Accurate nut tests for processed food
For those of us who do not suffer with food intolerance, a meal is not fraught with anxiety. However, an estimated 1-2% of citizens in Europe have an allergy to some sort of food. For them, a meal may not quite be so pleasant if it contains an unexpected allergen. This may be a problem particularly where there is inadequate labelling as regards ingredients and potential allergenic contaminants, perhaps the most notable being nuts. The EU Directive 2003/89 outlines regulations as regards labelling of food and drink with particular regard to allergens likely to be found in foodstuff. Taking this into account, it is vital that there are accurate and rapid means of assessment for the presence of peanut and hazelnut. Accordingly, to determine the level of incidence of these nuts in a food sample, ALLERGENTEST, an EC-funded project developed and validated two types of assay. A test kit for a quantitative enzyme-linked immune sorbent assay (ELISA) capable of detecting the level of protein in a food sample was produced. Also, a qualititive lateral flow device (LFD), another antibody-based assay for the two nuts was also developed with the creation of two resultant prototypes. Results of the survey showed that the food most likely to contain undeclared nuts were biscuits, then milk and dark chocolate, followed by breakfast cereals. For lovers of some dairy products, there was good news because ice cream and yoghurt were placed at the bottom of the list. Researchers recommended that producers exercise more caution when selecting ingredients to minimise risk, clean production lines to avoid accidental contamination and fully implement Directive 2003/89 to ensure maximum protection of consumers. The results of this study have been published in peer review journals and it is anticipated that there will be commercialisation of the best performing ELISA and LFD test kits.
