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The Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) has released its first Science and Technology Advisory Group (STAG) Report, which focuses on four themes impacting food safety: “Big Data,” the role of the microbiome, emerging foodborne pathogens, and food system resilience.

Maple Leaf Foods’ 12^th Annual Food Safety Symposium was held on October 24, 2022, and the theme was “How Measurement, Management and Transparency Builds Long Term Trust Among Stakeholders.”

In this episode of Food Safety Matters, we talk to Michael (Mike) Cramer, author of Food Plant Sanitation—now in its third edition! Mike has nearly 43 years of experience in food safety and quality assurance (FSQA) and sanitation at meat and poultry processors and major frozen foods producers, having retired from Ajinomoto Foods North America in 2021. He discusses his learnings throughout his time in industry and provides guidance, resources, and valuable insights for both experienced and up-and-coming FSQA professionals looking to implement effective sanitation programs and foster healthy food safety cultures at their organizations. 

It is imperative that we have an immediate paradigm shift in how we manage risk in foodservice establishments to significantly decrease the health and economic burden of foodborne illnesses. This article discusses how to develop a prerequisite program that can be used to train and be monitored via a Food Safety Management System (FSMS) in a foodservice establishment.

For National Food Safety Education Month 2022, the National Environmental Health Organization (NEHA), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (USDA's) Food and Nutrition Service are offering educational webinars and informational resources.

During National Food Safety Month 2022, the experts at ServSafe, alongside the National Restaurant Association, will curate free content for the restaurant industry with a focus on “Food Safety at Every Level.”

The Northeast Center to Advance Food Safety has published the Processors’ Food Safety Toolkit, a webpage designed for small and very small food processors that are required to comply with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Preventive Controls for Human Food Rule under the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).

The dry bulb onion industry, led by the International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA) and the National Onion Association (NOA), has released an updated food safety best practices document for industry and plans to hold a webinar to discuss the document and future initiatives.

To lead from the local level for food safety, top executives must empower and authorize leaders to solve issues like food safety culture. The technical food safety team is best situated for this task. To build a sustainable food safety culture, it is essential to start with shifting and building the mindset of the technical leadership and honoring the well-being of this team. 

With the COVID-19 pandemic (hopefully) solidly in the rearview mirror, we wanted to find out what projects and initiatives food companies are focusing on for the rest of this year and into 2023. We heard from more than 200 food processors in every major category. They reported a wide-ranging wish list of projects and priorities, with improving their food safety culture, more training, improving their supply chain management (especially with their foreign suppliers), and improving their sanitation and environmental monitoring programs at the top of the list.