New food allergen tests

Using a new test system currently under development by the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) Germany and due to be launched at the beginning of 2012, food processors may be able to detect minute traces of food allergens in their products on-site, within 10 minutes.

A spokesperson for BfR said the test system involves three methods; one is DNA-based (PCR); one is protein-based (ELISA) and one is a combination of both. As a result, the tests will be easier to carry out, cheaper and more sensitive than existing methods. It is intended that various allergens could be analysed in parallel, including those that have been difficult to detect up to now.

The spokesperson maintained the reproducibility of current methods is not sufficient to establish a recognised clinical threshold for food allergens, and the new BfR method will help to reduce ambiguity on labelling where allergens are present in food unintentionally.

The research project to develop the new test method is supported by the Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection in Germany. For more information, go to www.bfr.bund.de