How safe is our food supply? Each year the media report what appears to be growing concern related to illness caused by the food consumed by Americans. These food borne illnesses are caused by pathogenic microorganisms, pesticide residues, and food additives. Recent actions taken at the federal, state, and local levels in response to the increase in reported incidences of food borne illnesses point to the need to evaluate the food safety system in the United States. This book assesses the effectiveness of the current food safety system and provides recommendations on changes needed to ensure an effective science-based food safety system. Ensuring Safe Food discusses such important issues as: What are the primary hazards associated with the food supply? What gaps exist in the current system for ensuring a safe food supply? What effects do trends in food consumption have on food safety? What is the impact of food preparation and handling practices in the home, in food services, or in production operations on the risk of food borne illnesses? What organizational changes in responsibility or oversight could be made to increase the effectiveness of the food safety system in the United States? Current concerns associated with microbiological, chemical, and physical hazards in the food supply are discussed. The book also considers how changes in technology and food processing might introduce new risks. Recommendations are made on steps for developing a coordinated, unified system for food safety. The book also highlights areas that need additional study. Ensuring Safe Food will be important for policymakers, food trade professionals, food producers, food processors, food researchers, public health professionals, and consumers.

This is one of the first books to draw together information and views about international control of food safety from around the world. Demands for safe food, against a background of increasing trade, are making international controls on food safety essential. Agreements on how to control the safety of food to meet these needs are now in place among the major trading blocks, particularly in Europe and in the USA, and more recently, in Australia. This book also describes progress in areas such as systematically reviewing risk from food; developing national infrastructures to enforce standards; and growing input from consumer groups and others, including economists, to the debate on how to set international food standards. Discussed in depth is the effort to achieve global standards for food safety under the auspices of the Codex Alimentarius Commission. There are chapters from world-leading experts on Codex, international control of radiological contamination, pesticides and veterinary drugs, and other chemical contaminants.

The Food Safety Handbook: A Practical Guide for Building a Robust Food Safety Management System, contains detailed information on food safety systems and what large and small food industry companies can do to establish, maintain, and enhance food safety in their operations. This new edition updates the guidelines and regulations since the previous 2016 edition, drawing on best practices and the knowledge IFC has gained in supporting food business operators around the world. The Food Safety Handbook is indispensable for all food business operators -- anywhere along the food production and processing value chain -- who want to develop a new food safety system or strengthen an existing one.

Taking into account toxicity levels at normal consumption levels, intake per kg bodyweight and other acknowledged considerations, each chapter in this book will be based on one or more proven examples. It is intended to provide specific examples and potential improvements to the safety of the world's food supply, while also increasing the amount of food available to those in undernourished countries. This book is designed to to provide science-based tools for improving legislation and regulation. Reduce amount of food destroyed due to difference in regulations between nations Positively impact the time-to-market of new food products by recognizing benefit of "one rule that applies to all" Use the comparison of regulations and resulting consequences to make appropriate, fully-informed decisions Employ proven science to obtain global consensus for regulations Understand how to harmonize test protocols and analytical methods for accurate measurement and evaluation Take advantage of using a risk/benefit based approach rather than risk/avoidance to maximize regulatory decisions

Recent outbreaks of illnesses traced to contaminated sprouts and lettuce illustrate the holes that exist in the system for monitoring problems and preventing foodborne diseases. Although it is not solely responsible for ensuring the safety of the nation's food supply, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) oversees monitoring and intervention for 80 percent of the food supply. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's abilities to discover potential threats to food safety and prevent outbreaks of foodborne illness are hampered by impediments to efficient use of its limited resources and a piecemeal approach to gathering and using information on risks. Enhancing Food Safety: The Role of the Food and Drug Administration, a new book from the Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council, responds to a congressional request for recommendations on how to close gaps in FDA's food safety systems. Enhancing Food Safety begins with a brief review of the Food Protection Plan (FPP), FDA's food safety philosophy developed in 2007. The lack of sufficient detail and specific strategies in the FPP renders it ineffectual. The book stresses the need for FPP to evolve and be supported by the type of strategic planning described in these pages. It also explores the development and implementation of a stronger, more effective food safety system built on a risk-based approach to food safety management. Conclusions and recommendations include adopting a risk-based decision-making approach to food safety; creating a data surveillance and research infrastructure; integrating federal, state, and local government food safety programs; enhancing efficiency of inspections; and more. Although food safety is the responsibility of everyone, from producers to consumers, the FDA and other regulatory agencies have an essential role. In many instances, the FDA must carry out this responsibility against a backdrop of multiple stakeholder interests, inadequate resources, and competing priorities. Of interest to the food production industry, consumer advocacy groups, health care professionals, and others, Enhancing Food Safety provides the FDA and Congress with a course of action that will enable the agency to become more efficient and effective in carrying out its food safety mission in a rapidly changing world.

Food safety awareness is at an all time high, new and emerging threats to the food supply are being recognized, and consumers are eating more and more meals prepared outside of the home. Accordingly, retail and foodservice establishments, as well as food producers at all levels of the food production chain, have a growing responsibility to ensure that proper food safety and sanitation practices are followed, thereby, safeguarding the health of their guests and customers. Achieving food safety success in this changing environment requires going beyond traditional training, testing, and inspectional approaches to managing risks. It requires a better understanding of organizational culture and the human dimensions of food safety. To improve the food safety performance of a retail or foodservice establishment, an organization with thousands of employees, or a local community, you must change the way people do things. You must change their behavior. In fact, simply put, food safety equals behavior. When viewed from these lenses, one of the most common contributing causes of food borne disease is unsafe behavior (such as improper hand washing, cross-contamination, or undercooking food). Thus, to improve food safety, we need to better integrate food science with behavioral science and use a systems-based approach to managing food safety risk. The importance of organizational culture, human behavior, and systems thinking is well documented in the occupational safety and health fields. However, significant contributions to the scientific literature on these topics are noticeably absent in the field of food safety.

The safety of food products is fundamental. The value of an effective and well-defined, -implemented, and -maintained management system is priceless. When it is integrated into a process, it supplies the necessary foundation and structure to help provide the consumer with a safe product of the highest quality. Food Safety Management Programs: Applications, Best Practices, and Compliance presents the insight and shared experiences that can be applied to the development, implementation, and maintenance of an effective food safety management system. The text supplies useful tools that can be applied according to the particular needs of an operation, adding value to its processes and aiding in the establishment of a successful management-based food safety system. The author also encourages the development of a quality management system. The text begins by summarizing Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) food safety schemes (eight as of the writing of this text). These include FSSC 22000, Safe Quality Food Code (SQF), British Retail Consortium Global Standard for Food Safety (BRC), International Featured Standards (IFS), Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA) Seafood Processing Standard, Global Red Meat Standard (GRMS), CanadaGAP, and PrimusGFS. It also lists websites for additional information and updates. Although this text focuses on food safety management systems (FSMS), it also includes references to ISO 9001, along with the quality requirements of some of the food safety management standards. It offers information that can be applied to whichever standard is chosen by an organization. With insights from experts in a variety of food industry-related sectors, the text explains the requirements of the standards, methods for their integration, and the process for identifying and addressing gaps in a manner that is both compliant and beneficial for the organization. The book provides experience-based information that can be integrated into any operation, which is essential for the development of an efficient, value-added, and sustainable management system.