Description of pictograms

The following pictograms, terms and definitions are used in the World Food Safety Almanac to describe the various food safety institutions' areas of responsibility.

Pictogram	Responsibility	Description
	Animal feed	Substances or products, including additives, whether processed, partially processed or unprocessed, intended to be used for oral feeding to animals.
	Animal health and welfare	All aspects of animal diseases and of the well-being of food-producing animals during breeding, rearing, transportation and slaughter (integral part of the EU’s Farm to Fork strategy), as well as analysis of the impact that both the condition of the animals and their treatment can have on animal and human health.
	Biological hazards and zoonoses	Biological hazards: also known as biohazards. Biological hazards are substances with biological origin that threaten human health or the health of other organisms. Viral and microbial samples and biomedical waste can be biohazards. Zoonoses: diseases and/or infections that are naturally transmissible directly or indirectly between animals and humans.
	Biotechnology and genetic engineering	Biotechnology: the use of science and engineering together with biological agents to provide industrial products and services. Genetic engineering: all modern molecular biology techniques used to isolate, manipulate and transfer genes from one organism to another in order to create novel traits in plants, animals, bacteria and fungi.
	Contaminants	Substances that are not intentionally added to food but are present in food as a result of production (including operations carried out in crop husbandry, animal husbandry and veterinary medicine), manufacture, processing, preparation, treatment, packing, packaging, transport or storage, or as a result of environmental contamination. Extraneous matter, such as insect fragments and animal hair, is not covered by this definition.
	Drinking water	All water, either in its original state or after treatment, intended for drinking, cooking, food preparation or other domestic purposes, regardless of its origin and of how it is supplied (e.g. from a distribution network or in bottles). Drinking water includes water used in the manufacture, processing, preservation or marketing of products or substances intended for human consumption, unless the quality of the water cannot affect the wholesomeness of the food in its finished form.
	Emerging risks	Risks resulting from newly identified hazards to which a significant exposure may occur, or from unexpected new or increased significant exposures and/or susceptibilities to known hazards.
	Environmental risk assessment (ERA)	A scientific process that identifies and evaluates stress to the environment, in particular, to living microorganisms, habitats and ecosystems. ERA considers the impact on the environment caused, for example, by the introduction of GM plants, the use of certain substances in food, feed and plant protection products, or the introduction and spread of plant pests. ERA helps policy makers and regulators make sound decisions that protect the environment.
	Food contact materials and packaging	All materials and articles intended to come into contact with food, such as packaging and containers, kitchen equipment, cutlery and dishes. These can be made from a variety of materials including plastics, rubber, paper and metal. This category includes materials used in processing equipment, in production machinery or in transport containers.
	Food ingredients	Chemical substances that are used as food additives, enzymes, flavourings and processing aids, as well as other substances intentionally added to food (commonly called ‘nutrient sources’).
	Food supplements	Foodstuffs whose purpose is to supplement the normal diet. Food supplements are concentrated sources of nutrients (i.e. minerals or vitamins) or other substances with a nutritional or physiological effect. Food supplements are marketed in dose form, e.g. in capsules or pills.
	Mineral water	Bottled water for human consumption (not for medicinal purposes) that is natural mineral water (groundwater that has emerged from the ground and has a certain mineral content) or natural spring water (groundwater that has emerged from the ground, but that has a lower mineral content) or processed tap water.
	Nanotechnology	Field of applied sciences and technology involving the control of matter on the atomic and molecular scale (typically below 100 nanometres). Nanotechnology products may be used in cosmetic products, foods and food packaging.
	Novel foods	Foods and food ingredients that have not been used for human consumption to a significant degree within the EU before 15 May 1997. Regulation (EU) 2015/2283 sets out in detail the legal criteria for novel foods in the EU.
	Nutrition	The science of how diet relates to the body's need for sustenance.
	Plant health	A field that seeks to protect plants from pests and diseases. This work includes managing pests that have become established in a region and preventing pests from spreading to a new region and becoming established there.
	Plant protection products or pesticides	Pesticides: substances used to kill or control pests, including disease-carrying organisms and undesirable insects, animals and plants. Plant protection products: products used to protect, preserve or influence the growth of desirable plants or to destroy or control the growth of unwanted plants or parts of plants.
	Residues of veterinary medicinal products	Substances contained in plants, plant products, edible animal products or drinking water that originate from the use of veterinary medicines. These substances may include metabolites, decomposition and reaction products.