Journal of Consumer Protection and Food Safety最新文献

The microbiological status of 10 raw plant-based ground meat products was assessed to obtain insight into contamination levels and the types of bacteria present in these meat analogues. The total bacterial counts at the end of the best before date varied greatly from below 1.0 log₁₀ CFU/g to 8.31 log₁₀ CFU/g, while the median count was 3.89 log₁₀ CFU/g. For each product, the lactic acid bacterial counts were similar, although generally between ca. 0.5 and 1 log₁₀ lower than the total bacterial counts, indicating that lactic acid bacteria were a majority in the microbiota of these products. While the median counts of toxigenic pathogens were generally very low (< 1.0 log₁₀ CFU/g), the maximum counts detected in some samples could reach up to ca. 3.0 log₁₀ CFU/g for presumptive Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus cereus. No Listeria monocytogenes colonies were obtained in this investigation; however, other Listeria spp. were detected. Thus, the results show that a (re)contamination of these products by pathogenic bacteria can be a potential safety concern. Furthermore, the detection of presumptive B. cereus and the isolation of various Clostridium species from these products indicates that spore-formers may have survived the food processing and therefore, could pose a safety concern, which should be assessed in further studies.

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.