Nanotechnologies and Food

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Nutrition
Nanotechnologies could in future enable food scientists to make low fat mayonnaises and ice creams without losing the characteristic texture of the original products.

Nanotechnologies can also facilitate the thorough mixing of ingredients such as vitamins into food and can help prevent damage during processing or storage so that they are available to be absorbed into the body. Combining these ingredients with an inert carrier is a common way of making them easier to use and nanoscale carriers may be a particularly effective method for doing this.

Packaging
Manufactured nanomaterials are being proposed for use in food packaging, to help reduce the weight of packaging, make it stronger and less permeable to oxygen and thus extend the life of products.

Manufactured nanomaterials could also be used to provide easy-clean or anti-bacterial coatings on pipes and other surfaces that come into contact with food.

Are nanofoods already on the market?
Traditional foods such as milk and ice cream are made up of components such as fats and proteins that are organised in very small assemblies which could be thought of as “natural” nanoparticles. Additionally some established ingredients are used as very fine powders or as water and oil emulsions and these may contain some nanoparticles.

In terms of manufactured nanoparticles, the Foods Standards Agency is aware of two products that can currently be found on the UK market. These are both food supplements:

1. Colloidal silver, which contains tiny particles of metallic silver. This product is unlikely to be permitted after January 2010, when new EU-wide controls on mineral supplements will come into effect.

2. A specific formulation of co-enzyme Q10 combined with a carrier in nanoscale packages, which allows this fat-soluble substance to be mixed with water and to be more effectively taken into the body.

As a general rule, any manufactured nanomaterial could only be added to food after passing a rigorous safety assessment.

Managing risks and uncertainties
It is necessary to carry out a detailed evaluation of each individual case of nanotechnologies in food as each will be different. For example, changes to the structure and texture of a food are unlikely to affect its safety, but the addition of insoluble nanoparticles raises more serious questions about how these very small particles will behave in the body. Reducing the particle size of an existing ingredient or using advanced carrier systems can alter the way the ingredient behaves. Nanomaterials in food packaging could present problems if they transfer into or onto the food, but not if they remain in the packaging.

As a general rule, any change to the way that food is made needs careful examination, to make sure that the change does not affect the safety of the food.

Conclusions
Nanotechnologies are unlikely to have huge impact on the food sector in the immediate future. The main area of application is likely to be the use of engineered nanomaterials in packaging.

Below is a SWOT analysis summarising Government understanding, from discussion with stakeholders, of the major strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats facing the UK in this sector. Please help to steer future actions and shape the UK business environment by answering the questions on the right hand side of the page.

Link to Food Standards Agency