New dates in May 2021! EFSA Scientific Colloquium 25 “A coordinated approach to assess the human health risks of micro- and nanoplastics in food”

Lisbon, Portugal
6 maggio 2021 a 7 maggio 2021

Registration to reopen in 2021

Update: due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the restrictions on movement in place in many countries, we postponed our scientific colloquium to 6-7 May 2021. Registration will reopen in early 2021.

Scientific colloquium

Microplastics are small particles of plastic less than 5mm in size; nanoplastics are even smaller, ranging from 1 to 100 nanometres (N.B. 1 nanometre equals one-millionth of a millimetre).

In 2016, EFSA identified the need to generate more data on their occurrence levels in food and on their potential effects on human health following exposure. Recently, international reports on microplastics and nanoplastics have been published, yet many of the food safety aspects remain unaddressed.

Public concern about this topic is high. EFSA’s 2019 Eurobarometer on Food Safety in the EU found that microplastics in food was a topic of increasing concern among EU citizens.

Therefore, EFSA is holding a scientific colloquium with the following objectives:

  • bringing stakeholders together,
  • understanding the current state of play and ongoing research on this topic
  • building possible synergies,

The colloquium will take place on 6-7 May in Lisbon, Portugal.

Structure of the event

The draft programme includes presentations and discussion groups exploring questions on microplastics and nanoplastics in food and feed:

  • Risk assessment: what data gaps need filling to allow risk assessments for health?
  • Society: what is driving public concerns and what can help us to understand people’s risk perceptions?

There will also be a poster session and poster pitch presentations.

Registration

Who should attend?

The meeting is intended for researchers, scientific assessors, policy-makers and others with a potential interest in this topic, e.g. NGOs, industry, journalists. Physical participation is limited to a maximum of 120 participants. The final selection will aim for a balanced representation of expertise and backgrounds.

On-line registration

Registration will open in early 2021.

Contact

Contact the organising committee at scientific.colloquia [at] efsa.europa.eu for more information.