Journal of Consumer Protection and Food Safety最新文献

Since large amounts of sodium nitrite (NaNO₂) are reduced during the shelf life of meat products, and given the difficulty in maintaining its stability in these products, the use of encapsulation techniques increases the action time of this additive to guarantee food safety. Thus, since NaNO₂ is a mandatory food additive in mortadella formulations, the objective of the study was to evaluate different wall materials for the microencapsulation of NaNO₂ in a spray dryer for further evaluation and monitoring of the agent encapsulated in mortadella during 60 days of storage at room temperature (25 ± 2 °C). The spray drying process was performed via atomization, testing 4 different compositions using porcine collagen, gum arabic (GA), and maltodextrin (MD) with NaNO₂. The 10% GA + NaNO₂ and 5% GA + 5% MD + NaNO₂ samples had encapsulated NaNO₂ yields of 46% and 42% (w/w), respectively. The application of microencapsulated materials on mortadella gave the product a better stability in the NaNO₂ reduction reaction, remaining until the 50th day with NaNO₂ residues above 50 mg/kg, while the control sample reached this level after 30 days of shelf life. Therefore, the application of NaNO₂ capsules in mortadella can be an alternative for promotion of physicochemical and microbiological stability and is of fundamental importance for industrial applications.

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Honey is regarded as natural and healthy. However, a variety of contaminants could be present in the areas of production. The study aimed to identify the top hazard categories in Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) notifications for honey from 2002 to 2022, taking into account the notification year and type, country of origin, notifying country, risk decision, and actions taken. All RASFF notifications were processed in Pivot tables using Microsoft Excel. Out of 388 notifications for honey in the last 21 years 309 (79.64%) concerned the unauthorized residues of veterinary medicinal products hazard category, followed by adulteration/fraud (5.15%), foreign bodies (2.83%), pesticide residues (2.58%), and poor or insufficient controls (2.58%). China was the most frequently notified country of origin (25.77%), followed by Turkey (6.44%), Ukraine (6.19%), Argentina (6.19%), and Bulgaria (5.67%). Germany was the most frequently notifying country (16.49%), followed by the UK (16.24%), Spain (13.40%), Italy (10.82%), and Belgium (7.99%). Among all notifications, 22.68% were alerted and 12.37% were border rejected. The notification frequency (%) and mean concentration ± standard deviation (SD) (μg/kg) of the most frequently reported contaminants in the honey were as follows: chloramphenicol (25.26%, 172.10 ± 827.92 μg/kg), followed by streptomycin (12.11%, 104.94 ± 209.44 μg/kg), sulfathiazole (9.54%, 52.31 ± 52.62 μg/kg), tylosin (4.90%, 9.03 ± 11.23 μg/kg), and sulfadimidine (4.64%, 254.99 ± 587.00 μg/kg), respectively, due to their application by beekeepers to control infectious diseases of bees. Strict restrictions must be put in place to reduce the risk posed by these contaminants in honey.

This study was conducted within 2 months by sampling chicken batches from a broiler farm, a plant processing plant, and supermarket retail. The overall frequency of isolation of Salmonella was 50% (16/32), 17.5% (7/40), and 40% (4/10) for the samples collected from the broiler farm, processing plant, and retail outlet, respectively. Serovar Infantis was the predominantly isolated serovar at the 3 sampling sites. Resistance genes aac(3)IV, aph(4)Ia, bla_CTX-M65, and qacEdelta1 were detected in 84.6% (11/13) of the isolates subjected to whole genome sequencing. S. Infantis strains were clustered within and across the 3 sampling sites. This study demonstrates a direct measure of the transmission dynamics of Salmonella during a farm-to-fork approach.

Consumers are exposed to mineral oil hydrocarbons (MOH) e.g. through foodstuffs and cosmetics. Upon ingestion, MOH follow the absorption pathway of dietary lipids. Analytical chemistry has revealed the presence of the main fraction, designated as mineral oil saturated hydrocarbons (MOSH), in mesenteric lymph nodes (MLNs), liver, spleen, and adipose tissue. Recent results from animal studies raised concerns about a long-term, possibly irreversible accumulation of some MOSH in humans. To address this issue, we performed a statistical re-analysis of published biopsy and autopsy data regarding the age-dependence of MOSH levels in human tissue. MOSH concentrations in MLNs and adipose tissue showed a 1.2–1.4-fold increase per decade, pointing to very long-term accumulation in both tissues. There was no evidence for age-dependent MOSH concentrations in liver and spleen. There was no sex difference in the MOSH concentrations in MLNs, suggesting a similar oral exposure for men and women. On average, women had a 2.2–2.5-fold higher MOSH concentration in the liver, spleen and adipose tissue compared to men. This finding may point to a sex difference in metabolism, in line with animal data. The use of certain cosmetics was a relevant predictor in addition to age. Women that used cosmetics like lipstick, hand cream, and sun cream had an average 2.1-fold higher MOSH concentration in abdominal subcutaneous fat than non-users.

The high binding capacity of Listeria monocytogenes to food contact surfaces increases the risk of cross-contamination in food. In addition to appropriate cleaning and disinfection procedures, a suitable sampling plan and technique for the earliest possible detection are necessary for prevention. This paper evaluates the sensitivity of 3 swab materials (cotton, viscose and nylon-flocked) for the qualitative and quantitative detection of L. monocytogenes on food contact surfaces (100 cm²). A L. monocytogenes cocktail of 3 serotypes (IIa, IIb and IVb) was applied to stainless steel, polyvinyl chloride, polytetrafluoroethylene and high-density polyethylene surfaces at a concentration of approx. 1.0 × 10¹-1.0 × 10² CFU/100 cm² and approx. 4.0 × 10⁴ CFU/100 cm². The surfaces were sampled after 15 min of incubation by 3 different swabs using the double-swab technique, and then stored for 4 and 24 h until processing. The results of the qualitative and quantitative tests showed a few statistically significant differences in the detectability of L. monocytogenes by different swab materials, which implies that the detection rate of L. monocytogenes on a certain food contact surfaces can be increased by using the respective most suitable swab.

Aerial transport of pesticides during and after their application both over medium range distances and long distance may lead to residues on plants and soil far away from agricultural treatments. Therefore, the Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety carried out a Germany-wide geographical analysis to identify monitoring sites which could be used for a representative German-wide monitoring. The identified sites reflect climate areas with different meteorological conditions, land coverage and pesticide use. By using a geographical information system, five different areas were identified representing the climatic and agricultural conditions of pesticide use in Germany. Since the required measuring technique needed a certain infrastructure, using already existing measuring sides was considered to be most efficient in order to use them for a German-wide monitoring. In a second step, agro-meteorological weather stations with distances of < 100 m, 100–1000 m and > 1 km in the main wind direction from treated fields were identified within these areas. The identified areas reflect the main different conditions for aerial pesticide transport along with suitable weather stations to monitor pesticide residues in the air and its deposition on plants and soil all over Germany.

A cross-sectional study was carried out on 352 samples (120 fecal, 92 beef cut, and 140 environmental swabs) to investigate the occurrence of E. coli O157:H7 in raw beef and to assess its antimicrobial susceptibility profile in slaughterhouses and butcher shops in Bishoftu town, Ethiopia. The samples were enriched by modified tryptone soy broth supplemented with novobiocin (mTSB + N) at the ratio of 1:9 BPW to mTSB + N and incubated overnight at 41.5 ± 0.5 ̊C (24 h). Latex agglutination was performed for confirmation of E. coli O157:H7 using an RIM E. coli O157:H7 latex test kit. The isolates were further tested for their resistance against antimicrobial susceptibility to 13 antimicrobials using the Kirby–Bauer disk diffusion method. Out of 352 samples, 14 (4.0%) were positive for E. coli O157:H7 serotype; of which, 28.6% (4/14), 21.4% (3/14), and 50% (7/14) were from fecal, beef, and environmental swab samples, respectively. A significant difference in the occurrences of the pathogen was observed among the sources of samples (p < 0.05). The antimicrobial susceptibility test revealed high resistance to 3 commonly used drugs: tetracycline (100%), erythromycin (92.8%), and ampicillin (64.3%). All E. coli O157 isolates were susceptible to azithromycin, cefotaxime, and chloramphenicol. However, of 14 isolates, 12 (85.8%) were resistant to ≥ 3 classes of antimicrobial agents. The current study warrants the need to implement appropriate hygienic measures in slaughterhouses and butcher shops to safeguard public health.