Drawing upon insights shared by UK food safety professionals, a report produced by the Food Safety Research Network (FSRN)/Quadram Institute identifies emerging defenses against microbiological risks in food production environments, including science-backed approaches, advanced technologies, and culture-based initiatives.
A UK-based study, led by Quadram Institute researchers, underscores the limitations of traditional enumeration methods for foodborne pathogen surveillance and highlights the need for whole genome sequencing (WGS) to better assess the food safety risk posed by commensal or opportunistic Escherichia coli lineages.
First established in 2022 with the goal of making scientific advances to improve food safety, the Quadram Institute has received an award of £650,000 to continue the work of the Food Safety Research Network (FSRN) for a three-year second phase.
A recent study has demonstrated that current sampling and testing methods for Campylobacter may overlook epidemiologically-important strains. The researchers suggest using optimized culture methods and analyzing multiple isolates per sample.
A recent study conducted by scientists from the Quadram Institute and the UK Health Security Agency has revealed that, despite cleaning, Listeria monocytogenes are able to persist in ready-to-eat (RTE) food production environments, supported by diverse bacterial populations that also remain stable over time.
A survey of non-typhoidal Salmonella (NTS)found on retail foods sold in the UK has shown the overall prevalence of Salmonella to be low, although there is great genetic diversity among the Salmonella that was present, which may hinder outbreak investigations and source attribution in the case of foodborne illness outbreaks.
The UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) has partnered with the Biotechnology and Biological Research Council (BBSRC) and the Quadram Institute to create the UK Food Safety Network, a collaborative space for food safety research, training, and innovation.
