Current Food Safety Research Articles

Food Waste and Food Safety Linkagesalong the Supply Chain

SummaryFood safety, whether actual or perceived, is one of the major reasons for food waste along the agri‐food supply chain. Food safety hazards at farm level such as mycotoxin contamination of feed, overuse of antimicrobials in livestock disease control, and zoonotic disease incursion may lead to food unfit for human consumption and thus waste. Given the importance of safety as one of the most important attributes of food, the appropriate management of risks along the supply chain can contribute to reductions in food loss and waste. However, a better coordination between food waste and safety policies is also needed, which requires: balancing the scientific evidence and the precautionary principle; reviewing current food safety regulations to identify areas potentially leading to avoidable waste; combining the monitoring of safety hazards and waste along the agri‐food chain; provision of tailored information on linkages between food safety and waste; and investment in technologies to accurately assess the edibility of food. Attention needs to be paid to policies and practices on food labelling and packaging to ensure that they do not lead to unintended or unnecessary impacts on food safety and waste, which are not justified by scientific evidence.

Evaluation of chlorine dioxide gas release rates from dry precursors intended for applied technologies under disparate conditions and their effects on Salmonella enterica, Escherichia coli O157:H7, and Listeria monocytogenes

The diverse food safety issues facing developed countries require innovations to current food safety intervention technologies and chemistries. Several innovations have been made to highly efficacious treatments, such as chlorine dioxide (ClO2). However, many of the innovations stop short of evaluating actual yield, practical feasibility, or basic chemistry of the technology. In this study, our aim was to evaluate ClO2 precursors, sodium chlorite and citric acid, under disparate but applicable conditions. First, we modeled production of ClO2 from the powdered precursors with three different masses, sample ID 1, 2, and 3, at room (18 °C) and refrigeration (2 °C) temperatures. Second, we investigated the effects of a water reservoir on ClO2 production. Third, we assessed collection method issues that may impact reported ClO2 values. Finally, we evaluated the precursor's efficacy against three common foodborne pathogens: Salmonella spp., Escherichia coli O157:H7, and Listeria monocytogenes on a glass surface between 15- to 60-min treatment times. Over 25 h the precursors produced between 1.87- to 37.76- and 0.87- to 4.19-mg ClO2 under 18 and 2 °C, respectively, demonstrating that low temperatures reduced ClO2 reported yield. Peak rates of production at 18 °C were estimated to be 3.51 mg/h, 3.83 mg/h, and 4.78 mg/h for sample ID 1, 2, and 3, respectively. Modeling the rate of production indicated that sample IDs had significantly (p < 0.0065) different rates of production, with sample ID 1 having the quickest production rate. Under 2 °C, these rates were <1 mg/h of all masses tested and did not follow the same production pattern observed at 18 °C. Under controlled conditions, availability of a water reservoir significantly increased ClO2 production by >15 fold. We also determined that the reservoir placement could affect reported ClO2 concentrations. At the same time, ClO2 was able to reduce all three pathogens in <45 min by >6-log10 CFU/carrier and performed significantly better at refrigeration temperature compared to room temperature.

Analysis on Key Ideas of Research Progress in Biotechnology Crop Food Detection Technology

Food not only provides nutrition to people, maintains vitality, but also it is related to people’s health. In view of the fact that current food safety issues are still common, it is very important to do a good job in food safety testing. Biotech crop food is a product that can be directly consumed. In order to improve people’s trust in such products, scientific biotechnology testing methods can improve the efficiency and quality of food testing and ensure people eat food safely. This paper will analyze the basic types of food testing technology, and then introduce the application of several key detection technologies in biotech crop food testing, and discuss the shortcomings in current food testing, and do a brief overview of future development on the biotech crop food testing technology.

Public health impact of foodborne exposure to naturally occurring virulence-attenuated Listeria monocytogenes: inference from mouse and mathematical models.

Listeriosis is a clinically severe foodborne disease caused by Listeria monocytogenes (Lm). However, approximately 45% of Lm isolates in food carry a virulence-attenuating single-nucleotide polymorphism in inlA, which normally facilitates crossing the intestinal barrier during the initial stages of infection. We hypothesized that (i) natural exposure to virulence-attenuated (vA) Lm strains through food can confer protective immunity against listeriosis attributable to fully virulent (fV) strains and (ii) current food safety measures to minimize exposure to both Lm strains may have adverse population-level outcomes. To test these hypotheses, we evaluated the host response to Lm in a mouse infection model and through mathematical modelling in a human population. After oral immunization with a murinized vA Lm strain, we demonstrated the elicitation of a CD8+ T-cell response and protection against subsequent challenge with an fV strain. A two-strain compartmental mathematical model of human exposure to Lm with cross-protective immunity was also developed. If food safety testing strategies preferentially identify and remove food contaminated by vA strains (potentially due to their common occurrence in foods and higher concentration in food compared to fV strains), the model predicted minimal public health benefit to potentially adverse effects. For example, reducing vA exposures by half, while maintaining fV exposures results in an approximately 6% rise in annual incidence.

Food safety governance in China: From supervision to coregulation.

The food control and regulatory system in China is beset by several challenges. While firms have to reduce their costs in pursuit of benefits, customers are increasingly focusing on safety and quality of food products. Although the Chinese government has developed more stringent regulatory measures, food safety incidents still occur, including abuse of food additives, adulterated products as well as contamination by pathogenic microorganisms, pesticides, veterinary drug residues, and heavy metals, and use of substandard materials. A national food safety strategy has been proposed to assure food safety from “farm to table.” This paper begins with the analysis of current food regulatory systems and then discusses cogovernance of food safety management in China. We explore the practice in the city of Shenzhen where government intervention has strengthened food control, thereby creating an opportunity to form a coregulatory system. The review highlights that the current food safety regulatory system of multi‐agency structure can inevitably lead to insufficient incentives for business entities. Due to asymmetric information, lack of regulatory resources, and consumer advocacy, coregulation has been developed and is increasingly being promoted as an important instrument of food regulation.

Prioritization of Chicken Meat Processing Interventions on the Basis of Reducing the Salmonella Residual Relative Risk

Protecting public health by controlling Salmonella in chicken meat products continues to be a challenge to both industry and policymakers. Studies evaluating the combined use of commercially available antimicrobial interventions are scarce. The aim of this work was to develop a risk-based prioritization framework to rank chicken meat processing interventions that achieve the greatest Salmonella relative risk reduction. A baseline model characterizing the current U.S. broiler industry food safety intervention practices was created from direct observation of processes and expert elicitation. Results showed the combination of chlorine at the bird wash station and peroxyacetic acid at the on-line reprocessing and chill stages as the most common U.S. processing scenario. Irradiation at packaging and acidified sodium chlorite at evisceration were the most effective single processing interventions (98.8 and 91.6% risk reduction, respectively); however, no single intervention was able to comply with the current Food Safety and Inspection Service Salmonella postchill performance standards. The combination of peroxyacetic acid in at least one of the chicken processing stages with the current set of U.S. baseline interventions achieved >99% Salmonella relative risk reduction and ensured Food Safety and Inspection Service compliance. Adding more than one intervention to the U.S. current practice did not enhance (<2%) the overall Salmonella risk reduction. This study can help poultry processors to prioritize food safety interventions to maximize Salmonella reduction and public health protection.

Prevalence of Escherichia coli, Salmonella, and Campylobacter spp. on retail chicken, turkey, pork, and beef in the United States: a literature review

A modular process risk model approach was used to assess health risks associated with Salmonella spp. after consumption of the Danish meatball product (frikadeller) produced with fresh pork in a catering unit. Meatball production and consumption were described as a series of processes (modules), starting from 1.3 kg meat pieces through conversion to 70 g meatballs, followed by a dose response model to assess the risk of illness from consumption of these meatballs. Changes in bacterial prevalence, concentration, and unit size were modelled within each module. The risk assessment was built using observational data and models that were specific for Salmonella spp. in meatballs produced in the catering sector. Danish meatballs are often pan-fried followed by baking in an oven before consumption, in order to reach the core temperature of 75 °C recommended by the Danish Food Safety Authority. However, in practice this terminal heat treatment in the oven may be accidentally omitted. Eleven production scenarios were evaluated with the model, to test the impact of heat treatments and cooling rates at different room temperatures. The risk estimates revealed that a process comprising heat treatment of meatballs to core temperatures higher than 70 °C, and subsequent holding at room temperatures lower than 20 °C, for no longer than 3.5 h, were very effective in Salmonella control. The current Danish Food Safety Authority recommendation of cooking to an internal temperature of 75 °C is conservative, at least with respect to Salmonella risk. Survival and growth of Salmonella during cooling of meatballs not heat treated in oven had a significant impact on the risk estimates, and therefore, cooling should be considered a critical step during meatball processing.

Psychological Capital in Food Safety Social Co-governance.

Social co-governance of food safety is an advocacy model to deal with current global food safety risks. Food safety co-governance involves the collaboration and partnership of government, industry, and society. The success of this collaboration is dependent on the construct of positive psychological capital. This paper discusses the concept of psychological capital and its four elements of self-efficacy, optimism, hope, and resiliency in line with co-governance in food safety. Accordingly, the paper proposes that great success in food safety co-governance would be realized if the government, industry, and society nurture positive psychological capital. Psychological capital can help corporates to instill organizational commitment on employees, thus promote food safety. Furthermore, positive psychological capital can help the government to appeal to the emotions of food companies and social actors to ensure self-efficacy toward food safety. The government can inspire hope by setting food safety goals and plans to achieve them, and a reward program will motivate food companies and promote self-efficacy in co-governance efforts. The government can also reinforce the efforts of companies in leveraging the elements of PsyCap in food safety, since the production of high-quality food is also dependent on the behaviors and attitudes of the workforce. Furthermore, the government can utilize social persuasion to improve the engagement of social actors in food safety regulations.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FOOD SAFETY KNOWLEDGE AND HYGIENE PRACTICES OF STREET FOOD VENDORS IN TRA VINH CITY

The objective of this study is to explore the relationship between the current food safety knowledge of street food vendors and their hygiene practices in Tra Vinh city. Fifty street food vendors were randomly selected and the survey was conducted using a face-to-face interview method through the questionnaire. The results showed evidence of a slight relationship between the food safety knowledge of the street food vendors and their hygiene practices (r = 0.27, p &gt; 0.05). Based on the demographic information, the education might be the most important factor for a better understanding of the variability of the food safety knowledge (F = 3.54, p &lt; 0.05), but not that of the hygiene practices (F = 0.78, p &gt; 0.05). Until recently, the training of food safety knowledge has been conducted with the expectation that street food vendors would prepare and store food safely in case they would have adequate food safety and hygiene knowledge. However, our study shows that the current training way has not been effective due to the fact that the behavior of street food vendors who were trained was not different from the behavior of street food vendors who were not trained

Efficacy of Food Safety Training in Commercial Food Service.

Proper food safety training is essential to decrease incidences and overall rates of foodborne illnesses and outbreaks. Though many commercial restaurants should provide proper food safety training to food handler employees, this training is not always offered or effective. Here, we summarize the results of a primary literature study concerning the effectiveness of food safety training in commercial settings. The literature chosen for review contained only studies with experimental food safety training, with before and after training data. Through evaluation of these studies, the best practice for ensuring effective training and follow-through were the use of food safety training programs, which incorporated both knowledge and behavior-based training. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: Food safety managers in food service establishments may consider reevaluating their current food safety training program to incorporate behavioral-based food safety training in addition to knowledge-based training.

Government regulations and voluntary certifications in food safety in China: A review

BackgroundWith the improvement of living standards, people are paying increasing attention to the quality of food. From the perspective of food companies, there are two driving powers to improve quality: government regulations as the external factor and voluntary certifications as the internal factor. Regulation is an intervention on the market by the government through administrative means. The third-party certification voluntarily sought by companies, which enhances company competitive advantage through improving consumers’ acceptance and recognition, belongs to internal driving force. Scope and approachBeginning with the current food safety situation in China, this paper describes the changes in government regulatory agencies and compares the similarities and differences of regulatory systems with the United States, the European Union and Japan. This study examines the development of the Chinese food safety regulatory system since 1949, which can be a reference to other developing countries. Moreover, this paper explains the current status of product certifications and system certifications in China. Key findings and conclusionsLack of social responsibility, inadequate awareness of food risks, pursuit of short-term economic benefits and poor processing technology are the root causes of food safety incidents in China. Based on the analysis of food safety regulation system in China and comparison with the systems in other developed counties. The authors proposed two suggestions. The first suggestion is to reform food safety system, such as formulating food safety laws, enforcing social supervision and so on. The other suggestion is to encourage small and medium food companies to implement product and system certifications.

Norovirus Detection at Oualidia Lagoon, a Moroccan Shellfish Harvesting Area, by Reverse Transcription PCR Analysis.

Norovirus (NoV) is the leading cause of acute viral gastroenteritis outbreaks in the world. These outbreaks are frequently associated with bivalve shellfish consumption, particularly because these products are often eaten raw or only slightly cooked. In Morocco, regulations concerning the acceptable levels of enteric bacteria indicator organisms in these products have been put in place. However, these regulations do not take into account the risk of viral contamination, and many gastroenteritis outbreaks have been linked to the ingestion of bivalve shellfish from areas that comply with the current food safety criteria. The aim of this study was to investigate NoV presence in shellfish samples (n = 104) collected at four sites owcff Oualidia lagoon (Moroccan Atlantic coast) from November 2015 to February 2017. Samples were analysed using real-time RT-PCR in accordance with the ISO 15216-2 method. NoVs of the genogroup II were detected in 7% of samples that were all collected during the winter months. Moreover, 71% of NoV-positive samples were harvested at sites upstream of the lagoon. These results highlight the need of regularly monitoring viral contamination in bivalve shellfish to limit the risk of viral gastroenteritis outbreaks.

Isotopic dilution assay development of nisin A in cream cheese, mascarpone, processed cheese and ripened cheese by LC-MS/MS method

The current food safety concern for food integrity demands the availability of an accurate, easy and reliable analytical tool for assay development of nisin A in cheese. To address this, we report the application of isotopically labelled peptide sequence MSTKDFNLDLVSVSKKDSGASP(R) (without thioether bridges) as internal standard for determination of nisin A in cream cheese, mascarpone, processed cheese and ripened cheese without the need for matrix-matched calibration by triple-quadrupole mass spectrometry. Full method validation was performed according to the modified Commission Decision 2002/657/EC criteria and method robustness was checked on 10 random cheese samples. Internal standard provided significant improvement (p < 0.05) in method precision for determination of nisin A in all four types of cheese. Significant losses (p < 0.05) for Nisin A in cheese was observed one week later. A fit-for-purpose method using internal standard procedure for accurate quantitation of Nisin A in cheese becomes available.

Qualitative and quantitative cues in consumers' valuation of food safety: Evidence from Lebanon

AbstractIn this work, we explore consumers' behavior toward the joint provision of qualitative and quantitative food safety information. To this end, we conduct a choice experiment involving a representative sample of 700 households from Beirut, Lebanon, designed around the purchase of a high risk Middle Eastern traditional street food, “shawarma.” The surveyed household sample was divided among two treatments where one was provided with additional quantitative risk reduction information, hence labeled “informed” versus the other which is labeled as “uninformed”. Accordingly, we compare the willingness to pay (WTP) values between both informed and uninformed respondents given typical risk reduction levels using mixed‐logit. The analysis illustrates that consumers were less likely to choose more expensive products—all else being equal—with the average consumer preferring to buy shawarma sandwiches from “round the corner” shops as opposed to walking for more than 10 min, driving or ordering delivery. However, when food safety attributes were introduced preference shifted significantly toward food safety certification in all iterations as compared to no certification. This preference is independent of whether risk reduction information was provided. Nevertheless, once quantitative risk reduction information was shared, the results revealed a decrease in preference for food safety certificates. Accordingly, our results query the validity of incomplete risk information in food safety certifications and challenge some of the implications of risk communication on consumers' choice highlighting the need for improved and well‐defined risk communication strategies.Practical applicationsBased on our results, we foresee a merit for public authorities in Lebanon to review and upgrade the current food safety monitoring and certification services and couple them with assertive and well‐publicized risk reduction communication strategies. On the other hand, we suggest that the cost associated with these services should be heavily discounted or subsidized to benefit small and street food vendors. This will provide a powerful incentive for them to substantially improve on their food safety and hygiene practices. Given the evidence on the high premiums consumers are willing to pay for safer foods and transparent risk communication, such an incentive will become more persuasive for small food vendors. Accordingly, this will establish a robust market for street food safety in general and street foodborne risk communication in particular with considerable welfare gains to street food vendors which will ultimately shape consumer behavior.

Cultural revolution

Cultural revolution

Hortaliças orgânicas: alimentos saudáveis ou um risco à saúde?

As hortaliças orgânicas são caracterizadas por um cultivo sem agrotóxicos e fertilizantes sintéticos. No entanto, o modo como esses vegetais são cultivados, com esterco bovino como adubo, aumenta a possibilidade de tornarem-se vias de transmissão de enteroparasitoses. Nesse contexto, o presente trabalho teve por objetivo detectar a ocorrência de estruturas parasitárias em hortaliças orgânicas comercializadas em feira livre no Município do Crato (CE). As hortaliças orgânicas foram coletadas na feira agroecológica Associação Cristã de Base – ACB. Uma amostra de cada hortaliça (coentro, cebolinha e alface) foi coletada por banca (oito bancas, no total), e processadas utilizando a técnica Lutz, ou de Hoffmann, Pons e Janer ou método de sedimentação espontânea, com adaptações para estudo parasitológico em vegetais. Para cada amostra foram preparadas três lâminas e analisadas em microscópio óptico nas objetivas de 10X e 40X. Do total de amostras de hortaliças orgânicas analisadas 31,40% encontravam-se contaminadas pelas seguintes estruturas parasitárias: cistos de Giardia duodenalis, Balantidium coli, Entamoeba histolytica, E. coli, Iodamoeba butschlii, Endolimax nana; ovos de ancilostomídeos, Taenia sp. e Hymenolepis diminuta, larvas de ancilostomídeos e de Strongyloides stercoralis. O coentro foi a hortaliça mais contaminada, e o S. stercoralis foi o parasito mais frequente nas amostras de hortaliças, portanto, prevaleceram os helmintos. A contaminação encontrada nesse estudo sugere formas inadequadas de cultivo, higienização e manipulação das hortaliças, sendo inadequadas para o consumo segundo legislação em vigor. São necessárias campanhas eficazes de incentivo à higienização dos alimentos, mesmos os orgânicos, dito como “saudáveis”, mas, que podem ser vias de transmissão de parasitos de enteroparasitoses./

Behavioral patterns of consumers participating in food safety and social co-governance: consumption choices and environmental improvement

Consumers are the most direct stakeholders of food safety, and their effective participation is the key to the social Co-governance of food safety. Based on the specific behaviors of Chinese consumers participating directly and indirectly in the social Co-governance of food safety, using the data of 350 consumers’ behavior survey and factor analysis and cluster analysis, this paper extracts two kinds of behavior models of Chinese consumers participating in the social Co-governance of food safety, namely, consumption choices model and environment improvement model. It is found that Chinese consumers are inclined to adopt the “environment improvement” model at this stage, which is the inevitable result of the current food safety pressure in China. The government should formulate corresponding policies to better guide consumers to participate in the social Co-governance of food safety.

Theoretical Basis and System Establishment of China Food Safety Intelligent Supervision in the Perspective of Internet of Things

In order to improve the current food safety supervision system in China, this paper suggested utilizing the Internet of Things (IoT). This paper analyzed current food supply models first, then established a model of food supply chain including the four major processes of food supply: planting/culture, processing, transporting, and catering/marketing, which helps the full supervision of “from farm to table”; next, according to the characteristics and requirements of food transporting, this paper summarized predicaments and difficulties of food transporting and logistics platforms, and pointed out the major problems of current food transportations. In the end, combining with advantages of the IoT, this paper demonstrated the importance of constructing an IoT-based logistics platform of food; through analyzing each demand for main functions of the platform, this paper established a general framework model of food logistics platform based on the IoT 3-tier architecture, and focused on the subjects and processes of food logistics. The results of this paper showed great significance in the fields of providing a guarantee for food safety, promoting social harmony and stability, as well as contributing to the long-term stability of the country. Therefore, this paper corresponded with hot issues of the government, citizens, and the society, which is practically significant to food safety management in new eras and periods.

Rapid Identification of Mixed Enteropathogenic Bacteria by Means of Au Nanoparticles@Bacteria Using Portable Raman Spectrometer.

Rapid detection of food-borne pathogens is the most critical and urgent issue among all the current food safety problems. As enhanced substrate, nanoparticles are widely used in surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) because of unique optical and physicochemical properties. In this study, Au nanoparticles with monodisperse and good reproducibility were synthesized by using sodium citrate reduction method. Applying Au nanoparticles sol as enhanced substrate, a portable Raman spectrometer had been applied for rapid detection of single and mixture pathogenic bacterial contamination by SERS. The results indicated that Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhimirium, Shigella flexner and Staphylococcus aureus showed specific Raman phenotypes at 600∼1700 cm-1. Generally, different bacteria could be easily and instantly recognized by its Raman phenotypes. The PC-LDA classification model was set up by combined bacterial Raman phenotypes with the multivariate statistical analysis. With the short-time inoculation, four enteropathogenic bacteria could be rapidly, precisely, sensitively and specifically identified. Furthermore, the model also had a good ability to predict the mixed contamination. This research provides the possibility of rapid detection in the food and biomedical fields.

Preharvest Farming Practices Impacting Fresh Produce Safety.

Advancements in agriculture and food processing techniques have been instrumental in the development of modern human societies. Vast improvements in agronomic practices, handling, and processing have allowed us to produce and preserve mass quantities of food. Yet despite all these innovations and potentially as a consequence of these mass production practices, more and more outbreaks of human pathogens linked to raw and processed foods are identified every year. It is evident that our increased capacity for microbial detection has contributed to the greater number of outbreaks detected. However, our understanding of how these events originate and what agronomic, packaging, and environmental factors influence the survival, persistence, and proliferation of human pathogens remains of scientific debate. This review seeks to identify those past and current challenges to the safety of fresh produce and focuses on production practices and how those impact produce safety. It reflects on 20 years of research, industry guidelines, and federal standards and how they have evolved to our current understanding of fresh produce safety. This document is not intended to summarize and describe all fruit and vegetable farming practices across the United States and the rest of the world. We understand the significant differences in production practices that exist across regions. This review highlights those general farming practices that significantly impact past and current food safety issues. It focuses on current and future research needs and on preharvest food safety control measures in fresh-produce safety that could provide insight into the mechanisms of pathogen contamination, survival, and inactivation under field and packinghouse conditions.