Risk Assessment in the field of “nano”: Status quo and further challenges

The Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) is the scientific body of the Federal Republic of Germany that prepares expert reports and opinions on issues related to food safety and consumer health protection (see website at www.bfr.bund.de). The main objectives of the institute include health assessments of biologicals and chemicals in food, feed and consumer products (e.g., cosmetics, tobacco products, textiles and food packaging materials), risk communication, and the development of alternative methods to animal experiments. The assessments are conducted according to internationally recognized scientific criteria. The institute provides sound scientific advice to federal ministries and agencies responsible for consumer protection and food safety and is engaged in scientific cooperation with other national and international institutions and organisations involved in consumer health protection and food safety. An overview will be provided on the objectives and tasks of the BfR and the basic principles of risk assessment. In particular the focus will lie on risk assessment of nanomaterials, the challenges and issues to be addressed.