Abstract
Mycotoxins are major food contaminants affecting global food security, especially in low and middle-income countries. The European Union (EU) funded project, MycoKey, focuses on “Integrated and innovative key actions for mycotoxin management in the food and feed chains” and the right to safe food through mycotoxin management strategies and regulation, which are fundamental to minimizing the unequal access to safe and sufficient food worldwide. As part of the MycoKey project, a Mycotoxin Charter (charter.mycokey.eu) was launched to share the need for global harmonization of mycotoxin legislation and policies and to minimize human and animal exposure worldwide, with particular attention to less developed countries that lack effective legislation. This document is in response to a demand that has built through previous European Framework Projects—MycoGlobe and MycoRed—in the previous decade to control and reduce mycotoxin contamination worldwide. All suppliers, participants and beneficiaries of the food supply chain, for example, farmers, consumers, stakeholders, researchers, members of civil society and government and so forth, are invited to sign this charter and to support this initiative.
Highlights
Food safety is a pervasive concern of both the general public and of government authorities worldwide
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the WHO International Programme on Chemical Safety (IPCS) have both declared that humans have a right to food free from mycotoxins that could cause significant health risk
We believe that only our collective action as citizens, together with businesses and local, national and international institutions, will enable us to overcome the major challenges posed by mycotoxin contamination and to improve food safety at a global level
Summary
Food safety is a pervasive concern of both the general public and of government authorities worldwide. Mycotoxin exposures are not thought to directly affect human health in the developed countries of western Europe, Canada and the United States, increased costs of food, especially for the most economically disadvantaged can alter purchasing decisions. In developed countries, these problems generally are invisible but their management is an economic burden for producers, processors and consumers. Commission established by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) has adopted many food standards, guidelines and codes of practice applicable for mycotoxins in food and feed These standards, guidelines and codes contribute to food safety and quality and to fairness in the global food trade.
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