calculated acute exposures for all other age groups, said the Panel, are lower.

EFSA stresses that as a result of the findings there is a need for toxicological data relating to the PAs most commonly found in honey, and that ongoing efforts should be made to collect analytical data on occurrence of PAs in other food and drink products such as milk and meat.

The opinion can be read here​.