Hazard identification is defined as follows: “The identification of biological chemical and physical agents capable of causing adverse health effects and which may be present in a particular food or group of foods” (CAC, 2006).
The purpose of hazard identification is to evaluate the weight of evidence for adverse health effects, based on assessment of all available data on toxicity and mode of action. It is primarily designed to address two questions: 1) the nature of any health hazard to humans that an agent may pose, and 2) the circumstances under which an identified hazard may be expressed. Hazard identification is based on analyses of a variety of data, ranging from observations in humans or domestic animals, studies in laboratory animals and in vitro laboratory studies, through to analysis of structure–activity relationships. From the range of studies and observations available, the nature of any toxicity or adverse health effect occurring and the affected (target) organ(s)/tissue(s) are identified. The outcome of hazard identification is a scientific judgement as to whether the chemical being evaluated could, under given exposure conditions, cause an adverse effect in humans.