safety assessment of application dossiers for market authorisation
- Strains belonging to a microorganism with a QPS status may be entitled to a fast-track safety assessment (evaluation); - Microorganisms not considered suitable for the QPS status remain subject to a full safety assessment (evaluation)
In food safety, a safety assessment of application dossiers for market authorisation is the process of reviewing all the scientific data a company submits when it wants to sell a new food, additive, ingredient, or genetically modified product in the EU. EFSA carefully examines these dossiers to check whether the product is safe for consumers, considering factors like toxicity, allergenicity, chemical residues, and nutritional effects. Based on this assessment, EFSA provides scientific opinions that help the European Commission and Member States decide whether to approve the product for the market.