safefood Knowledge Network 's Posts (858)

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More than 40 people are sick and almost a third have needed hospital treatment as part of a foodborne Shigella outbreak in Denmark.

From the end of August, 42 people have been registered with shigellosis in the country.

The outbreak is being investigated to try to pinpoint the source of infection and help stop it with experts doing final traceback investigations ahead of plans to reveal results next week.

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Food Standards Scotland’s Scottish Food Crime and Incidents Unit (SFCIU) has published its food crime priorities for 20/21, alongside a joint UK Food Crime Strategic Assessment with the Food Standards Agency’s National Food Crime Unit.

The SFCIU has taken an evidence and intelligence-based approach, working with partners and industry to identify key areas of concern which have previously and continue to be targeted by criminals, to the detriment of consumers and responsible businesses. The priorities are

  • Red meat
  • Fish
  • Counterfeit / illicit alcohol
  • Wild shellfish

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The factory of a sandwich producer in England linked to an illness was contaminated by Listeria for almost three years, a report into the incident has found.

In July 2017, Listeria monocytogenes was isolated from the blood of a 53-year-old in a hospital in Yorkshire and Humberside with an underlying health condition. The man had eaten sandwiches made by the company while in the hospital at least 12 times in the three weeks prior to illness.

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Interested in joining our Senior Leadership Team to help deliver on our Strategic Plan and on our vision of “The Marine Institute as a global leader in ocean knowledge, empowering Ireland and its people to safeguard and harness ocean wealth”?

Organisation Description:

The Marine Institute is the national agency responsible for Marine Technical & Scientific Advice & Services, Research, Technology, Development and Innovation. The Institute provides government, public agencies and the maritime industry with a range of scientific, advisory and economic development services that inform policy-making, regulation and the sustainable management and growth of Irelands’ marine resources. The Institute also undertakes, coordinates and promotes marine research and development, which is essential to achieving a sustainable ocean economy, protecting ecosystems and inspiring a shared understanding of the ocean.

The Institute works closely with the Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine (DAFM) and a network of other Government Departments, Semi-State Agencies, national and international marine partners.

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Research by scientists in Australia could help open up new possibilities to treat enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC) infections.

University of New South Wales (UNSW) microbiologists discovered a molecular pathway that controls Shiga toxin production. The findings were published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

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What counts as a composite food product, and the rules you’ll need to follow to export these products from 1 January 2021.

New rules for January 2021

The UK has left the EU, and the transition period after Brexit comes to an end this year.

This page tells you what you'll need to do from 1 January 2021. It will be updated if anything changes.

You can also read about the transition period.

 

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safefood is responsible for promoting food safety and healthy eating on the island of Ireland.

To support our knowledge base, we would like to invite tenders for research for the following specific project:

Project Ref 02A-2020

“Fiscal and pricing policies related to food and non-alcoholic drinks: a review of the evidence”

Downloads

Application Guidelines

Application Form

The closing date for receipt of tenders is 4pm Friday 23rd October 2020

safefood is committed to promoting equality of opportunity.

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With many E. coli O157:H7 outbreaks linked to romaine lettuce in 2017, 2018, and 2019, food safety experts are concerned that another outbreak could occur in 2020. Let’s take a look at how romaine lettuce is contaminated with E. coli O157:H7 bacteria in the first place.

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Opening date
17 September 2020
Deadline
26 January 2021
Code
LC-GD-8-1-2020
Programme
Action type
Innovation Action (IA)

Area 8: Zero-pollution, toxic free environment

Proposals are invited against the following topic(s):

LC-GD-8-1-2020: Innovative, systemic zero-pollution solutions to protect health, environment and natural resources from persistent and mobile chemicals

 
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WHO wants data on mercury in fish

The World Health Organization (WHO) is requesting data on methylmercury and total mercury in certain fish species.

Fish types for which maximum limits have already been established are excluded.

People are mainly exposed to methylmercury when they eat fish and shellfish that contain the compound. It can adversely affect a baby’s growing brain and nervous system.

 

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The resurgence of a hepatitis A outbreak linked to strawberries underlines the importance of complete traceback of implicated products during outbreaks, according to researchers.

Following outbreaks linked to frozen strawberries in Sweden and Austria in 2018, 65 cases of the same hepatitis A virus (HAV) strain were detected in Germany between October 2018 and January 2020.

 

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An introduction to product shelf life for small food businesses - Online Training

Location: Online
Date/Time: Oct 8, 2020 from 10:30am - 12:00pm
Venue: Online
Duration: 90 minutes 

This online training will explore what needs to be considered when determining a product’s shelf life, including:

-Understanding the characteristics of the food.

-The microbiology of pathogens (for safety) and indicator organisms (for hygiene) and their characteristics, which allow for their growth and their    association with different types of food.

-Food quality issues

-Role of packaging

-Role of reasonably foreseeable conditions following manufacturing and to the point of consumption

-The type of shelf life studies, validation and monitoring and the role of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP)

-The role of the laboratory

-Interpretation of the results – who and/or how.

To register for this event please email knevents@safefood.net.


Please note places will be limited to 30 maximum, therefore registration will be on a first come first serve basis (one place per food business) and after this a waiting list will be in operation.If you cannot attend this training, please let us know 2 days before the event to allow another participant to attend.

Please note this is only open to those working in food businesses on the island of Ireland.

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Two agencies in the Netherlands have looked at the prevalence of selected pathogens in chickens for meat production.

The study reaffirmed Campylobacter, Salmonella and extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing bacteria on broiler farms can be transmitted to humans through meat consumption and direct or indirect contact.

 

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The percentage of chickens at Tesco and Asda testing positive for Campylobacter at the top level of contamination in the second quarter of 2020 has fallen below the FSA target.

The two supermarkets had recorded levels above the Food Standards Agency (FSA) threshold of 7 percent of birds with more than 1,000 colony forming units per gram (CFU/g) of Campylobacter in the first quarter of this year.

 

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Consultation seeking stakeholders’ views on the proposed approach to technical amendments to NI domestic legislation relating to food and feed safety and hygiene, food compositional standards and food labelling (including nutrition labelling).

 

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