Assessment of the food control systems in the Sultanate of Oman

National food control systems are vital tools in governing the safety and quality of food intended for human consumption. This study of the Omani system was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the current food controls in place for protecting, in particular, the public health from emerging biological and chemical hazards. In response to this situation, a survey was undertaken within the different food safety authorities in Oman to examine the different elements of the national food control systems in terms of their existing food control management, food legislation, food inspection, food analysis laboratories and information, education and communications. Officials from the different authorities were interviewed and results were captured in prepared questionnaires. Overall examinations of the challenges, strength and weakness of the existing system have been highlighted. The findings of the study indicate significant progress is being made and the creation by the government of a national Centre for Food Safety and Quality is a significant positive step.     

A Review on the Fermentation of Foods and the Residues of Pesticides—Biotransformation of Pesticides and Effects on Fermentation and Food Quality

Residues of pesticides in food are influenced by processing such as fermentation. Reviewing the extensive literature showed that in most cases, this step leads to large reductions in original residue levels in the fermented food, with the formation of new pesticide by-products. The behavior of residues in fermentation can be rationalized in terms of the physical-chemical properties of the pesticide and the nature of the process. In addition, the presence of pesticides decrease the growth rate of fermentative microbiota (yeasts and bacterias), which provokes stuck and sluggish fermentations. These changes have in consequence repercussions on several aspects of food sensory quality (physical-chemical properties, polyphenolic content, and aromatic profile) of fermented food. The main aim of this review is to deal with all these topics to propose challenging needs in science-based quality management of pesticides residues in food.     

Survey of domestic food purchases and related home handling practices in the Abruzzo region (central Italy): Data collection and analysis through a language-independent classification system

A telephone survey was carried out on 13,486 randomly selected households located in the Abruzzo region (central Italy). Three questionnaires were specifically designed in relation to three different groups of foods (Meat and meat products, Fishery products, Fruit and vegetables). Questions were mainly focused on the amount and number of purchases, type of retailer, and home food handling practices with respect to the week prior to the interview. Data were classified according to a multilingual thesaurus system (LanguaL). Results allowed to estimate domestic purchases (in kg) per capita for different food categories. The category “Red meat/Cattle” accounted for a large part of purchases in the “meat and meat products” group (10.9 kg per capita/year; 32.2% of purchases in the group) while the category “Fish or related organism/Fish” was the most purchased in the “fishery products” group (6.9 kg per capita/year; 63.3%). The aggregation of more detailed characteristics enabled the identification of popular categories of foods, such as “Red meat/Cattle/Divided into pieces” (25% of the “meat and meat products” group). Significant differences (p < 0.05) were found between the four different provinces (L'Aquila, Chieti, Pescara and Teramo) with respect to “Poultry/Chicken” and “Red meat/Cattle” categories. Householders were also asked about post-purchase food handling practices that might be hazardous to food safety. More than 20% of those surveyed stated that they thawed frozen meat at room temperature. The degree of doneness after cooking of different food categories was generally high: over 90% of products purchased in the majority of meat and fish categories were properly cooked. However a noticeable proportion of householders (about 15%) reported medium or rare cooking of “Red meat/Cattle” and “Red meat/Swine”. Differences (p < 0.05) were also found between consumers of different ages, with people over 65 years old being more prone to freeze meat and cook it thoroughly.The survey was carried out in a specific geographic area and on a statistically significant sample of households, thus allowing a collection of data on domestic habits relating to food purchases and home food handling practices. This information should be included in the framework of quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) models as a measure of the actual exposure of consumers to pathogenic microorganism. The LanguaL system also proved to be a practical language-independent method useful not only to identify and describe food items but also to classify them according to specific food safety characteristics.     

关于信息化测绘时代工程测量发展的思考

如今我国信息化技术全面发展，尤其对于工程测量工作领域来讲，不管是在工程建设和管理方面都产生不小的支撑引导效用。由此，笔者具体结合如今工程建设信息化测绘核心任何以及设备布置细节，进行结构整体安全管理周期和周边地理空间信息技术发展能效整理解析，试图将工程测量最新发展机遇和技术挑战问题处理完全。希望能够借此为日后一定时期范围内相关工程测量规划主体提供合理指导性建议内容，最终为我国各类工程事业可持续发展前景绽放奠定深刻适应基础。     

节能型浮式生产储油装置惰气系统

为最大限度地利用FPSO上热站锅炉的烟气,减少FPSO上惰气系统能源消耗,对惰气系统配置及控制方式进行了改进。即惰气系统采用1台烟气模式、1台柴油模式,并与之对应配置2套完全独立的惰气总管,和1套公共控制系统。惰气系统工作时,烟气模式优先运行,烟气量不足时,柴油模式运行,产生的惰气作为烟气模式的补充。采用这种惰气系统,不但对FPSO热介质加热炉产生的烟气可以充分利用,减少柴油消耗量,节约惰气系统燃料成本,而且可以同时进行外输及洗舱作业,提高生产时率。     

Prevalence,enumeration, and characterization of Salmonella isolated from aquatic food products from retail markets in China

This study aimed to estimate the extent and level of Salmonella contamination of aquatic food products in China, and to determine serotype, virulotype, and the antimicrobial resistance profiles of recovered Salmonella isolates. Out of 554 samples collected from July 2011 to May 2014, 86 (15.5%) tested positive for Salmonella. The highest contamination rate occurred in oysters (23.1%, 6/26), followed by freshwater fish (18.6%, 43/231), shrimp (13.0%, 13/100), and saltwater fish (12.2%, 24/197). The contamination levels generally corresponded to a most probable number (MPN)/g of 0.3–10, although one sample exceeded 110 MPN/g. Among the 103 isolates, S. Typhimurium, S. Wandsworth, S. Thompson, and S. Derby were the most prevalent serovars. Sixty-eight isolates (66.0%) were resistant to at least one antimicrobial, and 35 (34.0%) were resistant to more than three. High rates of resistance were observed for tetracycline (35.9%), ampicillin (28.2%), nalidixic acid (26.2%), trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (25.2%), chloramphenicol (20.4%) and streptomycin (18.4%). Of note, S. Thompson isolates exhibited resistance to multiple extended-spectrum cephalosporins, ciprofloxacin, and other antimicrobials. PCR analysis of 15 virulence genes showed that ssaQ, mgtC, siiD, sopB, and bcfC were present in all 103 isolates, whereas the remaining loci were variably distributed. S. Typhimurium, S. Enteritidis, and S. Weltevreden isolates exhibited a wider range of pathogenicity determinants compared with the other strains. Our study provides a comprehensive surveillance on prevalence of Salmonella in aquatic food products from China and indicates its potential risk to public health. These data are valuable for epidemiological studies, risk management, and public health strategies.     

Suitability,efficiency and microbiological safety of novel physical technologies for the processing of ready‐to‐eat meals,meats and pumpable products

Consumer studies and market reports show an increase in consumption of ready‐to‐eat (RTE) foods. Although conventional processing technologies can in most cases produce safe products, they can also lead to the degradation of nutritional compounds and negatively affect quality characteristics. Consumers strongly prefer food that is minimally processed with the maximum amount of health‐promoting substances. Novel processing technologies as pre‐ or post‐treatment decontamination methods or as substitutes of conventional technologies have the potential to produce foods that are safe, rich in nutrient content and with superior organoleptic properties. Combining novel with conventional processes can eliminate potential drawbacks of novel technologies. This review examines available scientific information and critically evaluates the suitability and efficiency of various novel thermal and nonthermal technologies in terms of microbial safety, quality as well as nutrient content on the production of RTE meals, meats and pumpable products.     

化工企业安全生产标准化关键问题与对策

针对目前化工企业安全生产标准化关键性问题进行深入的分析和探讨,为更好地解决该问题提出相应的对策,以期为化工企业安全生产标准化的发展提供一定参考。     

Towards the Unified Principles for Level 5 Autonomous Vehicles

The rapid advance of autonomous vehicles (AVs) has motivated new perspectives and potential challenges for existing modes of transportation. Currently, driving assistance systems of Level 3 and below have been widely produced, and several applications of Level 4 systems to specific situations have also been gradually developed. By improving the automation level and vehicle intelligence, these systems can be further advanced towards fully autonomous driving. However, general development concepts for Level 5 AVs remain unclear, and the existing methods employed in the development processes of Levels 0–4 have been mainly based on task-driven function development related to specific scenarios. Therefore, it is difficult to identify the problems encountered by high-level AVs. The essential logical and physical mechanisms of vehicles have hindered further progression towards Level 5 systems. By exploring the physical mechanisms behind high-level autonomous driving systems and analyzing the essence of driving, we put forward a coordinated and balanced framework based on the brain–cerebellum–organ concept through reasoning and deduction. Based on a mixed mode relying on the crow inference and parrot imitation approach, we explore the research paradigm of autonomous learning and prior knowledge to realize the characteristics of self-learning, self-adaptation, and self-transcendence for AVs. From a systematic, unified, and balanced point of view and based on least action principles and unified safety field concepts, we aim to provide a novel research concept and develop an effective approach for the research and development of high-level AVs, specifically at Level 5.     

It is in the box! Improving the usability and benefits of surgical safety checklists – A feasibility study

Up to 50% of preventable hospital medical errors occur in or after visiting an operating theater in the United States. To address this issue, hospitals use a Surgical Safety Checklist (SSC), which can reduce complications and mortality rates when used systematically. To execute it, surgeons read aloud from a poster hanging on a wall. However, studies report usability issues with posters and often surgeons execute the checklist from memory, which can reduce completion rates at the expense of patient safety. We present a novel approach to increase the SSC's usability in view of improving patient safety. Our DigitalChecklistBox displays the SSC directly on a patient's surgical drape and enables surgeons to navigate through the checklist using hand gestures. Evaluated with 10 surgeons, it increased the checklist elements' readability and navigation and brought additional functionalities to limit the number of missed elements.