Contamination Control

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The Interagency Food Safety Analytics Collaboration (IFSAC) has published its list of priorities for 2024–2028, which includes improving foodborne illness source attribution estimates for Campylobacter, making non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) a pathogen of focus, and other activities.

The use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools like big data and machine learning for antimicrobial resistance (AMR) surveillance in livestock production shows promise for informing AMR mitigation efforts, according to a recent study led by University of Nottingham researchers.

Mettler-Toledo Product Inspection Group has unveiled a variety of inspection systems, including two new X-ray inspection systems—the X12 and the X32—and the latest ProdX software.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is offering an online course through its FAO eLearning Academy on the threat that antimicrobial resistance (AMR) poses to global health, the role of the food and agriculture sector, and the impact of AMR on agrifood systems.

To align the Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs) for 127 agricultural and veterinary chemicals with international authorities, Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) recently released its annual call for comment on proposed changes.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (USDA’s NIFA) has granted a Michigan State University (MSU) research team $611,000 to explore the uptake of toxic heavy metals in food crops, with the goal of providing a guide containing mitigation strategies and decision-making resources for growers and policymakers.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released the first dataset collected under the fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 5), which is intended to provide new information that will improve EPA’s understanding of the frequency that 29 per- and polyfluoralkyl substances (PFAS) and lithium are found in U.S. drinking water systems, and at what levels.

Key Technology recently introduced its new COMPASS® family of food optical sorters, ideal for sorting processed, frozen, and pre-processed vegetables and fruits, nuts, leafy greens, potato chips, confections, and other food products.

Based on the results of a recent Clostridium perfringens Market Basket Study, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA’s FSIS) has concluded that the guidance currently being used for the cooling of large-mass, non-intact ready-to-eat (RTE) meat and poultry products is adequate and does not merit revision.

In this episode of Food Safety Matters, we are joined by Kris de Smet, D.V.M., Head of the Food Hygiene Team under the Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety at the European Commission. Dr. de Smet discusses his work with the European Commission and Codex Alimentarius in areas such as Salmonella mitigation, foodborne illness outbreak preparedness and management, and food safety culture improvement and measurement.