Information systems in food safety management

Information systems are concerned with data capture, storage, analysis and retrieval. In the context of food safety management they are vital to assist decision making in a short time frame, potentially allowing decisions to be made and practices to be actioned in real time. Databases with information on microorganisms pertinent to the identification of foodborne pathogens, response of microbial populations to the environment and characteristics of foods and processing conditions are the cornerstone of food safety management systems. Such databases find application in: Identifying pathogens in food at the genus or species level using applied systematics in automated ways. Identifying pathogens below the species level by molecular subtyping, an approach successfully applied in epidemiological investigations of foodborne disease and the basis for national surveillance programs. Predictive modelling software, such as the Pathogen Modeling Program and Growth Predictor (that took over the main functions of Food Micromodel) the raw data of which were combined as the genesis of an international web based searchable database (ComBase). Expert systems combining databases on microbial characteristics, food composition and processing information with the resulting "pattern match" indicating problems that may arise from changes in product formulation or processing conditions. Computer software packages to aid the practical application of HACCP and risk assessment and decision trees to bring logical sequences to establishing and modifying food safety management practices.In addition there are many other uses of information systems that benefit food safety more globally, including: Rapid dissemination of information on foodborne disease outbreaks via websites or list servers carrying commentary from many sources, including the press and interest groups, on the reasons for and consequences of foodborne disease incidents. Active surveillance networks allowing rapid dissemination of molecular subtyping information between public health agencies to detect foodborne outbreaks and limit the spread of human disease. Traceability of individual animals or crops from (or before) conception or germination to the consumer as an integral part of food supply chain management. Provision of high quality, online educational packages to food industry personnel otherwise precluded from access to such courses.     

Emerging microbiological food safety issues related to meat

Avian influenza viruses and antibiotic-resistant pathogens have become topics of current public health interest. This paper will focus on the significance of these pathogens to the meat industry as well as other emerging microbiological food safety topics likely to impact the meat industry. These include surveillance of foodborne pathogens, microbial source tracking, risk assessment, and human populations at increased risk of infection by foodborne microbes. These emerging issues will likely lead to even greater challenges to producing microbiologically safe meat products than the industry has ever experienced. However, accompanying such challenges will be innovative solutions that provide even greater public health protection to meat-containing foods.     

Decreasing variation in the eating quality of beef through homogenous pre- and post-slaughter management

Even though microbiological standards have been promulgated for many decades, their utility has sometimes been questioned, and this is one reason that performance standards associated with programs like HACCP in processing plants and now in other food industries have been espoused. The public has an increasing concern over food safety and perceives a zero tolerance policy (i.e. no pathogens in a sample of food) and strict enforcement with punitive consequences for failure to comply is the answer to making food safer. At present, there is no clear connection between government policy and a reduction in foodborne illness. Although national disease statistics may show gradual declines over long periods for some pathogens associated with food, other problems, including new pathogens, tend to emerge. International bodies and some governments, however, are increasingly considering adopting a risk-based approach to managing a food supply, with the potential for introducing the Acceptable Level of Protection (ALOP) and Food Safety Objectives (FSOs) concepts. These make it possible to see a connection between a goal for disease reduction and what industry must do to accomplish this with specific objectives through performance standards and microbiological testing. However, it may not be easy to apply this approach for all types of industries and pathogens and in developing countries.     

Current and emerging molecular diagnostic technologies applicable to bacterial food safety

There is an increasing need for rapid test methods to certify the quality and safety of food products. Current tests applied for the microbiological assessment of food products are based on standard approved culture-based isolation methods and can take several days to yield results. Nucleic acid diagnostic (NAD) tests for the identification of bacterial foodborne pathogens employing in vitro amplification technologies are capable of sensitive and specific detection of single or multiple pathogens in foods in a shorter timeframe than traditional methods. New developments in molecular biosensors have the potential to provide at-line bioanalysis, whereas microarray-based technologies may in the future be the NAD platforms of choice for multiple pathogen detection and identification. This article reviews current and emerging NAD platforms for foodborne bacterial pathogens that have the potential to impact food safety.     

我国食品卫生微生物学30年来的热点研究及主要进展

回顾了我国改革开放30年来在食品卫生微生物学领域开展的主要工作及其进展,包括原因不明食物中毒病因及病原学研究、食源性疾病与食源性致病菌的监测、微生物危险性评估、食品微生物学技术及其标准化等。结合我国新颁布的食品安全法,分析了食品中微生物限量标准设定的趋势和对食品安全控制的作用,以及未来发展的需求等。     

Emerging foodborne pathogens

The broad spectrum of foodborne infections has changed dramatically over time, as well-established pathogens have been controlled or eliminated, and new ones have emerged. The burden of foodborne disease remains substantial: one in four Americans is estimated to have a significant foodborne illness each year. The majority of these illnesses are not accounted for by known pathogens, so more must remain to be discovered. Among the known foodborne pathogens, those more recently identified predominate, suggesting that as more and more is learned about pathogens, they come under control. In addition to the emergence or recognition of new pathogens, other trends include global pandemics of some foodborne pathogens, the emergence of antimicrobial resistance, the identification of pathogens that are highly opportunistic, affecting only the most high-risk subpopulations, and the increasing identification of large and dispersed outbreaks. New pathogens can emerge because of changing ecology or changing technology that connects a potential pathogen with the food chain. They also can emerge de novo by transfer of mobile virulence factors, often through bacteriophage. Though this is rarely observed, it can be reconstructed. Better understanding of the ecology and dynamics of phage transmission among bacteria will help us to understand the appearance of new pathogens in the future. One may look for emerging foodborne pathogens among the silent zoonoses, and among the severe infections affecting the immunocompromised humans. We should expect the unexpected. In the past, separating human sewage and animal manure from human food and water supplies was critical to improving public health. Now, our health depends increasingly on the safety of the feed and water supplies for the animals themselves. The successes of the 20th century and the new challenges we face mean that public health vigilance, careful investigation of new problems, responsible attention to food safety from farm to table, and partnerships to bring about new foodborne disease control measures will be needed for the foreseeable future.     

陕西省常见食源性致病菌耐药性研究进展

近年来食品安全问题层出不穷,而食源性致病菌则是引起食品安全问题的主要因素之一,严重危害了人类的健康.引发食源性疾病的常见致病菌主要有大肠杆菌、沙门氏菌、金黄色葡萄球菌、单核细胞增生李斯特菌等.研究表明,在过去的几十年里,由于在医疗、养殖业等领域中过度使用抗生素,造成细菌耐药现象日趋严重,这更加重了食源性致病菌的潜在危险...     

纳米材料在食源性致病菌检测的研究进展

食品安全问题已经成为全球研究热点问题之一,其中由食源性致病菌引起的食源性疾病频发,对公众健康和财产造成重大的影响。近年来,人们的食品安全意识呈显著增强趋势,食源性致病菌引起的食品安全问题引起了广泛关注。纳米材料具有高灵敏度、高选择性、便携性和低成本等优点,越来越广泛地应用于食源性致病菌的检测,逐渐能够取代传统的检测方式。因此,本文结合近些年国内外的纳米材料在食源性致病菌检测中的研究,综述了不同类型的纳米材料用于检测食源性致病菌的检测原理及其应用。此外,本文讨论了该领域中的研究挑战和前景,以期为今后食品安全提供保障,及时发现不合格、不健康、不安全的食品中的食源性致病菌。     

金纳米粒子在食源性病原体检测中的应用研究进展

近年来,由食源性病原体污染食物导致中毒或死亡事件在全球频发,食源性病原体引起的疾病已成为危害人类健康的头号杀手,亟需开发快速、准确且灵敏的食源性病原体检测方法用于日常的食源疫情监测和预防食源性疾病暴发。金纳米粒子凭借其小尺寸、表面积大、高反应活性及易于与其他传统检测方法相结合等优势成为食品安全检测领域的研究热点。本文在总结了金纳米粒子的理化性质、制备的基础上,重点综述了基于金纳米粒子的免疫标记技术在食源性病原体检测方面的应用,主要涉及免疫层析技术、比色法、生物传感器的制备和探针技术等的最新研究进展,并对未来研究方向进行了展望,以期为临床样本或食物中的食源性病原体检测快速化、准确化提供理论依据。     

中国食品安全的过去、现在和将来

本文从国家食品安全管理体制、食品安全国家标准以及风险分析框架的应用三个方面来回顾中国的食品安全,并展望将来。中国的国家食品安全管理体制从单一部门管理为主,演变为多部门的分段管理,又发展为市场监管总局、海关总署和农业农村部为主。法律层面也从《食品卫生法》发展为遵循风险分析框架的新《食品安全法》(2015年10月实施)。中国的食品安全国家标准也从食品卫生标准发展为食品安全标准,从互不协调、相互矛盾的三套强制性国家标准整合为一套食品安全国家标准,在覆盖面、技术水平、实用性,以及与国际标准接轨方面,都取得了长足的进步。对于国际公认的风险分析框架,从缺乏认识,到增加理解和认真实施,在全面开展风险监测、建立适合国情的风险评估制度、加强风险交流等方面取得了突出的成绩和进步。然而,也应该清醒地看到,中国当前在食品安全方面还存在很多问题。食源性疾病的监测和控制还比较薄弱,食品掺假或欺诈还相当普遍,风险交流面临严峻挑战(消费者对食品安全的过度担心)。为了尽快提升中国食品的质量和安全性,一是要做到从农田到餐桌的全产业链食品安全保障,二是政府要做到全产业链的一体化无缝监管。     

我国食品微生物风险评估的进展和挑战

近10余年来,我国依照《食品安全法》开展包括微生物风险评估在内的食品安全风险评估体系建设,微生物风险评估工作体系和技术体系等方面取得明显进展,成为我国开展食源性致病微生物风险评估的重要基础。随着全球后疫情时代食品供应链的变化和新技术的快速发展以及我国食品安全治理现代化需求的增加,构建基于我国膳食消费行为的评估模型、提高风险评估实施能力和质量以及实现现代技术在风险评估中的应用,将成为我国食品微生物风险评估建设的主要挑战和发展方向。     

From hazard analysis to risk control using rapid methods in microbiology: A practical approach for the food industry

The prevention of foodborne diseases is one of the main objectives of health authorities. To this effect, analytical techniques to detect and/or quantify the microbiological contamination of foods prior to their release onto the market are required. Management and control of foodborne pathogens have generally been based on conventional detection methodologies, which are not only time‐consuming and labor‐intensive but also involve high consumable materials costs. However, this management perspective has changed over time given that the food industry requires efficient analytical methods that obtain rapid results. This review covers the historical context of traditional methods and their passage in time through to the latest developments in rapid methods and their implementation in the food sector. Improvements and limitations in the detection of the most relevant pathogens are discussed from a perspective applicable to the current situation in the food industry. Considering efforts that are being done and recent developments, rapid and accurate methods already used in the food industry will be also affordable and portable and offer connectivity in near future, which improves decision‐making and safety throughout the food chain.     

食源性致病菌的检测方法及其发展趋势

食品安全十分重要,食源性致病菌引起的疾病是食品安全与人体健康的第一大敌。本文从传统微生物方法、免疫学方法、核酸方法和物理/化学特征方法 4个方面分析了近年来主要的食源性致病菌检测方法的检测原理、优缺点及应用进展,发现在广大条件有限的基层,快速筛查食源性致病菌领域仍有较大的空白。并对生物传感器技术的现状、存在的问题及未来的研究方向进行了总结及展望。提出了可行的改进方案以填补这一空白,从而更好地保障食品安全。     

Polymers and Biopolymers with Antiviral Activity: Potential Applications for Improving Food Safety

Gastroenteritis and hepatitis, caused by human noroviruses (HuNoVs) and hepatitis A virus (HAV), respectively, are the most common illnesses resulting from the consumption of food contaminated with human enteric viruses. Food‐grade polymers can be tailor designed to improve food safety, either as novel food‐packaging materials imparting active antimicrobial properties, applied in food contact surfaces to avoid cross‐contamination, or as edible coatings to increase fresh produce's shelf life. The incorporation of antimicrobial agents into food‐grade polymers can be used to control the food microbiota and even target specific foodborne pathogens to improve microbiological food safety and to enhance food quality. Enteric viruses are responsible for one fifth of acute gastroenteritis cases worldwide and the development of food‐grade polymers and biopolymers with antiviral activity for food applications is a topic of increased interest, both for academia and the food industry, even though developments are still limited. This review compiles existing studies in this widely unexplored area and highlights the potential of these developments to improve viral food safety.     

国内外微生物源食源性疾病监测及其防控进展

微生物源食源性疾病是一个世界性的公共卫生问题,其暴发不仅严重危害了人类健康,还带来了严重的经济损失,受到各国的高度重视。全面了解国内外微生物源食源性疾病监测的网络和机制、食源性疾病暴发相关的原因食品以及国内外微生物源食源性疾病的发病季节和分布规律,有助于我们对食源性疾病的监测、预防和控制。本文总结了食源性疾病爆发的相关知识,介绍了世界卫生组织、发达国家(美国、英国、丹麦和澳大利亚)以及我国对常见微生物源食源性疾病的监测现状。通过了解和借鉴世界各国的监测方式,提出了预防和控制食源性疾病的措施,包括:加强食源性疾病监测网络建设,加大食品安全监管力度,扩大食源性疾病监测范围和加强对食源性疾病的宣传教育,为我国食源性疾病的监控和防控提供有价值的参考。     

借鉴国际经验完善我国食品安全风险监测制度的探讨

食品安全风险监测是在风险分析原则基础上,由国际组织倡导并在许多国家取得成功的一项食品安全风险管理工作。我国自2010年以来开始建立并实施国家食品安全风险监测制度,目前在建立制度、部门参与、计划和方案制定以及结果应用等方面还存在不少欠缺和不足。本文借鉴了国际组织和先进国家的经验,从风险监测的目的、特点和需求出发,提出了建立风险监测工作规划,进一步改进参与机制和信息沟通利用机制,并对食源性疾病监测工作提出了具体改进建议。     

Food safety self-reported behaviors and cognitions of young adults: results of a national study

With limited opportunities to learn safe food handling via observation, many young adults lack the knowledge needed to keep them safe from foodborne disease. It is important to reach young adults with food safety education because of their current and future roles as caregivers. With a nationwide online survey, the demographic characteristics, self-reported food handling and consumption behaviors, food safety beliefs, locus of control, self-efficacy, stage of change, and knowledge of young adults with education beyond high school (n = 4,343) were assessed. Young adults (mean age, 19.92 +/- 1.67 SD) who participated were mainly female, white, never married, and freshmen or sophomores. Participants correctly answered 60% of the knowledge questions and were most knowledgeable about groups at greatest risk for foodborne disease and least knowledgeable about common food sources of foodborne disease pathogens. They reported less than optimal levels of safe food handling practices. Young adults generally had a limited intake of foods that increase the risk of foodborne disease, positive food safety beliefs, an internal food safety locus of control, and confidence in their ability to handle food safely, and they were contemplating an improvement in, or preparing to improve, their food handling practices. Females significantly outperformed males on nearly all study measures. Future food safety educational efforts should focus on increasing knowledge and propelling young adults into the action stage of safe food handling, especially males. Efforts to improve knowledge and, ultimately, food safety behaviors are essential to safeguard the health of these young adults and enable them to fulfill the role of protecting the health of their future families.     

我国食品微生物定量风险评估的研究进展

近10余年来,我国政府重视食品安全并逐渐加强风险分析体系的构建和实施。根据历年来国家卫生与计生委的统计数据,表明由致病微生物导致的食物中毒发病率一直高于其他危害。食源性致病菌引起的食品安全风险是全球性问题,发展中国家面临的情况更为严峻,因此加强我国微生物定量风险评估以减少与发达国家的差距,从国家层面上势在必行。特别是2009年我国颁布实施《食品安全法》和2011年成立国家食品安全风险评估中心（ChinaNational Center for Food Safety Risk Assessment,CFSA）以来,已有不少针对国内具体食品致病菌情况开展的食品微生物定量风险评估（quantitative microbial risk assessment,QMRA）研究。本文对2000年至今我国已开展的QMRA研究,包括涉及的食品、致病菌、微生物预测模型、剂量-效应模型等进行详细综述。同时指出我国开展QMRA面临的技术性难题及解决方法,并对采用QMRA结果用于构建危害分析与关键控制点（Hazard Analysis and CriticalControl Point,HACCP）和食品安全目标（ food safety objective,FSO）以及执行目标（performance objective,PO）的应用前景进行探讨。建议加强风险评估与风险管理的互动交流、进一步完善风险监测、微生物限量制定和国际合作,在完善实施指南的基础上针对我国具体国情开展更多具有科学性和系统性的QMRA研究。