Items Tagged with 'virus'

The FAO/WHO Joint Expert Meeting on Microbiological Risk Assessment (JEMRA) has published a report on prevention and intervention measures for foodborne virus–commodity pairs of concern.

Two research projects are investigating several novel techniques for detecting hepatitis A virus that eliminate false positives produced by inactivated, non-infectious RNA fragments—an issue that limits the usefulness of existing methods for indicating actual food safety risk.

A Center for Produce Safety-funded proof-of-concept study is exploring a novel, high-throughput capture and concentration method for hepatitis A virus in fruit wash water, which uses magnets and hydrogel nanoparticles. It could be added to existing FDA and ISO digital PCR assay workflows, potentially reducing false positives.

The World Health Organization (WHO) recently published a series of background documents on different viruses, bacteria, and parasites to inform the revision of drinking water quality guidelines and guidelines on sanitation and health.

The Joint Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)/World Health Organization (WHO) Expert Meeting on Microbiological Risk Assessment (JEMRA) recently convened to discuss the most recent literature on prevention and intervention measures for foodborne viruses.

Recently, the Joint Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)/World Health Organization (WHO) Expert Meeting on Microbiological Risk Assessment (JEMRA) provided a review of foodborne viruses and relevant food commodities of highest public health concern, relevant analytical methods, and the potential utility of indicators.

Non-cultivable foodborne pathogens, such as enteric viruses and protozoan parasites like Cyclospora, present unique challenges in our food system due to significant limitations in sampling and detection. This article covers the methodological drawbacks of current methods related to interpretation of results and public health risk, while offering alternative food safety management principles to address the prevalence of these pathogens in food.

After conducting new research on the survival of the COVID-19 virus on food and food packaging, the UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) has determined that, while the likelihood of catching the virus from food varies by surface type, the risk is “very low” overall.

Is coronavirus transmission by food or food packaging a valid concern? Here’s what we know and what we should be doing in the current absence of clear causality.