safefood Knowledge Network 's Posts (858)
Sort by
The deadline for registration is 30 June, midnight.
The 2021 Parma Summer School organized by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), the University of Parma, the School of Advanced Studies on Food and Nutrition, and the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, will provide early-career researchers an opportunity to learn from some of the most prominent experts in the field of food systems analysis and case studies. The relevance of the food safety issues, together with the technological innovation and the necessary adaptation of the risk assessment procedures, will be addressed in the frame of food systems transformations involving complex interactions and feedback between bio-physical, political and socio-economic drivers.
A system used by European countries to report outbreaks saw the number of requests fall in 2020 compared to the year before.
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) hosts the Epidemic Intelligence Information System for food- and waterborne diseases (EPIS-FWD) platform, which includes Urgent Inquiries.
A survey on ground beef in Scotland has found low levels of Campylobacter, Salmonella and Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC).
The work, funded by Food Standards Scotland, was done in 2019 with 1,009 samples of fresh ground beef, also known as minced beef, on retail sale across the country. For 33 samples country of origin was unknown. Of the rest, all except three were labeled as coming from the UK and Ireland.
The Food Standards Agency’s chief scientific advisor has said potential trends in foodborne infections must be monitored after a decline during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Robin May said data from the past 12 months shows a substantial drop in foodborne disease rates for four major pathogens but this is likely because of fewer patients going to general practioners’ (GP) offices and reduced diagnostic testing during the coronavirus pandemic.
The draft theme papers, outlining vision, scope, opportunities, cooperation and impact for EFSA and its partners, are now open for consultation.
- Application of Omics and bioinformatic Approaches: Towards Next Generation Risk Assessment
- Advancing the Environmental Risk Assessment of Chemicals to Better Protect Insect Pollinators
EFSA would appreciate feedback on all aspects of the 2021 theme papers. The consultation is open until 30 June 2021. As EFSA is looking for one response per MS we would appreciate any comments you may have by Monday 28th June. We will then collate the responses and submit a response
Omics-bioinformatics_theme_paper-for_consultation.docx
The number of people sick in the United Kingdom in an outbreak linked to melons has almost doubled.
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) and Public Health England (PHE) are investigating the incident with 99 people sick since April. It was previously known that 52 people were ill in the UK.
The purpose of this call for tender will be to explore the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for extracting and integrating data obtained through New Approach Methodologies (NAMs) for chemical risk assessment.
The Food Standards Agency (FSA), Food Standards Scotland (FSS) with Ipsos MORI have published a survey of consumer practices relating to coated frozen chicken products.
STEC-associated hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) is rarer in adults than children but causes more severe disease and death in older people, according to a study.
Researchers looked at HUS caused by Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) in 96 adults in France during 2009 to 2017. A total of 69 of the patients had underlying health conditions. HUS is a severe complication associated with E. coli infections that causes kidney failure.
A study from the Roslin institute published in BMC Genomics has identified genes in chickens that could offer resistance to harmful bacteria commonly found in poultry and could inform ways to limit the risk of associated food poisoning in people.
The research identified a large number of genes in chicken guts that may determine whether the birds are resistant to Campylobacter, according to the Roslin Institute.
The role of food‐producing environments in the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in EU plant‐based food production, terrestrial animals (poultry, cattle and pigs) and aquaculture was assessed. Among the various sources and transmission routes identified, fertilisers of faecal origin, irrigation and surface water for plant‐based food and water for aquaculture were considered of major importance. For terrestrial animal production, potential sources consist of feed, humans, water, air/dust, soil, wildlife, rodents, arthropods and equipment.
None of the top nine retailers in the United Kingdom reported Campylobacter in chicken test results near the FSA limit in the first three months of this year.
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) maximum acceptable level is 7 percent of birds with more than 1,000 colony forming units per gram (CFU/g) of Campylobacter.
The FSA Board reiterated its commitment to working with a range of other government agencies and increasing its science and research capability to become a “champion of the food hypersensitivity cause” as members responded to two reports on the issue.
The role of food-producing environments in the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in EU plant-based food production, terrestrial animals (poultry, cattle and pigs) and aquaculture was assessed. Among the various sources and transmission routes identified, fertilisers of faecal origin, irrigation and surface water for plant-based food and water for aquaculture were considered of major importance. For terrestrial animal production, potential sources consist of feed, humans, water, air/dust, soil, wildlife, rodents, arthropods and equipment. Among those, evidence was found for introduction with feed and humans, for the other sources, the importance could not be assessed.
The chief scientists of FAO and WHO highlighted the role of science in keeping food safe while stressing the importance of technology during a webinar earlier this week.
The virtual event was organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and World Health Organization (WHO) to mark the third annual World Food Safety Day.
Under the best circumstances, agriculture can be a tough business. Today, increasing pressures on the world’s land and water resources are jeopardizing humanity’s ability to feed itself. Exacerbated by climate change, these pressures are making agriculture a more vulnerable and challenging enterprise. Elevated temperatures, changes in water availability, deteriorating soil quality, extreme weather events, rising sea levels, and ocean acidification, among other factors, can have an impact on food production, processing, storage, and distribution, right up to the moment it reaches our tables. In other words, our entire food system is threatened by climate change.
Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) is one of the new buzzwords in food safety. This article is a brief review of what WGS is and how it has revolutionized food safety in recent years. It has now become an integral part of public health surveillance and is increasingly used by the food industry in the United States and abroad to study foodborne bacterial pathogens, indicator and spoilage organisms, and the spread of antimicrobial resistance, virulence, and more. WGS in food safety has particularly focused on bacteria (the subject of this article), but it is equally efficient to use with viruses and parasites.
This handbook provides detailed guidance on assessing the burden of diseases caused by microbiological agents commonly transmitted through foods. It is particularly intended for use at national level, and gives a complete picture of the requirements, enabling factors, challenges and opportunities involved, and the steps in the process. It also aims to foster harmonization of methodologies for estimating foodborne disease burden across countries.
The goal of a national burden of foodborne disease study is to rank and prioritize foodborne diseases based on their overall public health impact in the population. The objectives of such a study are to:
-
estimate the burden of disease for selected foodborne hazards;
-
develop a framework for routine updating of estimates and evaluation of trends; and
-
provide a baseline against which food safety interventions can be evaluated.
Three German organizations have created a consortium to monitor bacterial pathogens and detect outbreaks faster.
The University of Münster, Research Center Borstel and the Robert Koch Institute formed the miGenomeSurv network (microbial genome-based surveillance of infectious agents).
