Preventive measures for food safety

Abstract

Food safety must be considered not only during industrial production but throughout the whole food supply chain (see Figure 1). Hazard identification is defined by the Codex Alimentarius (1999) as "identification of biological, chemical and physical agents capable of causing adverse health effects". Biological hazards do not only include the agent capable of causing adverse health effects, but also the consequences of its presence. These hazards are pathogenic micro-organisms and microbial toxins that could be present in various foodstuffs. Micro-organisms of concern in water include bacteria (e.g. pathogenic Escherichia coli, Vibrio cholerae, Legionella spp., Campylobacter spp., Salmonella spp. incl. S. typhi/paratyphi), protozoa (e.g. Cryptosporidium, Giardia), viruses (e.g. Enteroviruses, Hepatitis A virus), and toxin producing algae (e.g. Cyanophyceae). More detailed information about waterborne hazards can be found in the respective ILSI reports (2001, 2002, 2003). Chemical hazards include heavy metals, organic compounds, salts, other chemical contaminants, e.g. fertilizers. A detailed reference list of chemical parameters can be found in the EU drinking water directive 98/83/EC (1998). Physical hazards include any solids and foreign matter from various sources such as material carried with incoming water. More details about hazards related to incoming water and its treatment can be found in the WHO Guidelines (2004). Hazards are caused not only by human and environment but also by equipment. It is known that the acceptable microbial count of a product does not only depend on the condition of the raw materials and preventive techniques like heat treatment and chilling but also on secondary processes like cleaning and disinfection (see Figure 2). The product may, however, also be contaminated with micro-organisms during processing and packaging. Equipment of poor hygienic design, may be difficult to clean and difficult to free from micro-organisms; the surviving bioburden would then multiply in product residues, in crevices and dead areas thus increasing the risk of post contamination. Hygiene is vital for the production of a quality of a food product. The product quality depends not only on the capability and safety of the process and preventive measures like GMP, HACCP, maintenance, etc. but also on the quality of the equipment used (see Figure 3). The efficiency of cleaning procedures is also highly dependant on the design and installation of equipment. © 2007 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.