SAFETY OF NOVEL FOODS AND FEEDS

experts collaborate actively, given the increasing use of biotech products and breeding activities worldwide. They include key partners (Brazil, P.R. China, India, Indonesia, South Africa), other interested countries (e.g. Argentina, Kenya, Paraguay, Philippines, Russian Federation, Thailand, Uruguay, Viet Nam); Business at OECD (BIAC); FAO; UNEP; the Convention on Biological Diversity Secretariat; the African Biosafety Network of Expertise (AUDA NEPAD-ABNE) and the Agriculture and Food Systems Institute. Participation from non-OECD countries is supported by the Global Forum on Biotechnology. The 35th meeting of the WP-HROB, held online in March 2021, had a record number of participants, with nearly 150 attendees from 43 delegations. The publication of Consensus/Guidance Documents remains a major output of the programme. They constitute a set of practical tools for regulators and biosafety assessors dealing with new transgenic plant varieties and organisms, with respect to environmental safety. The 60 Consensus Documents issued to date address a range of subjects including the biology of crops (recently on safflower), trees and microorganisms, as well as selected traits that have been introduced in plants. Two biology documents deal with animal species, Atlantic salmon and mosquito Aedes aegypti where engineered strains are being used to fight against dengue fever and other tropical diseases spread. Other key issues in the context of environmental risk assessment are also covered. For the first time this year, the summary of recent developments in delegations on biosafety issues, prepared for the ‘Tour-de-table’ at the 35th WP-HROB meeting, was published in May 2021. All these documents are available through the OECD BioTrack website (www.oecd.org/science/biotrack). Works under development are as follows:  Crop and animal species: revision of the rice and wheat biology documents; biology of mosquito

Anopheles gambiae that is the main vector of malaria;  Micro-organisms: biology and use of phototrophic micro-algae for production purposes;  Biosafety assessment key issues: Environmental Considerations for the release of transgenic plants, for which a publication is expected in 2021;  Joint bio-food safety projects contemplated for future work: reviewing the OECD Council

Recommendation on the safety of recombinant DNA organisms; enhanced information exchange on

New Breeding Techniques; moving towards “safe-by-design” in the context of modern biotechnology. Upcoming event:  36th Meeting of the Working Party on the Harmonisation of

Regulatory Oversight in Biotechnology, 30 March–1 April 2022 Recent publications:  Consensus Document on the Biology of Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius) (2020)  Updated “Points to Consider for Consensus Documents on

Biotechnology of Cultivated Plants” (2020)  Developments in Delegations on Biosafety Issues, April 2020 –

March 2021 (issued May 2021) Website: BioTrack Online www.oecd.org/science/biotrack Contacts: Akihiro Kagoshima, Bertrand Dagallier, Natsuo Komoto (ENV/EHS)

SAFETY OF NOVEL FOODS AND FEEDS

The OECD Working Party for the Safety of Novel Foods and Feeds (WP-SNFF) addresses aspects of the safety assessment of foods and feeds derived from genetically engineered crops. The work aims to ensure that the types of elements used in risk/safety assessment, as well as the methods to collect such 8

information, are as similar as possible amongst countries. The approach is to compare transgenic crops and derived products with similar conventional ones that are already known and considered safe in their use, based on recognised experience. Harmonised methods and practice, as well as share of data are facilitated through the WP-SNFF activities. The 28th meeting of the WP-SNFF was held in March 2021 online, with a large participation from 40 delegations. Consensus documents The main output is the set of consensus documents on compositional considerations for new varieties of specific crops. These documents compile a common base of scientific information on the major components of the plants and their derived products: key nutrients; toxicants; anti-nutrients; and other plant metabolites where relevant. The document on the composition of potato, a revision of the 2002 publication, was issued in December 2020; it constitutes a key achievement of broad interest as potato is the fourth global staple crop and its tubers are used worldwide for foods, feeds and industrial uses. Other publications deal with general aspects to facilitate harmonisation in safety assessment. These documents constitute practical tools for regulators and risk assessors dealing with new transgenic varieties, with respect to human food and animal feed safety. To date, 28 Consensus Documents have been published on major crops and mushrooms, the animal feedstuffs, as well as the molecular characterisation of plants derived from modern biotechnology developed in common with the WP-HROB. They are available through the OECD BioTrack website (www.oecd.org/biotrack).

On-going projects focus on updating the maize composition document and developing a guidance document on best practices for collaborative work on the safety of novel foods and feeds. Joint WP-HROB/WP-SNFF projects are also contemplated for future work: reviewing the Council Recommendation of recombinant DNA organisms; and applying the “safe-by-design” concept to biotechnology products. Outreach and Engagement of Non Member Economies Officials from OECD countries and delegates from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), Business at OECD (BIAC), observer organisations such as FAO, UNEP and AFSI, participate actively in the novel food and feed safety programme. In addition, the WP-SNFF has increasingly involved the experience, scientific knowledge and interests of non-member economies, which allows it to address a wider range of food and feed products of global interest. Brazil, South Africa and Thailand, for example, were actively involved in the drafting of consensus documents on compositional considerations for cowpea, cassava, papaya as well as other tropical crops. The WP-SNFF benefits also from the expertise from Argentina, India, Kenya, Paraguay, Philippines, Uruguay, Viet Nam and the African Biosafety Network of Expertise (AUDA NEPAD-ABNE). Participation from non-OECD countries is supported by the Global Forum on Biotechnology. Upcoming events:  29th Meeting of the Working Party for the Safety of Novel Foods & Feeds, 28-30 March 2022

Recent publications:  Revised Consensus Document on Compositional Considerations for New

Varieties of Potato (Solanum tuberosum) (Dec. 2020)  Development in OECD Delegations on the Safety Assessment of

Novel Foods and Feeds, April 2020 – March 2021 (issued in May 2021) Website: BioTrack Online www.oecd.org/biotrack Contacts: Natsuo Komoto, Bertrand Dagallier, Akihiro Kagoshima (ENV/EHS)

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