Does FSANZ require animal feeding studies?
Not routinely, although we acknowledge there may be future GM foods where the results of animal feeding studies may be useful and, in those cases, we may require such studies. FSANZ considers that a scientifically-informed comparative assessment of GM foods with their conventional counterparts can generally identify any potential adverse health effects or differences requiring further evaluation. For most GM foods, animal studies are unlikely to contribute any further useful information to the safety assessment and therefore are not warranted. FSANZ convened an expert panel in June 2007 to specifically consider the question of whether animal feeding studies are necessary to determine the safety of GM foods. The conclusions and recommendations from the expert panel are available here .
