[Early detection of environmental chemicals in food by means of specific substance criteria].

In an approach to selecting potential food contaminants by means of specific substance criteria we came up with a list of 68 chemicals. Among them, we found chemicals which are already well known as food contaminants such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and chloroaromatic compounds. So far, other chemicals have not been mentioned as food contaminants. During a project called "Information System for Environmental Chemicals" we conducted, for these 68 chemicals, an intensive literature search in databases for their occurrence in food. The results are stored in our factual databank named "LEBKON" and are graphically described in profiles. For 44 of the chemicals, we found information for their detection in food or in drinking water. We plan to analyse the remaining substances for which no data have been found in the literature. We placed emphasis on the toxicological properties and the production volume of the substances in question. This approach should represent a contribution to the question of monitoring systems oriented by the consumer and monitoring systems oriented by cause.