Contributions of the joint FAO/WHO expert committee on food additives to international food safety: celebrating the 100th meeting of the committee

Abstract

The Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) is an international scientific committee that carries out safety and risk assessments on substances that are intended to be added to food or may be present in food. It advises the Codex Alimentarius Commission and the member countries of the Food and Agricultural Organization and the World Health Organization. In 2025, JECFA has its 100th meeting. This paper reviews the work of JECFA since its inception in 1956. The Committee has evaluated over 660 food additives, 105 enzymes, 2500 flavourings, 11 groups of natural toxicants, 12 metals, 25 groups of synthetic chemical contaminants, and residues of 115 veterinary drugs. The Committee has made major contributions internationally on risk assessment methodology for food safety, including the setting of health-based guidance values for chemicals in food, the evaluation of genotoxic and carcinogenic contaminants in food, benchmark dose analysis, use of body burden comparisons, and global approaches to dietary exposure assessment. JECFA advice is independent and based on objective, state-of-the-science assessment of the evidence. Its advice and evaluations are a freely available online resource and play a pivotal role in ensuring the protection of consumer health and enabling the international trade of safe food.

Keywords: Enzymes; Flavourings; Food additives; Food safety; JECFA; Veterinary drug residues.