Small may not be beautiful
Imagine a low-fat ice-cream that tastes just as creamy as an unhealthier, full-fat version. Or a colourless drink that bursts into the flavour of your choosing at the flick of a microwave switch. Or intelligent food packaging that detects if the contents are beginning to spoil, changes colour to alert you, and then releases a preservative.
These are some of the promises of nanotechnology, a revolutionary area of research at the atomic or molecular scale of matter. Nanotechnology is expected to have a huge impact on many aspects of our lives, including medicine and the environment, with the development of materials and devices that can monitor blood, detect environmental pollutants and store energy better.
But one of its most immediate effects will be on our food. An estimated 200 companies worldwide are conducting research using nanotechnology to develop foods with new tastes and textures, as well as to improve packaging and enhance nutrient absorption.
Some products containing nano-sized particles are already on the market. In America and Europe, nano-sized ingredients have been added to some fruit juices, processed meats, diet milkshakes and baby food.
But consumers would not know, as there are no requirements to label the presence of nanoparticles in food. Concerns are also growing about the possible harmful effects of nano-sized materials on human health and the environment.
In a comprehensive review of the issue, a British researcher, Dr Qasim Chaudhry, and his team conclude there are major gaps in knowledge about the safety of nanoparticles. "The toxicological nature of hazard, likelihood of exposure and risk to consumers from nanotechnology-derived food and food packaging are largely unknown," says Chaudhry, of Britain's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs' Central Science Laboratory. Their study is published in this month's Food Additives and Contaminants journal.
Evidence that nanoparticles are more chemically reactive than larger particles, and that some are toxic to cells has prompted the environmental group Friends of the Earth, as well as the NSW Greens, to call for a moratorium on the use of nano-sized ingredients in food, food packaging or surfaces that can come into contact with food.
Friends of the Earth spokeswoman, Georgia Miller, says it is possible nano-sized ingredients are already present in Australian food, but without labelling or regulations it is impossible to know. "There is no way for anyone to choose to eat nano-free," says Miller, co-author of a report called Out Of The Laboratory And Onto Our Plate, Nanotechnology In Food And Agriculture.
Food Standards Australia New Zealand says it is not aware of any commercially sold foods in Australia that have been developed using nanotechnology, and says "robust regulatory arrangements to ensure the safety of food" are in place.
