Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
TABLE 6.1 (Continued)
Sectors, Applications, and Functions Developed in Nanofood Field
Sector/Application
Function
Consumption
Nanoceuticals Increase in absorption and bioavailability of nutrients, health
supplements, nutraceuticals (e.g., cooking oil), and active
ingredients
Surfaces biocides Prevention or reduction of microbial growth
Source: ETC Group, Down on the Farm: The Impact of Nano-Scale Technologies on Food and
Agriculture . Ottawa: ETC Group, 68 p., 2004; Joseph, T. and M. Morrison, Nanoforum
Report: Nanotechnology in Agriculture and Food . (Glasgow, UK): European Nanotechnology
Gateway, 14 p., 2006; Chaudhry, Q. et al., Food Addit. Contam. Part A Chem. Anal. Control.
Expo. Risk Assess. , 25, 241, 2008; Chaudhry, Q., R. Watkins and L. Castle, Nanotechnologies
in the food arena: new opportunities, new questions, new concerns. In Nanotechnologies
in Food , Q. Chaudhry, L. Castle and R. Watkins (eds.), Cambridge: RSC Nanoscience
and Nanotechnology, no. 14, pp. 1-17, 2010, Reproduced by permission of The Royal
Society of Chemistry; FOE (Friends of the Earth) Australia, Out of the Laboratory and on
to Our Plates: Nanotechnology in Food and Agriculture . Cam Walker (Melbourne): FOE
Australia, 62 p., 2008; Imran, M. et al., Crit. Rev. Food Sci. Nutr. , 50, 799, 2010; Smolander,
M. and Q. Chaudhry, Nanotechnologies in food packaging. In Nanotechnologies in Food ,
Q. Chaudhry, L. Castle and R. Watkins (eds.), pp. 86-101. Cambridge: RSC Nanoscience
and Nanotechnology, no. 14, 2010, Reproduced by permission of The Royal Society of
Chemistry; CEST (Commission de L'éthique en Science et en Technologie), Enjeux
Ethiques des Nanotechnologies dans le Secteur Agroalimentaire: Supplément 2011 à L'avis
Éthique et Nanotechnologies: Se Donner les Moyens D'agir . Quebec: Government of
Quebec, 72 p., 2011.
6.3 Nanofood Public Policies
This situation reflects the transnational lack of a consensus regarding the
definition of nanotechnologies at large, as well as their peculiar applications,
the proper definition of related product categories, and their boundaries. In
the area of nanofoods, this is particularly critical since product categories
and composition constantly evolve. This is not unrelated to the fact that no
government has imposed any mandatory disclosure on nanotechnologies,
all sectors mingled, which would enable the tracking and inventory of the
products circulating in the country.
Furthermore, North American and European regulatory frameworks con-
tain numerous gaps, permitting for the majority of applications or nano-
composites to enter their markets freely, without prior control (see Maniet
2010, 2011, 2012). This stems in part from the fact that nanoparticles are gen-
erally considered to be existing substances (United States and Canada) or
the close equivalent to existing macrosized substances (European Union).
Additionally, the quantity thresholds required to demand the production
of toxicological or ecotoxicological data are inadequate. The entirety of the
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