Global Trends in Food Safety
This topic was moderated by Lee-Yan Sheen, Ph.D., R.D. and Cheng-Chun Chou, Ph.D. It featured four lectures.
Ida Dalmacio, Ph.D., Professor, Microbiology Division, Institute of Biological Sciences, University of the Philippines, Los Banos, Philippines gave a lecture titled “Food Safety: Control of Hazards in Foods and in Food Production from Farm to Table.”
Dr. Dalmacio discussed roles and responsibilities in controlling food hazards, stating that food safety is of concern not only to regulatory agencies but also researchers, educators, food manufacturers, food handlers, and the general public. Dr. Dalmacio discussed the approach of the University of the Philippines toward initiating practical solutions to food safety problems. Dr. Dalmacio also discussed critical issues in developing a workable program for food safety in the Philippines.
Michael P. Doyle, Ph.D., Regents’ Professor and Director, Center for Food Safety, University of Georgia, USA discussed global food exports and their food safety challenges.
International exchange of food is growing at unprecedented rates, with Southeast Asia among the world leaders in food exports. Dr. Doyle discussed the challenges presented by this growth, including gaps in the food safety net for foods exported from countries in which they are grown or processed under unsanitary conditions, and other challenges such as appropriate antibiotic and pesticide use in food production. Dr. Doyle emphasized that though there are many food safety management tools are available, more effective management tools are still needed, including effective and practical food safety interventions for use in food production and processing.
Sang Do Ha, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Food Science and Technology, Chung-Ang University, Korea gave a lecture titled “Current Concept of Biofilms for Food Safety and its Reduction from Foods and Food Contact Surfaces.”
Foodborne diseases have always been a threat to human health, and Dr. Ha described emergent international public health concerns regarding foodborne diseases. Dr. Ha noted that many outbreaks have been found to be associated with biofilm, and that biofilms have been found to be involved in over 65% of all microbial diseases, including foodborne diseases. Dr. Ha indicated that ultraviolet-C (UV-C) and cold oxygen plasma (COP) are two promising technologies for decontamination of microbial biofilms from foods and food contact surfaces. Dr. Ha emphasized the importance of identifying factors contributing to disinfectant resistance of biofilms.
Jaw-Jou Kang, Ph.D., Professor, Graduate Institute of Toxicology, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taiwan discussed food safety management reform.
Dr. Kang discussed food safety challenges recently faced by the food system in Taiwan, including the unapproved presence of plasticizers and maleic anhydride modified food starch in food, and the amendments that have been made to the Food Sanitation Law of Taiwan in order to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future. Food safety issues present ongoing challenges to governments around the world, and Dr. Kang noted the importance of countries sharing knowledge, insights, and best practices learned from food safety challenges in order to promote improved regulatory structure and science globally. Dr. Kang emphasized that improved regulations, regulatory structures, and scientific analysis are needed to prevent the food safety incidents arising from adulteration and contamination. Dr. Kang also shared findings indicating that insufficient record keeping by manufacturers has been a major obstacle in tracing the presence and origins of unapproved and illegal ingredients, which resulted in the inclusion of provisions promoting the enforcement of manufacturer traceability records in the amended law. The third major change is the dramatic increase of fine and legal punishment.
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