The 2011 European Union summary report on trends and sources of zoonoses and foodborne outbreaks has recently been published by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Centre for Disease Control (ECDC). The good news is that the nu
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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has released a new tool to help bolster the food industry’s defense measures against an act of intentional food contamination. The Food Defense Plan Builder is a comprehensive, easy-to-use software program design
Four scholarships have been made available to fund study of the MSc in Advanced Food Safety at the Institute for Global Food Security at Queen's University Belfast.
See here for details including the applications deadline of 31st July 2013.
An exciting new Masters training initiative has been launched by Oniris (Nantes, France) and partners.
MAN-IMAL Masters student brochure.pdf
The overall objective of the MAN-IMAL Master’s programme is to train senior level executives, specialised in th
The BBC today summarised the latest food safety worry emanating from China – rat meat being sold as lamb, highlighting that more than 900 people have been arrested in China for selling fake or tainted meat in the last three months, according to state
The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Simon Coveney TD has announced that his Department has expedited plans to establish a central equine data base on the Animal Identification and Movement [AIM] system which contains data on cattle, she
The European Commission has published proposals to change the current legislation governing all official controls in the food and agriculture industries. The proposed plans will potentially affect all organisations involved in the production, manufac
Produced by Good Food Ireland and Grant Thornton, the 2013 report highlights the effect the horsemeat scandal has had on the food industry in Ireland, how labeling deception is widespread across Europe, and how Good Food Ireland businesses expect to
The results of this study provide a robust measure of the acceptability, among UK consumers, of potential raw meat decontamination treatments. It measured the impact that different levels of information about the treatment would have on consumers' ac
Two dangerous things together might make a medicine for one of the hardest cancers to treat. In a mouse model of pancreatic cancer, researchers have shown that bacteria can deliver deadly radiation to tumours — exploiting the immune suppression that
Infection rates of the foodborne pathogens Campylobacter and Vibrio parahaemolyticus rose in 2012, while other major pathogens generally maintained rates similar to recent years, according to the nation’s annual “food safety progress report” publishe
EFSA’s scientific experts say that it is currently not possible to identify which VTEC bacteria strains have the potential to cause human diseases. In order to help risk managers to identify human health risks, EFSA has proposed a scheme to categoris
In April 2013, EFSA launched a call to renew the membership and create reserve lists for its Scientific Panel on Food Additives and Nutrient Sources Added to Food (ANS Panel) and Scientific Panel on Food Contact Materials, Enzymes, Flavourings and Pr
Listeria monocytogenes is a dangerous food pathogen that causes listeriosis. Although not very common, there is a high hospitalisation rate (about 19%) and a high death rate (about 20 – 30%). Listeriosis causes about 0.02% of gastroenteritis, but abo
As an aside from safe foods, how about safe medicines? Perhaps herbal medicines bridge that gap?
Here is a new and arresting report from Kings College London, who reviewed global cases of aristolochic acid nephropathy and conclude that millions of peo
‘Horses for courses’ is an expression conveying that what is suitable for one person or situation might be unsuitable for another. How apt that it turns out some of us have been served up horsemeat as part of our daily diet for an unknown period in
Experts of renowned organisations have joined forces last August to address food safety challenges through the global integration of food safety research, training and policies. The initiative, called Collab4Safety (www.collab4safety.eu), received fu
The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) today launched a dedicated food safety training facility on its website to provide free online e-learning resources for food businesses. The first of the e-learning resources deals with food additives and f
The Media Fellowships aim to give scientists and their colleagues, the confidence and willingness to engage with the media and tackle issues of mistrust and misrepresentation and to give journalists access to new scientific expertise.
The scheme refl
Scientists and gamers alike can now play disease detective, through “Solve the Outbreak,” a new iPad app from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The app lets users assume the role of a disease outbreak investigator in the agency’s Epidem