Event Dates: 
Monday, June 8, 2020 - 09:00 to Tuesday, June 9, 2020 - 17:00
Event Venue: 
TBA

Save the date! Microplastics and nanoplastics in food and feed, EFSA 25th Scientific Colloquium, 8-9 June 2020

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.

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 8 and 9 June 2020. The venue will be announced at a later stage together with the opening of a call for abstracts (see below).

Structure of the event

The programme will include 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?

The programme will also feature a poster session and poster pitch presentations.

Call for abstracts

We would like to receive proposals for oral presentations and posters to help us complete the scientific programme. A call for abstracts will open in November 2019. The colloquium outcomes and abstracts of contributions will feature in a special issue of the EFSA Journal.

Registration

Online registration to attend the workshop will open in February 2020 HERE.

Contact

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