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EFSA OpenFoodTox 3.0 dataset overview — 7880 substances, 11613 dossiers, 19748 toxicological reference values (2003-2025)

EFSA_OpenFoodTox_3_dataset_overview

efsa 540 tok en 2026-07-20

EFSA OpenFoodTox 3.0 (Zenodo record 19388272, DOI 10.5281/zenodo.19388272, released 2026-04-30, CC-BY 4.0) provides structured hazard data for substances assessed across EFSA's scientific remit (food additives, flavourings, pesticides, contaminants, food contact materials, feed additives, and nutrients). The dataset is built on the IUCLID 6 platform, aligned with OECD Harmonised Templates (OHTs).

Top-level dimensions

SheetRowsDescription
DOSSIER11613Scientific assessments (one row per dossier, typically one per EFSA opinion or revision)
SUB7880Distinct substances (chemical entities) assessed in OFT
REF_SUB7891Reference substance metadata (CAS, EC, IUPAC names)
FLEX_SUM.ToxRefValues19748Toxicological reference values (ADIs, TDIs, ARfDs, etc.)
END_SUM23567Study-level summary records
LIT3186Literature references
FLEX_REC4579Flexible records (study-level flexible fields)
END_STUDY_REC.HumanHealth38809Human health study records
END_STUDY_REC.AnimalHealth383Animal health study records (including pet species)
END_STUDY_REC.TerrestEcotox5451Terrestrial ecotoxicology records
END_STUDY_REC.AquaticEcotox3498Aquatic ecotoxicology records
END_STUDY_REC.PhysChemProps25148Physicochemical property records

Substance composition (SUB sheet)

Composition typeCountShare
mono-constituent substance424453.9%
multi-constituent substance95612.1%
polymer1011.3%
microorganism or toxin produced by a microorganism1391.8%
(no composition type recorded)243830.9%
other20.03%
Total substances7880100%

Substance origin (SUB sheet)

OriginCountShare
organic618478.5%
inorganic2763.5%
organometallic921.2%
other781.0%
(no origin recorded)125015.9%

Dossier ExpertGroup distribution

Expert GroupDossiersShare
EFSA CEF (Food Additives)433537.3%
EFSA AFC (Additives, Food Contact, Flavourings — predecessor to CEF, 2003-2008)202717.5%
EFSA (multi-panel or unassigned)199917.2%
EFSA FEEDAP (Feed Additives)133111.5%
EFSA ANS (Additives & Nutrient Sources)5574.8%
EFSA CONTAM (Contaminants)5384.6%
EFSA FAF (Food Additives & Flavourings, current name of CEF since 2022)3242.8%
EFSA NDA (Dietetic Products, Nutrition & Allergies)2382.1%
EFSA PPR (Plant Protection Products)1981.7%
SCF (Scientific Committee on Food — EFSA predecessor, pre-2003)160.1%
EFSA CEP (Contact Materials, Enzymes & Processing Aids)190.2%
Total dossiers11613100%

Dossier year distribution (DateOfEvaluation)

YearDossiersNotes
2000-200212SCF + early EFSA-Q pre-assignments
200321EFSA operational start
2004257First EFSA operational year
2005353
2006267
20071000Bulk adoption of backlog opinions
2008908
20091196Peak year
2010750
20111152
2012892
2013712
2014649
2015560
2016540
2017383Transition year — FAF reorganization
2018540
2019370
2020228COVID-impacted output
2021247
2022208
2023172
2024174
202519Partial year through 2026-04-30

Peak production years: 2007-2011 with an average of 1001 dossiers per year. The 2020 dip reflects COVID-19 impact on EFSA working procedures. 2025 shows partial-year data only because the dataset cutoff was 2026-04-30.

Toxicological reference values

FLEX_SUM.ToxRefValues (19748 rows × 80 cols) is the dataset's core output for downstream risk assessment. Each row represents a reference value (ADI, TDI, ARfD, AOEL, etc.) for a substance and species/endpoint combination. The 19748 reference values cover 7880 substances across human health, animal health, and ecotoxicology endpoints, implying an average of 2.5 reference values per substance.

Source: toxicology/efsa/OFT3.0_export_repository.xlsx, all 18 sheets, 22,595,502 bytes total (Zenodo metadata verified size=22595502). Published 2026-04-30 under CC-BY 4.0.

Sources

  • OFT3.0_export_repository.xlsx