Nanotechnology - The New Asbestos?
When you think of nanotechnology, you think of something that is so advanced and something from a science fiction novel or film. But beware nanotechnology is very real and already happening under our noses and we just don’t know about it.
What is nanotechnology?
Nanotechnology is the science of building biological and manufactured materials at a subatomic level. The term ‘nanotechnology’ does not describe a singular technology, but rather encompasses a range of technologies that operate at the scale of the building blocks of biological and manufactured materials – the nanoscale.
In order to understand the unusual world of nanotechnology, we need to get an idea of the units of measure involved. A centimetre is one-hundredth of a meter, a millimetre is one-thousandth of a meter, and a micrometer is one-millionth of a meter, but all of these are still huge compared to the nanoscale. A nanometre (nm) is one-billionth of a meter, smaller than the wavelength of visible light and a hundred-thousandth the width of a human hair (http://science.howstuffworks.com/nanotechnology.htm).
Nanotechnology entering the food chain
A 2007 National Industrial Chemical Notification and Assessment Scheme (NICNAS) report revealed that over ten thousand tonnes of nanomaterials are used in commercial production in Australia each year. It is estimated that over 400 companies worldwide are using nanotechnology in food processing and packaging, and there are already 300 nano-foods on the market. There are no labelling requirements for products that contain nanomaterials. Therefore, secrecy surrounds the commercial use of nanotechnology and nanomaterials by the food industry, and makes it impossible to know for sure whether or not a given product contains nano-ingredients.
Nanotechnology is now used to manufacture some nutritional supplements, flavour, colour additives, food packaging, cling wrap, containers, and chemicals used in agriculture. Industry analysts estimate several hundred nano food products are now on sale internationally.
The following is a selection of major food and agriculture companies engaged in nanotechnology research and development:
Altria (Kraft Foods)
Associated British Foods
Ajinomoto
BASF
Bayer
Cadbury Schweppes
Campbell Soup
Cargill
DuPont Food Industry Solutions
General Mills
Glaxo-SmithKline
Goodman Fielder
Group Danone
John Lust Group Plc
H.J. Heinz
Hershey Foods
La Doria
Maruha
McCain Foods
Mars, Inc.
Nestle
Northern Foods
Nichirei
Nippon Suisan Kaisha
PepsiCo
Sara Lee
Syngenta
Unilever
United Foods
Nanotechnology has potential application in all aspects of agriculture, food processing, food packaging, and even farm and food monitoring such as:
Methods to enable foods such as soft drinks, ice cream, chocolate or chips to be marketed as ‘health’ foods by reducing fat, carbohydrate or calorie content or by increasing protein, fibre or vitamin content;
Production of stronger flavourings, colourings, and nutritional additives, and processing aids to increase the pace of manufacturing, and to lower costs of ingredients and processing;
Development of foods capable of changing their colour, flavour or nutritional properties according to a person’s dietary needs, allergies or taste preferences;
Packaging to increase food shelf life by detecting spoilage, bacteria, or the loss of food nutrient, and to release antimicrobials, flavours, colours, or nutritional supplements in response; and
Re-formulation of on-farm inputs to produce more potent fertilisers, plant growth treatments, and pesticides that respond to specific conditions or targets.
Health risks
The incorporation of manufactured nanomaterials into foods and beverages, nutritional supplements, food packaging, and edible food coatings, fertilisers, pesticides and comprehensive seed treatments presents a whole new array of risks for the public, workers in the food industry and farmers.
Manufactured nanomaterials may pose serious health risks such as:
Our bodies’ defensive mechanisms are not as effective at removing nanoparticles from our lungs, gastro-intestinal tract and organs, as they are with larger particles.
Nanoparticles are also more adhesive than larger particles to surfaces within our bodies. As a result of these factors and their very small size, nanoparticles are much more likely to be taken up into our cells and tissues than are larger particles.
A growing body of evidence demonstrates that some manufactured nanoparticles will be more toxic per unit of mass than larger particles of the same chemical composition. For example, titanium dioxide is considered to be biologically inert in bulk form and is widely used as a food additive. However, in vitro experiments show that as a nanoparticle or particle up to a few hundred nanometres in size, titanium dioxide damages DNA, disrupts the function of cells, interferes with the defence activities of immune cells, and can provoke inflammation. A single high oral dose of titanium dioxide nanoparticles caused significant lesions in the kidneys and livers of female mice.
Non-degradable nanoparticles and small microparticles, which do not provoke an acute toxic response, can accumulate in our bodies and over time result in the development of nanopathologies, for example granulomas, lesions (areas of damaged cells or tissue), cancer, or blood clots.
Why nanoparticles pose new risks:
Nanoparticles are more chemically reactive than larger particles;
Nanoparticles have greater access to our bodies than larger particles;
Greater bioavailability and greater bioactivity may introduce new toxicity risks;
Nanoparticles can compromise our immune system response; and
Nanoparticles may have longer term pathological effects.
Nanotoxicity remains very poorly understood. We don’t know:
What levels of exposure we are currently facing; and
What levels of exposure could harm our health or if there is any safe level of exposure
Occupational health risks must be addressed as a matter of urgency
As with the production of all nanoproducts, workers who handle, manufacture, package or transport foods and agricultural inputs that contain manufactured nanomaterials are likely to face higher levels of nanomaterial exposure than the public, and on a more routine basis. This is of great concern because scientists still do not know what levels of nanomaterial exposure may harm workers’ health, and whether or not any level of occupational exposure to nanomaterials may be safe. Furthermore, reliable systems and equipment to prevent occupational exposure do not yet exist.
What concerned individuals and organisations can do
Hold government and industry to account over nanofoods
Write to your local councillor and Members of State and Federal Parliaments, requesting their support for a moratorium on the use of nanotechnology for the food sector. Demand that governments regulate and label food, food packaging, and agricultural products that contain manufactured nanomaterials, before allowing any further commercial sales.
Contact the manufacturers of foods you eat often and ask them about what steps they are taking to keep unsafe, untested nanomaterials out of the food they sell.
If you are concerned about nano-exposure in your workplace, talk with your colleagues or union representative about opportunities for collective action to secure a safe work place.
Contact civil society organisations you think may be interested in taking action to ensure precautionary management of the use of nanotechnology in food and agriculture applications.
Choose food that is healthy for you and the environment
Make environmentally friendly food and farming choices – look out for the organic label at your supermarket or store.
Buy fair trade products whenever possible.
Support local food producers and small scale retailers and buy directly from local farmers, butchers, and bakers. You could even consider joining a food co-operative or bulk buying scheme.
Avoid eating highly processed foods and eat more fresh food instead. Processed foods not only have higher environmental costs of production, and have lower nutritional value, they are also a big source of incidentally produced nanoparticles in foods.
Avoid highly packaged foods – packaging is energy intensive and produces a lot of waste and is often unnecessary.
Source: Miller, G., and Senjen, R., (2008), Out of the laboratory and on to our plates: Nanotechnology in food and agriculture, Friends of the Earth Australia, Europe, and USA
See http://nano.foe.org.au
