In this article we welcome guest author and industry expert, Alec Kyriakides, to explore some of the food safety developments, recalls and incidents that have happened recently.

 

Food Safety Developments

Plant-based food risks

Product development of plant-based foods has been significant in recent years and, with the increased sales and exposure to these products, a number of hazards have emerged including allergens and microbial pathogens. A listeriosis outbreak recently reported in Canada causing 18 cases with two deaths implicated two brands of refrigerated, plant-based milk. Plant-based foods are highly nutritious and can provide suitable growth conditions for microbiological contaminants and these hazards must be considered as part of the product development process using hazard analysis approaches such as HACCP (hazard analysis and critical control point). In addition, plant-based foods labelled as ‘vegan’ are often considered by consumers to be free-from animal derived allergens, especially milk, and the danger associated with this perception has been highlighted by regulators including the UK Food Standards Agency.

Targeting microbiological food safety intervention

It has long been recognised that the infectious dose of a foodborne microbiological pathogen can vary markedly due to factors including susceptibility of the exposed individual, the food matrix, the virulence of the pathogen and the level of exposure (number of cells consumed) (Bad Bug Book Appendix 1). Considerations of this nature can be useful in developing specific food safety interventions to reduce foodborne disease with a good example being the target implemented by the UK Food Standards Agency for Campylobacter spp. on retail raw chicken that was based on reducing the frequency of exposure to elevated levels (less than 7% retail chicken with levels greater than 1000 per g). The recent finding in a US study that most risk of salmonellosis was from exposure to a small proportion of raw chicken products that were contaminated with high levels of highly virulent serotypes of Salmonella spp. could prompt a similar targeted approach.

Outbreak data

July was a month for publishing historical data on national foodborne disease outbreaks and illnesses and these have been extensively covered in editions of Food Safety News, a very useful resource for professionals with a keen interest in food safety. Articles captured countries including the USA, Germany, England, Northern Ireland and Wales, Ireland, Sweden and Switzerland. On the topic of outbreaks, there have been interesting recent examples implicating some unusual pathogens and foods including one caused by a raw milk cheese due to contamination with Yersinia enterocolitica in France, Belgium, Norway and Luxemburg. The majority of cases were in France (133) with one case in each of the other countries. An STEC (Shiga toxin-producing E. coli) outbreak in the UK affecting over 35 people has reportedly implicated raisins from Turkey. An outbreak affecting 130 people with one death was reported in Japan following the consumption of lunch boxes from an eel store. Also in Japan, nearly 500 people were hospitalised following the consumption of a health supplement containing beni koji, a red yeast rice. The supplement is produced using a fungal culture including Monascus purpureus and it is reported that a potentially toxic metabolite may have been produced during a production run. Research has been published on the potential risks associated with this type of product. Finally, a major listeriosis outbreak has been reported across 13 states in the USA implicating cooked delicatessen meats, with 34 illnesses, 33 hospitalisations and 2 deaths.

United Kingdom Consumer Insights Tracker

The UK Food Standards Agency published the end of year report from its monthly Consumer Insights Tracker (CIT) covering the period July 2023 – March 2024. Issues that consumers were most concerned about included food prices (87%), ultra-processed or the over-processing of food (77%) and food poverty and inequality (75%) with confidence in the food supply chain increasing from 55% in July 2023 to 60% in March 2024. Approximately one in ten consumers reported engaging in risky food behaviours including lowering the cooking temperature of food, reducing the length of time food is cooked for, eating food beyond its use by date and changing the settings such that food in the fridge or freezer was kept at a warmer temperature.

Food Recall Highlights

The data used for this food recall highlights review is sourced from open access recall databases covering different countries and continents including the USA (Food & Drug Administration and the United States Department of Agriculture), the UK (Food Standards Agency), Germany (Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety) and Australia (Food Standards Australia New Zealand).

Microbiological contamination prompting public recalls were again dominated by Listeria monocytogenes together with recurrent recalls due to Salmonella spp. in sesame seeds and associated products;

 

Allergen recalls were mostly due to the undeclared presence of milk or peanuts / nuts in products although multiple allergens were also numerous in July;

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Physical contamination of products leading to recalls remained low and included the following;

 

Chemical recalls included a number of products where the safe levels of a substance was exceeded including;

   

Author

 

Alec Kyriakides

BRCGS International Advisory Board Chair

Independent Food Safety Consultant