The global movement of consumers, investor and workers around the world, SumOfUs, has launched a new sign petition campaign that has the main objective to ask the EU to protect the food safety of the continent.
According to SumOfUS, leaked EU documents show that big corporations have seized control of our food safety regulations. Under corporate pressure, the EU is set to adopt meaningless “guidelines” that will mean dangerously high levels of a substance called acrylamide in our food. Even the EU’s own food safety experts say this substance could damage our DNA and increase the risk of cancer. In the coming days, the European Commissioner for Health will consider the draft proposal. But a public outcry across Europe for real, legal limits that protect people (not profits!) can still beat the lobbyists.
With basic measures, levels of the substance called acrylamide in our food can be dramatically reduced. But leaked EU legislation shows that corporate lobbyists are using a backroom committee procedure to prevent any real action. Under the proposal, acrylamide would be regulated through easily ignored-voluntary guidelines that won’t decrease the dangers at all. Acrylamide is a dangerous carcinogenic substance that is found in many foods that we eat every day: from potato crisps to toast, biscuits and even baby food. Last year’s scientific opinion from the European Food Safety Agency (EFSA) warned that acrylamide is a public health concern, as “it potentially increases the risk of developing cancer in consumers of all ages”. Children and babies are particularly vulnerable.