Food Protection Trends - November 2008 - 815

HACCP systems, quality system certifications and development of a strong brand that provides product with consistent quality. Solutions suggested for overcoming the challenges of food safety in a global market include implementation of an efficient system for internalizing food safety demands, establishment of a net of consultants and implementation of an efficient quality system. Caroline Smith Dewaal presented the topic “Consumer Perception on Imported Foods” highlighting some of the imported produce-related outbreaks that occurred in United States. Some of the recent problems include seafood, and pet food (2007), tomatoes, cantaloupes, and Serrano peppers (2008). Survey conducted by CSPI (Center for Science in the Public Interest) indicated that 79% of the consumers were concerned with the safety of imported food and some of the top concerns included use of unsafe pesticides, pathogens/ bacteria, unsanitary conditions, and use of antibiotics/animal drugs. John Spink from Michigan State University completed the session with his talk on “Global Food Trade Issues: Smuggling and Counterfeit.” Issues on counterfeit and food safety include unintentional adulteration, food defense/terrorism and economic fraud. The speaker emphasized the need for supply chain security and some of the factors that affect the security of the food chain include global economy, increased terrorist threats and increasing dependency of the businesses on efficient supply chain. S12 – Back to the Future: how Clinical Microbiology Findings today Predict the Food Microbiology headaches for tomorrow Kirsten A. Hirneisen, University of Delaware and Leslie Hintz, Virginia Tech This symposium showed the predictive side of food microbiology and how the future needs for pathogen detection in foods can be anticipated from epidemiology and clinical medicine. Stefano Morabito of Community Reference Laboratory for E. coli of Rome, Italy spoke about Shiga-toxin producing Escherichia coli (STEC) and food testing. The low infectious dose of EHEC requires very sensitive testing methods such as O157:H7 antibody capture, however this method does not allow for non-O157:H7 STEC isolates to be detected. An alternative strategy for STEC detection is directly targeted to EHEC and is based on PCR assessment of stx and serogroup associated genes. Jan Vinje of the National Calicivirus Laboratory of the CDC discussed the challenges of norovirus detection as well as current research and control of norovirus infection was discussed. Norovirus are difficult to study since no animal model is currently present and only until recently has a cell culture model been developed. The discovery of mouse norovirus (MNV) which is transmitted by the fecal-oral route has allowed for a better surrogate. Protocols for the detection by RT-PCR from foods are currently available. Through genotyping, a standardized surveillance network (CalciNet) has been established. Gregory Armstrong from the CDC, discussed both foodborne Hepatitis A and E. Foodborne Hepatitis A accounts for less then 10 percent of cases in the United States, but is transmitted at the point of service or during unit operations. Typically when a food worker is infectious, the virus can be transmitted on environmental surfaces for greater then one month. Hepatitis E virus symptoms are indistinguishable from acute Hepatitis A, B, and C but outbreaks usually follow travel to southern Asia. Hepatitis E has a higher prevalence in domestic cases when the individual is above 40 years of age. Jan-Michael A. Klapproth of Emory University discussed inflammatory bowl disease as an infectious disease. The current hypothesis for IBD development is based on genetic defect. However, there is some limited data on the environmental agents inducing and maintaining intestinal inflammation. Currently no single test can be used for a diagnosis and the concentration of bacteria especially E. coli in diagnosed patients increases. This is thought to be due to the genetic mutations having an effect on immune regulation. J. Glenn Songer from the University of Arizona, discussed Clostridium difficile: the latest bad bug and coming on strong but from where. C. difficile was previously believed to only be present in immuno-compromised environments, such as hospitals, but can now be seen as foodborne. The gram positive anaerobic spore former requires relatively low virulence. Recently, C. difficile has been seen in normally healthy individuals with several zoonotic hosts, piglets and neonatal calves. A research group sampled three grocery stores in Tucson, AZ and discovered 40% C. difficile positive samples in uncooked meats and 48% positive samples in ready-to-eat products. Over half of those positive results were from pork and ground beef. It is believed that C. difficile spores end up in muscle tissue and wait for a chance to germinate. S13 – Pathogen Data Sharing to Advance Food Safety Danielle A. Perkin, Kansas State University and Sarah E. DeDonder, Kansas State University Dr. Robert Tauxe, of the CDC, began this symposium with a brief overview of the major multistate outbreaks in the past two years. Of the 16 largest outbreaks presented, 9 of them identified a new food vehicle for foodborne infection that was not previously identified. He stressed that this NOVEMBER 2008 | FOOD PROTECTION TRENDS 815

Food Protection Trends - November 2008

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Food Protection Trends - November 2008