HC Deb 28 February 1994 vol 238 cc607-8W
Mr. Gale

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps she takes to ensure that animal tests currently used for the safety assessment of food products are effective for identifying constituents of diet that are potentially toxic or harmful to humans.

Mr. Sackville

The use of toxicity studies in laboratory animals for the safety testing of food and other products is of proven value and has gained acceptance by the scientific community worldwide. Most chemically-induced toxic effects seen in humans are also seen in appropriate animal studies. Animal studies are assessed by expert toxicologists experienced in extrapolating the information to predict likely effects in humans. Allowances are made for the uncertainties involved, particularly any differences between species.

Mr. Gale

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made towards the introduction of validated alternatives to the use of animals in the toxicity and safety testing of food products.

Mr. Sackville

Validated alternatives to laboratory animals are available for assessing mutagenic potential of chemicals in food and other products. These data are also of value in screening compounds for their carcinogenic potential.

Much effort is being put into the development of alternatives in other areas, particularly for screening for local irritant effects, where it is hoped to have validated alternatives within a few years. However, the replacement of animals for general toxicity testing is much more difficult because of the need to reproduce the very complex biochemical and pharmacological interactions that occur in animals. There has been some progress in reducing the number of animals used in certain tests and reducing the distress that may be caused, for example by the use of the fixed dose procedure as an alternative method for investigating acute toxicity. This was validated in a large international study sponsored by United Kingdom Government Departments and the European Community. The new procedure obviates the need for calculating LD50 values.