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As part of our ongoing efforts
to respond in a timely manner to urgent issues in food safety, we are
pleased to announce the organization of an IAFP "Late Breaking
Session—Are Safe Tomatoes Out of Reach?"
Convened by Gary Acuff and Alejandro Castillo, this special session addressing the recent outbreak of Salmonella
Saintpaul in tomatoes will be held 8:30 a.m.–12:00 p.m. on Wednesday,
August 6, at IAFP 2008 in Columbus. Featured speakers from the US and
Mexico will share the investigation details, research perspectives, and
economic repercussions of what may be the largest produce-related
outbreak in history. The session will conclude with a roundtable
discussion.
IAFP
Updates
Recipients Announced for IAFP 2008 Awards
Please
join us in congratulating the individuals and organizations whose
dedication to food safety will be recognized at the IAFP 2008 Awards
Banquet on August 6. We wish to thank all nominators and applicants for
their dedication in preparing and submitting nominations during our
2008 awards season.
[Link to list]
Program Available for 2008 European Symposium
We
invite you today to review the official program for our Fourth European
Symposium on Food Safety, to be held November 19–21 in Lisbon,
Portugal. "Advancements in Food Safety" has been organized and will be
presented by 28 experts from throughout Europe and beyond.
[Link to program]
[Link to conference information]
Featured Abstract from Journal of Food Protection
"Primers Specific for the Fimbrial Major Subunit Gene stdA Can Be Used to Detect Salmonella enterica Serovars" was the most widely-read article in the June issue. Read the abstract here.
[Link to abstract]
July Food Protection Trends: Abstracts and Monthly Columns by IAFP President and Executive Director
Researchers test for E. coli in beef using the Phast Swab integrated assay method; a paper suggesting Listeria
prevention strategies for small dairies producing specialty cheeses;
Gary Acuff argues for the ongoing validation of critical control points
in food production, particularly for industries that depend on the
too-late sampling of end products; a behind-the-scenes glimpse of IAFP
2008 with David Tharp.
[Link to FPT]
Food
Safety News
PFSE Welcomes AFFI and GMA As Contributing Members
The
Partnership for Food Safety Education (PFSE) announced in June the
expansion of its Board of Directors to include industry leaders from
the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) and the American Frozen
Food Institute (AFFI).
[Link to AFFI]
The Bacteria Within: Researchers to Study the Unstudied for Source of Disease
At the 108th General
Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology (ASM), scientists call
for a concerted research effort to study how the changes of microbial
communities living within the human body may affect or be affected by
disease.
[Link to article]
Through New Technique, Bacterium in Pigs to Be Studied for Role in Stomach Ulcers
Scientists at Gent University in Belgium have developed a new method of cultivating Helicobacter suis,
which has been associated with fatal stomach ulcers in pigs. The
availability of the organism's pure isolates is an important step in
the study of treatment strategies for both pigs and humans.
[Link to article]
Contaminated Produce a Major Player in the Increase of Foodborne Illnesses
In an electronic briefing
posted by the New York Academy of Sciences, five experts explain what
factors are influencing the rise in foodborne illnesses associated with
the consumption of fresh produce.
[Link to article]
Canadian Student Serves Up News Aggregator for Science Eyes Only
A
graduate student at the Université Laval in Quebec recently
launched e! Science News, an aggregator tailored to improve the
accessibility of science and technology news on the Web.
[Link to article]
Regulatory Updates
FSIS: Coordinating Foodborne Outbreak Investigations
The USDA's Food Safety and
Inspection Service (FSIS) released in June the Related Documents for
its docket on "Better Communications, Better Public Health Outcomes:
Strategies for Improved Coordination During Foodborne Outbreaks."
[Link to FSIS]
Research
& Reports
EASAC Recommendations on Battling Zoonotic Infections
In
response to the rising risk of infections transmissible between animals
and humans, the European Academies Science Advisory Council (EASAC) has
published an evidence-based policy report.
[Link to EASAC]
FAO Releases Workshop Report on Produce Quality Improvement
The Food and Agricultural
Organization of the United Nations (FAO) collaborated with India's
National Institute of Nutrition (NIN) for a February 2008 training
workshop on "Improving the Quality and Safety of Fresh Fruits and
Vegetables: A Practical Approach." The 28-page report is available
here.
[Link to report]
FSA Publishes Cloned Animals Research
This
Food Standards Agency (FSA) article summarizes the key findings of its
research on "Animal Cloning and Implications for the Food Chain" and
provides access to the 146-page report.
[Link to FSA]
EU-wide Survey Studies Salmonella in Pigs
This June 9 press release
from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) contains access to the
full report and annexes of its 2006–2007 survey on Salmonella levels in pigs in 25 Member States of the European Union (EU).
[Link to EFSA]
Items of
Interest
GMA Provides New Resource for Food and Beverage Makers
The
Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) worked with regulatory experts,
scholars, and manufacturers to develop the recently released Food Supply Chain Handbook,
which offers valuable tools for supplier management. This article
provides a link to the English and Spanish translations, noting that
French and Mandarin Chinese translations will be available soon.
[Link to GMA]
Summer Cooking Safety Tips from PFSE
The Partnership for Food
Safety Education's (PFSE) Be Food Safe program features these one-page
flyers on preparing and transporting food in hot weather.
[Link to "Master Griller" tips]
[Link to food transport tips]
Comments or suggestions for IAFP Report may be sent to report@foodprotection.org,
or directly to the Contents Editor, Dr. Jeff Farber, Bureau of
Microbial Hazards, Health Canada. E-mail jeff_farber@hc-sc.gc.ca
Thank You to
Our Contributors
Logos: USDA-FSIS, EFSA, PFSE (befoodsafe.org)
Photos: Science Photo Library (Helicobacter pylori bacteria; baby spinach infected with E. coli; fruits and vegetables)
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