Panel on Food Additives and Flavourings

The Panel on Food Additives and Flavourings (FAF)* evaluates the safety of chemical substances added to food and consumer exposure to them. The Panel's work mainly concerns substances evaluated by EFSA before their use can be authorised in the EU.

FAF Panel Members are scientists from across Europe with expertise in:

• Chemical risk assessment and safety assessment of food additives and flavouring substances
• Toxicology (mammalian): sub-chronic and chronic toxicity (repeated dose studies), genotoxicity and mutagenicity, developmental and reproductive toxicity, carcinogenicity, allergenicity and immunotoxicity
• Toxicity testing in experimental animals and alternative toxicity testing
• Toxicokinetics and toxicodynamics (ADME - absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion) of substances
• Chemistry (organic, inorganic, analytical and synthetic chemistry), especially for the chemical identification and specification of chemical substances
• Exposure assessment and consumption surveys
• Food technology (manufacturing processes and use of food additives)

*The FAF Panel continues the work in most of the areas previously covered by the former Panel on Food Additives and Nutrient Sources Added to Food (ANS). In addition, it has taken over responsibility for the evaluation of flavourings from the former CEF Panel while handing over responsibility for the evaluation of nutrient sources to the NDA Panel.