December 2023/January 2024

In the December ‘23/January ‘24 issue of Food Safety Magazine, our cover story examines threats to food safety posed by climate change, focusing on cross-sectoral solutions to adapt to multiple emerging risks. Additional features explore the food safety questions around plant-based foods and sustainable packaging materials, the intersection between cannabis and food safety regulations, and lessons to be learned from FDA’s investigation of a 2022 salmonellosis outbreak caused by cantaloupe.

graphical representation of earth over dirt

Climate Change and Emerging Risks to Food Safety: Building Climate Resilience

Maria Cristina Tirado Ph.D., D.V.M. Shamini Albert Raj M.A.

December 11, 2023

This article examines the multifaceted threats to food safety posed by climate change, focusing on cross-sectoral solutions to adapt to multiple emerging food safety risks.

Cultivating Cannabis Regulations: Ensuring Food Safety in an Evolving Industry

With the proliferation of cannabis legislation in many U.S. states, there is a need to address food safety oversight through a federal regulatory framework

Cori Muse

December 12, 2023

This article discusses the work being done by the Federal Regulatory Framework (FRF) Working Group, a collaboration between the Foundation of Cannabis Unified Standards (FOCUS) and the Association of Food and Drug Officials (AFDO), to advocate for and develop a comprehensive and relevant roadmap for the federal regulatory framework of cannabis-infused edibles and beverages to address critical challenges and enhance consumer confidence.

Food Safety Versus the Green Transition

New microbial and chemical risks come with the greater incorporation of plant-based raw materials into human diets and the introduction of reusable packaging

Rikke Hjort Hansen Gry Carl Terrell M.Sc. Lene Duedahl-Olesen Ph.D. Nanna Bygvraa Svenningsen Ph.D

December 12, 2023

The added microbial risks that come with eating more plant-based foods can usually be mitigated by adjusting recipes or process parameters, although hazard considerations regarding the chemical safety of a diet richer in plant-based materials is more complex. Also, introducing reusable packaging may come with its own set of issues.

What Was Not Learned from the FDA Investigation of Salmonella on Cantaloupe in 2022?

With another cantaloupe outbreak occurring in 2023, change needs to happen, or there will likely be another outbreak in 2024

Eric Wilhelmsen, Ph.D., CFS

December 12, 2023

This article examines FDA's investigation of the 2022 regional outbreak of Salmonella Typhimurium on cantaloupe from the Southwest Indiana growing region, which caused 87 reported illnesses and 32 hospitalizations between July and September of that year, and discusses several themes and conclusions related to the outbreak, such as how "business as usual" will continue to produce the same results.

sanitation operating procedures checklist

Simplifying Sanitation Standard Operating Procedures

Cleaning/sanitizing SOPs should not be integrated to the "regulatory" requirements of SSOPs, but instead maintained as a separate set of documents

Michael Cramer PCQI

December 12, 2023

General cleaning/sanitizing elements of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) should not be integrated into the "regulatory" requirements of Sanitation SOPs (SSOPs), but should be maintained as a separate plant operational set of documents. To further explain this the rationale for keeping these separate, this article reviews SSOPs to define their requirements and how these differ from general SOPs.

man holding a plant growing out of its' root

How To Develop a Sampling Plan

Sampling can be used to sample a process during operation or to sample the output of a process, such as a product lot

John Surak, Ph.D.

December 11, 2023

Sampling is part of a process that has two functions. It can be used to sample a process during operations or to sample the output of a process, such as a product lot. During sampling, the measurand (the object being measured) must be properly selected, properly transported to a location where the object or objects will be analyzed, and the results must be reported to the appropriate individuals. This article covers the systematic development of a sampling plan.

Relevance of Accreditation and Certification Services for the Voluntary Third-Party Assurance Approach

The vTPA approach is valuable at a time when public interest in safer food is increasing, but competent authorities struggle to obtain more resources from governments

Gabor Molnar

December 12, 2023

This article sheds light on some critical components of successful voluntary third-party assurance (vTPA) program implementation, particularly from an accreditation and certification service perspective. It discusses the role of accreditation and certification services and the prerequisites for successfully implementing the vTPA approach with the aim of supporting competent authorities in this process.

Food Safety Culture: Moving from Checklist to Practice in 2024

A look at how whole-being competencies support technical leaders to shift culture through daily interactions and behaviors

Tia Glave & Jill Stuber

December 12, 2023

This article takes a look at how whole-being competencies support technical leaders to shift culture through daily interactions and behaviors. As we head into 2024, it is time to move from checking boxes to doing the work of creating and implementing a solid food safety culture improvement plan. Organizations are taking this opportunity to map out how to improve food safety culture in the next year—and, hopefully, over the next several years, as culture shifts are known to take several years to see the impact.

rapid microbiological methods (RMM) in food safety testing

Rapid Testing Methods—Still a Necessary Part of Food Safety?

Due to the well-known risks of working with pathogens in an in-plant food laboratory, there has been a dramatic shift to outsourcing for pathogen samples

Bob Ferguson

December 12, 2023

Ongoing debates about the use of rapid test methods in food safety have led to the rise of the question: Has the vast increase in outsourcing testing to contract labs made rapid methods less useful, or is the ease of use and speed of the methods still important (if not essential) for better management and decision-making in food safety? Food Safety Insights asks food safety professionals their opinions on this question.

A Future View of AI-Enhanced Biosurveillance and Comprehensive Food Safety Programs

A future-oriented perspective on comprehensive food safety programs that harness multi-layered sensor technology and artificial intelligence

Robert A. Norton Ph.D. Marcus (Marc) Sachs P.E. Cris A. Young D.V.M., M.P.H., Diplomate A.C.V.P.M.

December 12, 2023

This article provides a future-oriented perspective on comprehensive food safety programs that harness multi-layered sensor technology and artificial intelligence (AI). The program described begins with biosurveillance at the producer level and seamlessly extends to the retail food sector.

Promising Practices are Being Used to Tackle PFAS in Food Packaging

Packaging suppliers, brands, retailers, and post-consumer package waste handlers are focused on adding value by mitigating PFAS in packaging

Claire Koelsch Sand Ph.D.

December 12, 2023

Brands, retailers, and post-consumer package handlers are focused on adding value with PFAS-free packaging. This article discusses how PFAS alternatives are gaining prominence, with PFAS-free packaging entering the food packaging industry ahead of schedule.

Live: July 25, 2024 at 2:00 pm EDT: In this webinar, you will hear from leading technology and policy experts from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), food safety laboratories, and food processors, who will discuss these technological advances and how you can use them to benefit your food safety program.

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