Role of HACCP in Food Safety

During the past decades, the quest for safety has been challenged by important changes in food production, such as innovations in manufacturing processes, reduced intervals between production and consumption, increased product shelf life, and increased prevalence of some microorganisms (Stevenson 1990) .

As the food chain became global, FBDs are seen in a new dimension (Motarjemi and Käferstein 1999 ) and now represent one of the greatest health problems worldwide, affecting millions of people a year  and leading to significant economic and social consequences (Ruegg 2003 ; Silva 1999 ) .

Data from the World Health Organization show that, in 2005, 1.8 million people died of gastroenteritis caused by contaminated food and water (World Health Organization 2007 ) . In spite of the technological progress in food production and control, the occurrence of these diseases has recently increased, even in developed countries (Franco and Landgraf 2003 ) .

Food hazards or contamination may come from primary production, still on the farm, from inadequate handling or storage in the food industry, or from errors during preparation at home or in other places where the food is consumed. Although they have not recently become an issue, FBDs have become increasingly important lately, both in terms of magnitude and in terms of health consequences for the general population. Factors related to the supply chain, demographic situation, lifestyle, health system infrastructure, and the environmental conditions of each country infl uence the prevalence, increased frequency, and consequences of these diseases (Motarjemi and Käferstein 1999 ) .

When all these facts are taken into account, HACCP is an important tool in modern quality management in the food industry, ensuring the integrity of the product, preventing FBDs, and protecting the health of the consumer (Mortimore and Wallace 1998 ) .

However, HACCP will only become effective when its principles are correctly and broadly applied in all stages of the food production chain. Some of the reasons for the recent increase in FBD frequency all over the world may be failures in implementation or limited application of HACCP, mainly in small companies; lack of knowledge of the final consumer, keeping inadequate food handling practices alive; and low rates of HACCP adoption in developing countries, where most of the FBD outbreaks occur.

References

1.        Stevenson KE. Implementing HACCP in the food industry. Food Technol. 1990;44(5):179–80.

2.        Mortimore S, Wallace C. HACCP – a practical approach. Gaithersburg: Aspen; 1998.

3.        Motarjemi Y, Käferstein F. Food safety, hazard analysis and critical control point and the increase in foodborne diseases: a paradox? Food Control. 1999;10:325–33.

4.        Franco BDGM, Landgraf M. Microrganismos patogênicos de importância em alimentos. In: Franco BDGM, Landgraf M, editors. Microbiologia dos alimentos. São Paulo: Atheneu; 2003.

5.        World Health Organization. Food safety and foodborne illness. 2007. http://www.who.int/ foodsafety/foodborne_disease/in/ . Accessed 17 Feb 2014.

6.        Ruegg PL. Practical food safety intervention for dairy production. J Dairy Sci. 2003;86(Suppl):E1–9. Savoy.

7.        Silva JA. As novas perspectivas para o controle sanitário dos alimentos. Revista Higiene alimentar.1999;13(65):19–25.

The 10 Biggest Foodborne Illness Outbreaks of 2013

By James Andrews | December 27, 2013 

10. E. coli O157:H7 from Glass Onion chicken salads, 33 sick. Trader Joe’s customers in four states fell ill after eating one of two pre-made salad products from Glass Onion Catering: the Field Fresh Chopped Salad with Grilled Chicken or the Mexicali Salad with Chili Lime Chicken. At least seven people were hospitalized, with two developing hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a kidney disease associated with severe E. coli infections. [CDC outbreak information]

9. Salmonella from Hacienda Don Villo in Channahon, IL, 35 sick. Health investigators traced 35 Salmonella illnesses back to this Mexican restaurant in Grundy County, but they could never pinpoint the exact food source. At least one person was hospitalized, and one employee was among those who tested positive for Salmonella. [News report]

8. E. coli O121 from frozen Farm Rich foods, 35 sick. Prompting a large recall of frozen mini pizza slices, cheeseburgers and quesadillas, this outbreak sickened predominantly minors across 19 states. Of those confirmed ill, 82 percent were 21 years of age or younger. Nine were hospitalized. The company recalled all products created at one Georgia plant between June 2011 and March 2013. [CDC outbreak information]

7. Salmonella from imported cucumbers, 84 sick. Investigators eventually traced this outbreak of Salmonella Saintpaul back to cucumbers imported from Mexico. Of those confirmed ill, 17 were hospitalized. The importers were barred from bringing more products into the U.S. until they could prove the products were not contaminated. [CDC outbreak information]

6. E. coli O157:H7 from Federico’s Mexican Restaurant in Litchfield Park, AZ, 94 sick. Investigators have implicated lettuce served at the restaurant as the likely source of the E. coli, but no other restaurants in the area had cases connected to them. The lettuce may have been cross-contaminated from another food at the restaurant, or the restaurant may have received a highly contaminated batch. Two victims developed HUS as a result of their infections. [News report]

5. Salmonella from Foster Farms chicken, 134 sick. The first of two Foster Farms outbreaks in 2013 hit Washington and Oregon the hardest, but then spread out across 13 states. At least 33 people were hospitalized, with infections likely resulting from cross-contamination or undercooking of highly contaminated raw chicken. Foster Farms has not issued a recall for either of the two major outbreaks caused by chicken it produced this year. [CDC outbreak information]

4. Hepatitis A from Townsend Farms frozen organic berries, 162 sick. At least 71 people were hospitalized after eating an organic berry mix purchased at Costco stores in the Southwest. The exact source of the outbreak was eventually traced back to pomegranate seeds from Turkey which were contained within the mix. [CDC outbreak information]

 

3. Salmonella from dining at Firefly restaurant in Las Vegas, NV, 294 sick. Patrons of this popular Las Vegas tapas restaurant fell ill after dining within a five-day stretch in April. The owners ultimately closed up shop and re-opened the restaurant in a new location. [News report]

 

2. Salmonella from Foster Farms chicken, 416 sick. While this outbreak appears to be ongoing, hundreds of individuals have fallen ill over the course of the year in connection with raw chicken processed at Foster Farms facilities in California. At least 162 people have been hospitalized after likely undercooking the contaminated raw chicken or handling it in a way that lead to accidental cross-contamination. Foster Farms has refused to issue a recall, and cases continue to appear as recently as early December. [CDC outbreak information]

 

1. Cyclospora from salads and cilantro, 631 sick. The outbreak of this foodborne parasite also takes the title for most confusing, as it appeared to be two separate Cyclospora outbreaks working in tandem. One set of patients – predominantly from Iowa and Nebraska – clearly appeared to be connected to Olive Garden and Red Lobster restaurants (both owned by Darden Restaurants), while, just weeks later, patients in Texas began cropping up with no apparent connection to those restaurants. The Darden illnesses were tentatively traced to lettuce supplier Taylor Farms de Mexico, but no contamination could be found at the farms. Meanwhile, many of the Texas illnesses seemed to implicate fresh cilantro grown in Puebla, Mexico. [CDC outbreak information]

-Naim KHALID

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