The COVID-19 pandemic dramatically disrupted the food supply. This article seeks to explain the transcendent lessons of this national emergency, with the hope that being aware of them will help national decision-makers better prepare for next time. Our food systems, like the larger supply chain, will be challenged in the future with new kinds of disruptions, making it essential that mistakes are not repeated and that proactive, correct solutions are discovered and preparations made now.
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When regulatory stakeholders effectively collaborate at the local, state, and federal levels and understand each other’s roles, resources, and authorities, food recalls can be processed more efficiently. This results in a more agile recall response down to the consumer level, benefitting everyone in the farm-to-fork continuum and potentially reducing additional exposures and illnesses.
This Regional Culture article series will examine the differences and features that prevail and render each global region unique with regard to food safety culture. Ultimately, the goal is to foster understanding and enable better communicate and management of food safety culture.
Supply chain is critical to any food safety program. Having full control and traceability of raw materials and end products is no longer an option, but rather a requirement. In the past two years, the pandemic has exposed new weaknesses and made visible the business risks posed by an unstable supply chain.
The food system faces challenges on a global scale, including mitigating food waste, rising food supply chain and safety issues, and building the capacity to feed nearly 10 billion people by the year 2050. To ensure a more sustainable future, our next generation of leaders will need to work more collaboratively across the entire food system to drive impactful change.
In the first part of this survey (“Foodborne Parasites: An Insidious Threat to Food Safety and Public Health”), we looked in depth at common pathogenic parasites behind foodborne illness outbreaks and assessed the extensive geography of their origin and prevalence. In this concluding part, we look in detail at industry and regulators’ approaches to preventive control and eradication in response to this expansive threat to the global food supply system and its consumers.
Experienced food safety professionals are a valuable asset in today’s post-pandemic workforce. Crisis management and response are critical components of a food company’s toolbox.