''The Food Defect Action Levels: Levels of Natural or Unavoidable Defects in Foods That Present No Health Hazards for Humans'' is a publication of the
United States Food and Drug Administration
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respo ...
's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition
[The Food Defect Action Levels](_blank)
last revised November 2005 detailing acceptable levels of food contamination from sources such as
maggots
A maggot is the larva of a fly (order Diptera); it is applied in particular to the larvae of Brachycera flies, such as houseflies, cheese flies, hoverflies, and blowflies, rather than larvae of the Nematocera, such as mosquitoes and cran ...
,
thrips
Thrips (Order (biology) , order Thysanoptera) are minute (mostly long or less), slender insects with fringed wings and unique asymmetrical mouthparts. Entomologists have species description , described approximately 7,700 species. They fly on ...
, insect fragments, "foreign matter",
mold
A mold () or mould () is one of the structures that certain fungus, fungi can form. The dust-like, colored appearance of molds is due to the formation of Spore#Fungi, spores containing Secondary metabolite#Fungal secondary metabolites, fungal ...
,
rodent
Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the Order (biology), order Rodentia ( ), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and Mandible, lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal specie ...
hairs, and insect and mammalian
feces
Feces (also known as faeces American and British English spelling differences#ae and oe, or fæces; : faex) are the solid or semi-solid remains of food that was not digested in the small intestine, and has been broken down by bacteria in the ...
.
The publication details the acceptable amounts of contaminants on a per food basis, listing both the defect source (pre-harvest infection,
processing infestation, processing contamination, etc.) and significance (aesthetic, potential health hazard, mouth/tooth injury, etc.). For example, the limit of insect contaminants allowed in
canned or frozen
peach
The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and Agriculture, cultivated in China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and the glossy-skinned, non-fuzzy varieties called necta ...
es is specified as: "In 12 1-pound cans or equivalent, one or more
larva
A larva (; : larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into their next life stage. Animals with indirect development such as insects, some arachnids, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase ...
e and/or larval fragments whose aggregate length exceeds 5 mm."
''The Food Defect Action Levels'' was first published in 1995. A printed version of the publication may be obtained by written request to the Food and Drug Administration or see
External links
An internal link is a type of hyperlink on a web page to another page or resource, such as an image or document, on the same website or domain. It is the opposite of an external link, a link that directs a user to content that is outside its d ...
below.
Health hazards
The insect fragments are classified as an aesthetic problem. ''The Food Defect Action Levels'' states that these contaminants "pose no inherent hazard to health".
Additional examples
See also
*
Home stored product entomology
Home-stored product entomology is the study of insects that infest foodstuffs stored in the home. It deals with the prevention, detection and eradication of Pest (organism), pests.
This field is related to forensic entomology, as consumers who ...
*
Food safety
Food safety (or food hygiene) is used as a scientific method/discipline describing handling, food processing, preparation, and food storage, storage of food in ways that prevent foodborne illness. The occurrence of two or more cases of a simi ...
*
Insects as food
Insects as food or edible insects are insect species used for human consumption. Over 2 billion people are estimated to eat insects on a daily basis. Globally, more than 2,000 insect species are considered edible, though far fewer are discussed ...
*
Criticism of the Food and Drug Administration
Numerous governmental and non-governmental organizations have criticized the U. S. Food and Drug Administration for alleged excessive and/or insufficient regulation. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is an agency of the United States Dep ...
References
External links
''The Food Defect Action Levels''from the U.S. FDA
*Levy, E. J. (February 12, 2009)
''New York Times''.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Food Defect Action Levels, The: Levels of natural or unavoidable defects in foods that present no health hazards for humans
Food and Drug Administration
Food safety in the United States
Publications of the United States government