The United Kingdom’s Committee on Mutagenicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment (COM) stated that there is “little evidence” of health concerns around the presence of titanium dioxide (TiO2) in nanoform. This follows a screening and evaluation of papers on the use of TiO2 as a food additive (E171).
The COM analysed the studies referenced in the EFSA opinion (EFSA, 2021) and conducted additional literature research to identify papers published between 2021 to 2023. The COM concluded that there is a lack of scientific evidence to point to concerns around the ingestion of TiO2.
The committee cited the following evidence:
- There is little evidence in the literature to suggest that there is a health concern related to in vivo genotoxicity induction by TiO2, particularly via the oral route.
- The results of the studies have not been consistently replicated in different laboratories, demonstrating a discrepancy in the outcomes.
- E171 would not fall under the definition of a nano material and the studies assessed by the COM are not representative of E171, where the fraction of nanoparticulate is less than 50% and according to the recent guidance on the implementation of the Commission Recommendation 2022/C 229/01 on the definition of nanomaterial..
TDMA is committed to expanding scientific research and insight and removing any perceived data gaps through a rigorous scientific programme which involves high quality studies (OECD compliant).
The TDMA welcomes this opinion.
