Global food standards-setting bodies are making progress on a variety of issues, including E. coli on sprouts and vegetables, Vibrio on seafood, and food hygiene in traditional markets.
A meeting of the Codex Alimentarius Committee on Food Hygiene in Nairobi, Kenya, discussed outstanding issues in the guidelines to be adopted by the Codex Alimentarius Commission in November 2023. The Fresh Leafy Vegetables and Bean Sprouts Annex to the Guidelines for the Control of Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia Coli (STEC) in These Products will be adopted at the next Codex Alimentarius Commission meeting in November 2024. It’s a schedule. Guidelines for STEC management of raw beef, raw milk and raw milk cheese were previously approved.
The Guidelines on the safe use and reuse of water in food production included an annex on dairy products, which was carried over to the next Codex Alimentarius Commission meeting. However, the annexes on fish and seafood require further work.
Biblio, traditional markets and other potential areas
The Committee agreed to submit a revised proposal for the Guidelines on the Management Application of General Principles of Food Hygiene. Pathogenic Vibrio species found in seafood. However, problems remained regarding water-related wording and definitions.
This document provides guidance for controlling pathogenic Vibrio bacteria in seafood to protect consumer health and ensure fair trade practices. The main objective is to highlight the key control measures that can be used to minimize the likelihood of disease. It includes an appendix on bivalves such as clams, oysters, and mussels.
Draft guidelines for food hygiene control measures in traditional food markets have also been submitted to the Codex Alimentarius Commission for adoption. These guidelines are intended to provide guidance in the development and implementation of policies and regulations to ensure that these markets are effectively designed and managed to promote food safety. .
New work was proposed on revising the Guidelines on the application of general principles of food hygiene to the control of viruses in food, the Guidelines on the control of Campylobacter and Salmonella in poultry, and the Guidelines on the application of general principles of food hygiene. Regarding the control of Listeria monocytogenes in food.
Canada and the Netherlands will lead the anti-virus electronic working group. The US, Australia, Brazil, Denmark and India will be responsible for the Campylobacter and Salmonella revisions, while the US, Canada, China and France will lead the Listeria work. These plans need to be agreed at the next Codex Alimentarius Commission meeting.
The next Codex Alimentarius Commission meeting on food hygiene in the United States is scheduled for late 2025. Next on the agenda is the Codex Alimentarius Commission meeting on contaminants in food, to be held in Panama later this month.
WHO FERG estimates
In other news, the World Health Organization updates estimates on the national, regional and global burden of foodborne illnesses caused by specific hazards. WHO is advised by the Foodborne Epidemiology Reference Group (FERG), which held its seventh meeting in February in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
In the 2015 publication, the numbers are based on 2010 data. It is unclear what year the base year will be for the revised estimates to be published in 2025.
A list of risks has been agreed for which estimates will be produced for reporting towards the end of 2025. This includes 14 diarrheal disease agents, 8 nondiarrheal disease agents, 11 parasites, and 8 chemicals and toxins. New hazards include aflatoxin M1, cyclospora, rotavirus, and enteroaggregative E. coli.
Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands was commissioned to lead the work on a global structured expert sampling study to attribute foodborne infections and burdens to specific foods. The Belgian Institute for Health Research’s Ciensano is assisting WHO with calculations to estimate the burden of foodborne illness.
The World Bank and WHO have also updated their 2019 estimates of the economic burden of foodborne illness.
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