Food Safety Risk Assessment in the EU is performed following steps in Regulation 178/2002, enacted by the European Parliament following a number of food crises in the 90's. The regulation created the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) to deliver independent scientific advice and established the Rapid Alert System on Food and Feeds as a source of reliable data to detect possible hazards to public health. Data from EU member States on zoonoses and residues must be analyzed and published by EFSA in annual reports. This presentation describes main players in European Food safety risk assessments (member states, research institutes, community reference labs and EFSA units) and their counterparts in the US. Additional aspects such as experts involved, methodologies, harmonization, quality assurance, transparency, risk communication and stakeholders involvement will be discussed.