Abstract
Investigating and reporting of foodborne outbreaks became mandatory with Directive 2003/99/EC. In 2006 and 2007 the Community reporting system for foodborne outbreaks was further developed in an interdisciplinary approach, which is described in this paper. This involved experts on investigating and reporting foodborne outbreaks as well as experts on communicable diseases in addition to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) Task Force for Zoonoses Data Collection, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) Advisory Forum and representatives of ECDC, the World Health Organization (WHO), the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) and the European Commission. European Union Member States participated in a survey regarding their national reporting systems and the needs for information on foodborne outbreaks at the Community level. The acceptability, the functionality and the data quality of the current reporting system were evaluated. The results were used to propose new variables on which data should be reported. Pick-lists were developed to facilitate reporting and better integration of the Community system with Member States' reporting systems. The new system is expected to yield better quality data on foodborne outbreaks relevant for risk assessment and risk management while reducing the work load for Member States.
Highlights
Protection of human health against diseases and infections transmissible directly or indirectly between animals and humans is of paramount importance
The European Union (EU) Member States have been obliged since the end of 1993 to collect data on the trends and sources of zoonotic infections in the human population and on the occurrence of zoonotic agents in animals, food, and animal feed [1]
The responses received through the questionnaire survey show that the vast majority of the national foodborne outbreak reporting systems in the EU provide the information that is requested pursuant Article 9 (1) of the Zoonoses Directive (Annex IV, E)
Summary
Protection of human health against diseases and infections transmissible directly or indirectly between animals and humans (zoonoses) is of paramount importance. The European Union (EU) Member States have been obliged since the end of 1993 to collect data on the trends and sources of zoonotic infections in the human population and on the occurrence of zoonotic agents in animals, food, and animal feed [1]. It was considered appropriate to make provision for such investigations and for close cooperation between the various authorities when a new “Zoonoses directive” was developed in 2003. Parliament and of the Council on monitoring of zoonoses and zoonotic agents [2] requests the EU Member States to investigate foodborne outbreaks and to transmit each year to the Commission a summary report of the results of the investigations carried out. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), who is assigned the task to collate, analyse and report the data collected, developed a reporting system for foodborne outbreaks in 2003.
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