Testing & Analysis

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A study by scientists from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s CFSAN and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s ARS provides insight about factors that affect the presence of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli in bagged romaine lettuce.

Whole genome sequencing of Enterococcus faecium presents the theoretical possibility of probiotics in swine and cattle production as a source of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). 

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service (USDA ARS) recently published a study that observed the evolution of certain shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) O157:H7 strains over 23 years.

Regardless of whether or not cooks wash their poultry or not before cooking it, bacterial contamination is rampant in the kitchen, a recent study finds.

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has published its 2020 EU report on pesticide residue levels in food, including a dietary risk assessment.

The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control and the European Food Safety Authority have released a report on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in animals and food throughout the EU during 2019–2020.

A recent survey of UK lamb and turkey retail meat reveals new information about antimicrobial resistance levels in Escherichia coli and Campylobacter.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Economic Research Service found that Salmonella caused 80 percent of pathogen and toxin violations from 2002–2019, based on a recent study of import refusals.

Today's food laboratories remain largely free of regulatory oversight. That is about to change with the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) issuance of a final rule establishing a program for the testing of food, in certain circumstances, by accredited laboratories. Not only does this final rule provide specific quality standards and assurances to a segment of food testing, but it also opens the door for all laboratories to adhere to these essential elements.

This column will expand on the findings of the FDA study of the economic evaluation of the GenomeTrakr whole genome sequencing (WGS) program, adding data on the use of sequencing and how it will continue to change food safety practices and markets. It will also discuss what FDA is doing with GenomeTrackr to uncover previously unseen outbreaks and how this is keeping pressure on processors to expand environmental monitoring and controls.