Meeting of national experts on aspartame
On 10-11 November EFSA will hold a meeting of national experts on aspartame in Porto, Portugal. Experts from different countries nominated by their Member States will attend the meeting.
They will exchange views on a draft report prepared by the organising team, which comprises EFSA staff and nominated experts.
The draft report considers the published literature and other data made available as a result of an EFSA call for data in 2008. It reflects input provided by the experts at a preliminary meeting, that took place on 2nd April in London where experts provided advice on how best to approach the available data and offered further sources of scientific literature and points to consider. In addition to considering peer-review literature, the experts will take into account the possible role of anecdotal case histories linking aspartame to adverse health effects.
The meeting is part of an initiative by EFSA and the Advisory Forum, which is made of representatives of the risk assessment bodies in the EU Member States. This work is not being undertaken because of new concerns about the current safety assessments. However, both EFSA and its Advisory Forum recognize that public concern continues despite the risk assessments that have been undertaken. The aim of this initiative is to ensure that every effort has been made to address these concerns. There will be a public consultation on the draft report before it is presented to the EFSA Advisory Forum in early 2010.