What has preoccupied me most during several decades of involvement in food and flavor regulation is the proper perspective of all risks involved and the proper setting of priorities in evaluating the safety of flavoring materials.
We are constantly being exposed to influences from our environment. These may be of a physical nature, such as temperature or radiation; or of a chemical nature, via our food intake, skin absorption or inhalation. Many of the exposures to chemicals are practically unavoidable, others result from processing or from deliberate addition.
First let me consider the consequences of unavoidable exposure to chemicals via our food intake. I am referring to our consumption of basic and traditional foods.