The new guidance, which has been developed through extensive engagement and consultation with industry, aims to support food businesses in England, Wales and Northern Ireland to be compliant with MSM regulations, in line with the outcome of Supreme Court and High Court rulings.
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CBD businesses with applications on the Food Standards Agency’s (FSA) Public List are being encouraged to reformulate food products to improve consumer safety. These are products that are currently on sale in England and Wales linked to a credible application submitted for authorisation to the FSA, and are not new to the market.
The seasonal migration of wild birds and the importation of certain US products, such as those containing raw milk, could be potential routes for the introduction of the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) genotype currently affecting US dairy cows into Europe, a new report released by EFSA says. This virus type has not been reported so far in any country other than the USA.
The European Food Safety Authority’s Management Board has nominated Dr. Nikolaus Kriz as EFSA’s next Executive Director for a five-year term from September 2025.
Microscopic parasites hiding in everyday foods like leafy greens, shellfish, and unpasteurized dairy pose a serious health risk, often overlooked.
An expert meeting, convened at FAO’s headquarters, in Rome from 26–30 May 2025, brought together leading scientists to review the latest global data on foodborne protozoan parasites, such as Cryptosporidium, Giardia, and Toxoplasma gondii. These organisms are responsible for significant gastrointestinal illness worldwide, particularly in young children, pregnant people, and those with weakened immune systems.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has published a 3-page factsheet entitled, “Precision fermentation – beyond the buzzword, food safety Q&A”. This short and colorful document breaks down the buzzword into a few simple questions, offering a straightforward introduction and reading key to the previously released full publication “Precision Fermentation – With a focus on Food Safety”.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) annual data has revealed a significant rise in Campylobacter and Salmonella infections in England.
Salmonella infections reached a decade high, with a 17.1 percent increase from 2023, from 8,872 cases to 10,388 in 2024.
Campylobacter cases also increased by 17.1 percent from 60,055 in 2023 to 70,352 in 2024. This represents the most infections in the past 10 years.
Food Standards Scotland (FSS) research has revealed high refrigerator temperatures are putting people at increased risk of foodborne illness.
Despite the recommended operating temperature being between 0 to 5 degrees C (32 to 41 degrees F), the majority of refrigerators monitored in the Fridge Recording Over Set Time (FROST) trial had an average temperature of greater than 41 degrees F.
A panel of food safety professionals has discussed how best to use findings from research to improve food safety.
Speaking during a webinar highlighting the role of scientific advice in protecting public health, Dr. Moez Sanaa, from the Department of Nutrition and Food Safety at the World Health Organization (WHO), said science is more than just publishing studies.
The Food Safety Consultative Council (FSCC) of the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) facilitates consultations and discussions to promote higher food safety standards. As part of fulfilling this role, the Council held an open meeting in February 2025 to explore the topic of artificial intelligence (AI) and gain insights into how AI is being applied to support food safety. The meeting was attended by over 150 people including consumer representatives, food producers, retailers, distributors, caterers, manufacturers, regulators, Government Departments, academia and technology companies.
Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) and Listeria infections in Europe are at their highest levels since the start of EU-wide surveillance in 2007.
Data comes from two 2023 epidemiological reports issued recently by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), which cover the European Union and European Economic Area (EEA).
The meeting will be held at Crowne Plaza in Central Square, Holliday Street, Birmingham, and chaired by the FSA’s chair, Professor Susan Jebb (Opens in a new window).
It will begin at 9.00am on Wednesday 18 June and is an open meeting for the public to attend in person. Please register here if you wish to attend the meeting (Opens in a new window), in person or online.
Last year African swine fever (ASF) outbreaks in domestic pigs declined by 83% compared to 2023 (from 1,929 to 333), according to EFSA’s latest annual epidemiological report. The drop was mainly due to fewer outbreaks in Romania and Croatia, and it marks the lowest annual total number of outbreaks in the EU since 2017.
The Food Safety Authority of Ireland’s (FSAI) Food Safety Consultative Council announced a public consultation to gather views from consumers and food businesses in Ireland on a national food hygiene rating scheme. Food hygiene rating schemes are in operation in a number of countries and provide customers with signage that indicates the level of cleanliness and food safety standards of a food business based on official food safety inspections. The FSAI is calling on consumers and food businesses in Ireland to make their views known through an online consultation which will run until 23rd June 2025.
Researchers have assessed the impact of processing on the presence and transfer of antimicrobial resistant bacteria on chicken meat.
Findings showed that while Campylobacter and E. coli were present in birds entering the plants, their presence and numbers significantly declined along the poultry processing line, especially following procedures such as defeathering and evisceration.
UK checks on certain produce from Europe have been delayed until 2027.
Planned post-Brexit border checks on medium-risk fruits and vegetables will now start beginning Jan. 31, 2027. Controls were scheduled to begin in July 2025 under the UK’s Border Target Operating Model (BTOM).
Scientists have described the main lessons learned from the use of whole genome sequencing (WGS) of E. coli in France.
WGS is routine for surveillance of Shiga toxin–producing E. coli (STEC) human isolates. Experts assessed implementation of WGS between 2018 and 2022 for 1,002 sequenced isolates. From genomic distances of serotypes O26:H11, O157:H7, O80:H2, and O103:H2, they determined thresholds for cluster determination and compared those with 5 allelic differences (HC5) clusters. A cluster is defined as cases grouped in space, time, or both. An outbreak is cases for which an epidemiologic link is identified.
Carbapenemase-producing bacteria, once mainly a hospital concern, are now being detected in food animals and food products across Europe. This is one of the findings of EFSA’s latest scientific opinion on the occurrence and spread of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales (CPE) in the food chain in the EU/EFTA.
There was a slight rise in food fraud and other non-compliance cases discussed by European countries in March.
The number of notifications reported was 237 in March 2025, which is up from 214 in February but down from a record high of 345 in March 2024.
Issues listed are potential frauds. Non-compliance may prompt investigations by authorities in EU member states. Details come from a monthly report published by the European Commission.
The risk from pesticide residues to human health remains low, in line with previous years, EFSA said in its latest annual report. EFSA analysed thousands of samples collected in 2023 from commonly consumed products.
