Food Safety Magazine Editorial Team

The Center for Produce Safety (CPS) has announced six new research projects totaling $1.8 million to address critical food safety challenges in the fresh produce industry.

The event focused on the alignment and intersection of food safety culture and best practices to control Listeria monocytogenes and prevent foodborne illness.

A German outbreak of enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) O45:H2 infections has caused 183 confirmed cases of illness (351 including probable and possible cases), 48 cases of HUS, and three deaths (two confirmed one probable). Contaminated meat or sausage products are the likely vehicle of illness, but plant-based foods have not yet been ruled out.

In a survey of California fast food employees, 47 percent of respondents reported seeing serious food safety issues at work in the past year, more than half of which went knowingly unresolved by management, and 37 percent who reported food safety issues said they faced retaliation for doing so.

The collection includes food boxes, bakery packaging, and takeout boxes made from FDA-approved, non-toxic, and grease-resistant materials.

Regulatory agencies based in Abu Dhabi, UAE have launched a strategic initiative to develop a regulatory framework for novel foods and processes, such as alternative proteins and precision fermentation.

The FAO UK Reference Center for AMR has partnered with the Philippines to strengthen national laboratory capacity and harmonize antimicrobial susceptibility testing methods, involving representatives across the food and agriculture sectors.

In this episode of Food Safety Matters, we speak to Dr. John Spink and Dr. Roy Fenoff about an often misunderstood but urgent topic—food fraud, and specifically how to prevent it in complex supply chains. They also discuss their upcoming food fraud workshop and certificate course to be held the 2026 Food Safety Summit.

An ongoing Center for Produce Safety-funded study is investigating the factors contributing to the persistence of a reoccurring, emerging, and persisting (REP) Escherichia coli O157:H7 subtype associated with leafy greens foodborne illness outbreaks, with the goal of developing a risk assessment tool for growers.

Although elevated levels of some PFAS were found in the blood of people who ate more highly processed foods, people who ate minimally process foods showed elevated levels of other PFAS compounds—suggesting that dietary choices cannot protect people from “forever chemicals,” and that systemic solutions are needed.