ABSTRACT
The current world food supply, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), will not be sufficient to feed the world's population by 2050, even with proposed increases in food production. This highlights the need for some form of intervention, whether it is investment in agricultural production or implementation of more sustainable policies. This chapter looks at the current application of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) in the food industry and takes a look at safety aspects along the farm-to-fork continuum, with particular emphasis on risk assessment strategies. One of the most significant issues associated with the application of traditional risk assessment to ENMs is the lack of data related to their unique physicochemical properties and how these affect their bioavailability, ability to accumulate, potentially heightened exposure, and toxicity. The development of risk assessment frameworks for the use of ENMs in the food industry is still very much in its infancy.
