Chapter 5 - Food Defense

Abstract

Governments and food manufacturers must consider the possibility that disgruntled individuals, criminals, terrorists, and other antisocial groups may intentionally contaminate food and threaten the safety of the agrifood chain. Also the number of economically motivated acts of intentional food adulteration is on the rise. As unintentional outbreaks of foodborne disease may severely harm sensitive consumers and because food trade is highly interconnected, an attack on one country’s food supply can have global personal, social, economic, and political impacts. Therefore, nations and food producers must take responsibility in protecting the agrifood chain against malicious and economically motivated acts of food tampering. Reducing the likeliness of deliberate contamination of agriculture and food products requires the implementation of food defense strategies. Food defense aims to mitigate the risks and hazards of intentional contamination in food operations by introducing a selection of countermeasures to make vulnerable elements in the agrifood chain/food operation more secure. However, although food defense builds barriers around vulnerable points to prohibit intentional adulteration, it cannot prevent it. Therefore, there is a need for a sensitive surveillance system to detect acts of intentional food contamination quickly, an alert system to recognize an incident involving food, and a program that must prepare the operation in responding to assaults of intentional food contamination. Response includes all measures to quickly and efficiently identify, contain, and minimize the impact of an intentional food contamination incident (e.g., by recall of suspected products), and to allow the food producer to recover and regain normal production levels. Preparedness also includes being trained in adequate risk and crisis communication, as it is what makes a public outrage different from a collaboration when addressing a food defense incident. This book chapter provides guidance to the food industry and public authorities for preventing and tackling intentional acts of food contamination.