Risk assessment and food allergy: the probabilistic model applied to allergens

In order to assess the risk of unintended exposure to food allergens, traditional deterministic risk assessment is usually applied, leading to inconsequential conclusions as ‘an allergic reaction cannot be excluded’. TNO therefore developed a quantitative risk assessment model for allergens based on probabilistic techniques resulting in a more exhaustive risk assessment and more detailed information. By now, this approach is recognized as the future approach in allergen risk assessment. A case study (hazelnut proteins in chocolate spread) is presented as a proof of concept.