Compendium of botanicals reported to contain naturally occuring substances of possible concern for human health when used in food and food supplements

In April 2009, EFSA published on its website a Compendium of botanicals reported to contain toxic, addictive, psychotropic or other substances of concern. The purpose of the Compendium is to assist risk assessors responsible for the evaluation of specific ingredients in food supplements, in more easily identifying the compound(s) of concern on which to focus the assessment. The Scientific Committee worked on a second version of that Compendium between January 2010 and February 2012, considering botanicals that appear on a negative list or subject to restricted use (e.g. max. level or certain parts allowed only) in at least one European Member State. Two annexes have been added compared to the first version; the first one lists botanicals for which not enough information on possible substances of concern could be found, or for which the information present could not be verified. The second one lists botanicals for which, although some data were available, the Scientific Committee could not identify substances of concern, or other reasons for the inclusion in the compendium. This new “Compendium of botanicals reported to contain naturally occuring substances of possible concern for human health” replaces the first version published in 2009; it lists in alphabetical order botanicals without any judgment on whether they are suitable or not suitable for food applications in Europe; it has no legal or regulatory force pertaining to the legal classification of products or substances.