The Pitfalls of Risk Governance: A Question of Design or Application? Some Empirical Results from the Food Safety Sector

Abstract

The separation of science-based risk assessment from policy-based risk management is meant to safeguard scientific autonomy whilst improving evidence-based policy-making. This risk regulation model is used in several policy domains and, especially, those targeting public health like food safety. Research reported in this article shows this approach to be deficient despite its strong organizational basis and conceptual simplicity. The problem is twofold: first, risk regulation as currently practiced is associated with a biased take on ‘science’ at both stages of risk assessment and risk management; second, it displays an over-reliance on legislative measures with little follow-through mechanisms. The article illustrates how these problems are played out and discusses their implications using two examples from the area of chemical contamination, namely aflatoxins and dioxins in food.

Keywords: Risk governance, policy, scientific evidence, aflatoxins, dioxins, official controls, monitoring