ATOVA's June 2025 Newsletter! 🌼
- Atova
- Jul 9
- 11 min read
Updated: Sep 15
✨ Dear subscriber,
Welcome to the June edition of the Atova Newsletter! Thank you for signing up to receive our updates and insights - we're pleased to have you with us as we continue to explore the ever-evolving regulatory landscape.
In this issue, we delve into the current landscape of novel food regulations across the EU, UK, and US, along with key updates from around the world. 🌍
With best wishes
The Atova team 💚🌱
🚨 Don’t miss out on savings of €300 - Early Bird tickets for the Regulating the Future of Food Conference are on sale now! 🚨
🗓️ 29–30 October 2025
📍 RAI, Amsterdam
🤝 In collaboration with Vireo Advisors, LLC and co-located with The Future of Protein Production
At this year’s conference, we’re bringing together international regulators, innovators, and industry leaders to:
✅ Tackle the key regulatory challenges in novel foods
✅ Explore science-based approaches to risk assessment
✅ Propose concrete solutions for evolving regulatory frameworks
✅ Drive collaboration and actionable change
Don't miss out on your chance to join us for talks by top regulatory experts, panel discussions and deep-dive workshops!
The Atova team have had a busy June, attending many great events around the world.
Future Food-Tech Chicago
At the beginning of June, Hannah Lester attended Future Food-Tech Chicago. During this event, Hannah moderated a panel on Prioritising Food Innovation: Adapting to Regulation and Policy, where she was joined by a fantastic group of senior leaders for a deep dive into how regulatory shifts are shaping the future of food innovation. Together, the panel explored:
🔹 Government and regulatory priorities reshaping food systems
🔹 Updates on global frameworks for novel and alternative foods
🔹 How food industry leaders are adapting their strategies
🔹 Where new growth opportunities are emerging worldwide
The Atova team will also be attending and sponsoring the Future Food Tech London event in September. If you are attending, we would love to meet you there!
Opening of the new Biotechnology Fermentation Factory at NIZO
On 6th June, Hannes Malfroy, Novel Food & Regulatory Specialist at Atova, attended the opening of the new Biotechnology Fermentation Factory (BFF) at the NIZO site in Ede, the Netherlands. NIZO is a contract development and manufacturing organisation (CDMO) and contract research organisation (CRO) specialising in food technology. The BFF is a scale-up facility focused on precision fermentation and offers direct connections to the existing NIZO food-grade downstream processing (DSP) pilot plant and food application research. Hannes attended the presentations and facility tour to explore potential synergies between NIZO’s activities and Atova’s regulatory support services to accommodate our clients’ needs.
Nurasa - Novel Food Regulatory Support Launch
On 17th June, Hannah Lester joined fellow industry experts to explore the key hurdles, challenges, and solutions for achieving regulatory success in food innovation. This event, by Nurasa, gathered key experts to explore and share actionable solutions for regulatory hurdles, particularly tailored for start-ups, ecosystem builders and regulatory professionals in the novel food industry.
Developing Standards for ‘Food-Safe’ Culture Media in Cultivated Meat and Seafood Applications
On 25th June 2025, Regulatory Scientist and Toxicologist, Fernando, attended the “Workshop: Developing Standards for ‘Food-Safe’ Culture Media in Cultivated Meat and Seafood Applications” held at Imperial College London. The event aimed to develop standardized methods for measuring residual growth factors in cultivated meat and seafood. It was organised by Vireo Advisors and Multus in collaboration with Aberystwyth University and supported by workshop partners including the Bezos Centre at Imperial College, Austrian Centre of Industrial Biotechnology (ACIB), Good Food Institute (GFI), New Harvest/FEASTS, Hoxton Farms, Ivy Farm, Qkine, and RSSL.
Here we let you know the latest European updates from June 2025, with data retrieved from European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Commission (EC).
Recent Novel Food Dossier and Traditional Food Notifications Received by EFSA
During June there was one novel food dossier submission published on Open EFSA by the applicant, Freddy Encina.
Traditional food notification – Cavia Porcellus (Received: 13.06.2025)
EFSA Published Opinions
There were two EFSA novel food opinions published on Open EFSA in June.
Name of Product | Dossier Received by EFSA | Validated | Opinion Published | Time to Opinion |
15/01/2020 | 19/08/2020 | 10/06/2025 | 65.5 months | |
01/10/2018 | 29/04/2019 | 05/06/2025 | 81.5 months |
EFSA Public Consultations
There have been four novel food public consultations completed in June.
EFSA Working Group Meeting
The Scientific Panel on Nutrition, Novel Foods and Food Allergens has now released the minutes for the 168th Working Group meeting on Novel Foods. This meeting included discussions on duck cells from cell culture, microbial hydrolysate from V. natriegens, serratiopeptidasi, fucoidan extract from Cladosiphan okamuranus, potato protein, whole cell heat-killed non-GMM Mycolicibacterium aurum and DHA-rich oil from Schizochytrium limacinum. These minutes are available here.
EFSA to review the use of 90-day oral toxicity studies for food enzymes
There has been an EFSA self-task mandate for the review of the 90-day oral toxicity studies in rodents for regulatory approval of food enzymes. This was proposed by the Food Enzymes Panel (FEZ) to generate a Scientific Opinion on phasing out the use of 90-day oral toxicity studies in rodents in food enzyme risk assessment. Find out more here.
EFSA QPS List
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has just published an update to their qualified presumption of safety (QPS) list. The QPS process was developed to assess the safety of microorganisms used in food and feed chain. Between October 2024 to March 2025, 47 microorganisms were notified to EFSA. 41 of 47 were not evaluated because the 11 filamentous fungi, four Escherichia coli and one Streptomyces spp. are all excluded from QPS evaluation, a further 25 were already on the QPS list and two species had already been evaluated.
Of the four species evaluated:
✅ Bacillus sonorensis is recommended for QPS with qualifications, no bacitracin production and no toxigenic activity.
✅ Vibrio natriegens is recommended for QPS for production purposes only.
❌ Corynebacterium stationis was not recommended for QPS because of limited knowledge of occurrence in the food/feed chain and potential safety concerns.
❌ Papilotrema terrestris was not recommended for QPS because of a limited body of knowledge.
EFSA to evaluate production processes used to remove recombinant DNA
EFSA has accepted a European Commission (EC) mandate to look into existing production processes used to remove recombinant DNA from fermentation products using genetically modified microorganisms (GMMs). The mandate M-2025-00056 has now been allocated to the Feed and Contaminants Unit to be assigned a Question Number and EFSA will deliver an output by 31st October 2025. Find out more information here.
EC Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed (SCoPAFF)
European Commission Questions
On 13.03.2025, questions on the concerns about the European Food Safety Authority's risk assessment of soy leghemoglobin were submitted to the European Commission at the European Parliament. These questions were answered by Mr Várhelyi on behalf of the European Commission on 18.06.2025, the answers to which can be found here.
Article 4 Novel Food Consultations
There have been four Article 4 novel food consultations published on the EC website in June. Two of which were deemed not novel and the other two considered novel.
Wheat wholegrain protein concentrate (Triticum aestivum L.) - Not Novel
Bacillus coagulans/ Heyndrickxia coagulans - Not Novel in Food Supplements
Vangueria agrestis (syn. Fadogia agrestis) - 10:1 herb extract - Novel
Horse mint (Mentha longifolia (L.) L./Lamiaceae) dried leaves and flowers - Novel
Regulation EU 2024/1987
As of 1st July 2025, Regulation EU 2024/1987 will be in effect. This is an update from Regulation EU 2023/915, with the new regulation setting maximum allowable levels of nickel in various food products to ensure high standards for public health, particularly those in vulnerable groups such as children and individuals with allergies.
Starting from 1st July, the new limits will apply to the following:
Tree nuts - maximum levels varying depending on type
Vegetables - including root, leaf, stem, fruit, bulb and tuber
Legumes and soy/edamame beans
Grain legumes - higher maximum limits for lupins and dried beans
Fruit and vegetable juices
Oilseeds - such as sunflower seeds, peanuts, and soybeans
Seaweed - specific thresholds for wakame
Cocoa and chocolate products - including milk chocolate and cocoa powder
Foods for infants and young children - such as powdered and liquid formulas
Study: Labelling of plant-based seafood substitutes
In June, the European Parliament, at the request of the European Parliament's Fisheries Committee, published a study on the labelling of vegetable-based seafood substitutes. This focused on the recent developments of this market and the challenges that it has generated for the EU fisheries sector in terms of labelling. The study also proposes some adjustments to the current EU legal framework to ensure accurate information is provided to consumers on the labelling of novel products. Read the full study here.
Ireland
UK Advisory Committee on Novel Foods & Processes (ACNFP)
The ACNFP met on Tuesday 24th June 2025. During this meeting, the committee discussed Fusarium str. flavolapis RP1637, β-lactoglobulin RP1571, Fermotein RP1215, Allulose RP1130, and Genetically modified organism applications RP1745, 2178 and 2242 (reserved business). You can view the agenda here.
ACNFP Subcommittee on Cell Cultivated Products Destined for Food and Feed Purposes (ACNFP-CCP)
The first meeting of the ACNFP-CCP was held on 19th June with the subcommittee due to consider the guidance required to support allergenicity risk assessment for CCP applications (ACNFP_CCP/1/02) and to support nutritional disadvantage risk assessment for CCP application (ACNFP_CCP/1/03). Read the full agenda here.
Food Standards Agency (FSA)
Board Meeting
The Board met on Wednesday 18th June to discuss the national-level regulation, market authorisations reform, updates on the evaluation of the meat charging discount regime and the annual chief scientific adviser's report. View the full agenda and the questions due to be asked here.
New Support Service for Cell-Cultivated Products for the UK Market
The Food Standards Agency (FSA), in collaboration with Food Standards Scotland (FSS), has launched a new support service to guide companies developing cell-cultivated products for the market in the UK.
This service offers:
Pre- and post-submission support
Guidance on applicable regulatory requirements
Help identify relevant information in existing guidance materials
This great new initiative aims to support applicants throughout the lifecycle of the authorisation process. Find out more here.
Article 4 Novel Food Consultations
An Article 4 novel food consultation was submitted to determine the status of non-selective aqueous decoctions of monk fruit (made from the fresh and dried fruit of the plant Siraitia grosvenorii). The FSA determined that this was not a novel food as there was evidence of a history of consumption within the UK and the EU. The evidence, considered in its totality, was deemed sufficient to demonstrate a significant history of consumption before 15 May 1997.
US FDA
The FDA has proposed a science-based method using Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) to prioritise chemicals in the food supply for post-market review, aiming to focus on substances that may pose the greatest public health risk. This transparent approach will help the agency allocate resources more effectively and protect consumers, including sensitive populations. The method has been released for public comment. The comment period ends on July 18, 2025, and is currently open for comments here.
The FDA has updated its Compliance Program 7321.005, which guides inspections and enforcement related to food labelling for both domestic and imported products. While the update does not impact the regulatory pathways for novel foods, it is relevant for companies preparing to commercialise new ingredients in the US market. Updates include allergen labelling (e.g. sesame), gluten-free claims, and alignment with Nutrition Facts label changes. These requirements apply once a novel food is approved and placed on the US market.
The FDA’s Human Foods Program has published their proposed 2025 guidance agenda. This includes some possible new topics and revisions to guidance documents. This includes:
Action Level for Opiate Alkaloids on Poppy Seeds: Draft Guidance for Industry
Food Colors Derived from Natural Sources: Fruit Juice and Vegetable Juice as Color Additives in Food; Draft Guidance for Industry
New Dietary Ingredient Notifications and Related Issues: Identity and Safety Information About the NDI: Guidance for Industry
View the complete list here.
Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations
FAO expert meeting on risk assessment of food allergens
From 16th - 20th June, the FAO and WHO held an international, expert meeting to focus on developing scientific guidance for qualitative risk assessment of food allergens. The objective of this consultation is to create practical, science-based guidance to help governments and food business operators identify, assess and manage risks relating to food allergens to help support food safety. Through evaluating recent literature, regulatory guidelines and industry practices, they aim to ensure the new framework is robust and accessible.
FAO Global Agrifood Biotechnologies Conference 2025
The FAO Global Agrifood Biotechnologies Conference was held 16th-18th June in Rome. This brought together policymakers, experts and practitioners to explore how biotechnological innovation can help transform Agrifood systems. The conference highlighted that responsible governance and transparent food safety systems are essential to align public expectations and long-term sustainability with biotechnological advances.
Food safety Q&A for precision fermentation – a new factsheet and webinar recording available
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has published a 3-page factsheet entitled “Precision fermentation – beyond the buzzword, food safety Q&A”. This short and colorful document breaks down the buzzword into a few simple questions, offering a straightforward introduction and reading key to the previously released full publication “Precision Fermentation – With a focus on Food Safety”.
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
Several OECD Test Guidelines were updated in June. These guidelines ensure that testing keeps pace with scientific progress, promoting the best practices. These updated guidelines include:
In Vitro & Defined Approaches
In Vivo & Gene Mutation Assays
Australia and New Zealand
Proposal P1055 - Definitions for gene technology and new breeding techniques
On 4 June 2025, the FSANZ Board approved Proposal P1055 to update definitions for genetically modified (GM) food in the Australia-New Zealand Food Standards Code (the Code). Food ministers from Australia and New Zealand now have 60 days to consider FSANZ's decision.
A1269 - Cultured Quail as a Novel Food
On 18th June 2025, changes to the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code were gazetted to permit the use of cell-cultured quail as a food. This application, from Vow Group Pty Ltd, sought for approval to use cultured quail cells in combination with other ingredients. After assessment, it was concluded that this product was safe for human consumption, presenting no allergenic, nutritional or toxicological concerns.
FSANZ approval of updated definitions for genetically modified food
The Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) has approved updated definitions for genetically modified (GM) food in the Code. Under the Proposal P1055 - definitions for gene technology and new breeding techniques, the GM definitions have been modernised due to advancements in gene technologies and for the maintenance of strong food safety protection.
Switzerland
The Federal Council has established that as of the 1st July, products of animal origin must specify on their labels whether they have been obtained with "unnecessary cruelty" or "painful practices". This comes into place for all domestic and imported products and is applied to the agri-food sector, restaurants, supermarkets and small stores. This rule will have a two-year moratorium whereby all establishments offering these food products are subject to reporting obligations. For more information in French.
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