New committee members appointed

The Food Standards Agency has appointed six new members to the Advisory Committee on Novel Foods and Processes (ACNFP). Five members begin their three-year term of membership from September 2012 and the sixth member will commence their term in January 2013.

One ex-officio member will also be joining the committee in November 2012 (by virtue of their position on the Department of Health’s Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition, SACN).

What is the ACNFP?

The ACNFP is a non-statutory, independent body of scientific experts that advises the FSA on any matters relating to novel foods (including genetically modified foods) and novel processes (including food irradiation).

There are 16 committee members in total. The term of office for five of the new members ends on 31 August 2015 and the term of office for the sixth new member will end on 31 December 2015.

Members are appointed to ensure that a broad spectrum of relevant eminent scientific expertise and knowledge is represented on the committee in order that issues can be examined thoroughly and individual novel food applications can be considered on their merits.

Members have expertise in a wide range of disciplines including genetic modification, nutrition, microbiology, food technology, toxicology and allergenicity. There are also three lay members: two consumer representatives, who provide a valuable insight into consumer concerns; and an ethicist, who advises on ethical issues relating to new foods and processes, including genetically modified foods.

Biographies of new ACNFP members

Susan Duthie

Dr Susan Duthie is a Senior Research Scientist in the Nutrition and Epigenetics Group of the Rowett Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Aberdeen.

Her research interest is in understanding how nutrition, especially the B vitamins (such as folate, vitamin B12 and riboflavin), and other dietary phytochemicals (including polyphenols), influence human health.

Simon Flanagan

Simon Flanagan is Senior Consultant in Food Safety and Allergens for Reading Scientific Services Ltd.

Nichola Lund

Nichola Lund is a trading standards officer with the North East London Metrology Partnership where she manages and co-ordinates weights and measures work for a partnership of five local authorities.

Harry McArdle

Professor Harry McArdle is currently Deputy Director of Science and the Director of Academic Affairs at the Rowett Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Aberdeen.

His main research interests involve micronutrients and the critical role they play in growth and development. He has been a member of SACN since December 2009.

George Macfarlane

Professor George Macfarlane BSc, PhD is Professor of Bacteriology at the University of Dundee.

His research interests include: human colonic bacteria, ecology, physiology, and pathogenicity, ageing and the intestinal microbiota, environmental regulation of virulence determinants in pathogenic microorganisms, growth and metabolic activities of intestinal bacteria on mucosal surfaces and biofilms, bacterial involvement in inflammatory bowel disease and cancer, probiotics and prebiotics.

Dr Rohini Manuel

Dr Manuel is a Consultant Medical Microbiologist at the Public Health Laboratory London, Barts Health NHS Trust.

Dr Manuel’s main interests are in gastrointestinal infections and diseases, particularly those affecting immunocompromised individuals. Her specialist area of interest is mycology.

Carina Venter (from January 2013)

Dr Carina Venter is Senior Allergy Dietician at the David Hide Asthma and Allergy Research Centre, St Mary’s Hospital, Newport, Isle of Wight, and a Senior Lecturer and National Institute for Health Research Post Doctorate Research Fellow at the University of Portsmouth.

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