April/May 2024

In the April/May ‘24 issue of Food Safety Magazine, our cover story discusses the consumer-driven digital transformation of foodservice and the associated food safety risks. Additional features explore the ongoing needs of the poultry industry regarding improved sampling and testing, Maple Leaf Foods’ success in reducing equipment damage through sustainable wet sanitation, and the psychosocial risks to food safety and why they cannot be ignored.

Digital Transformation of Foodservice: Potential Contributing Factors for Foodborne Illness Outbreaks

The integration of technology to meet higher demands on the foodservice business due to the large number of digital orders also offers significant opportunities to enhance food safety

Hal King, Ph.D.

April 15, 2024

This article explores the consumer-driven digital transformation of foodservice, including off-premise delivery, ghost kitchens, and mail-order foods. These new food models are characterized by potentially higher food safety risks and low regulation, raising questions about how to move forward safely.

Improved Sampling and Testing are Foundational to Poultry Safety

To what extent does poultry contribute to cases of salmonellosis, both directly and indirectly, and is there more the industry can do to protect public health?

Jennifer McEntire, Ph.D.

April 9, 2024

Reliable test results for fresh poultry are a prerequisite for targeting interventions and improving processes. This article discusses the ongoing needs of the poultry industry regarding testing, methods, serotyping, and other concerns, including changes to the regulatory landscape.

Sustainable Wet Sanitation to Reduce Equipment Damage

Success can be achieved by working together to reimagine wet sanitation processes that clean effectively and efficiently while preserving assets and improving sustainability outcomes

Steven Tsuyuki B.Sc., B.A.Sc. Cari Rasmussen M.S. Sumesh Kapoor M.S. Mark McInnes M.S.

April 9, 2024

This article discusses how Maple Leaf Foods' redesign of its wet food sanitation processes led to reduced recurring equipment damage that caused startup downtime. It also improved sustainability, saved costs, and ensured food safety through better management of resources.

Where Food Safety Systems and Culture Collide: Do You Know Your Company's Psychosocial Risks?

Psychosocial risks become important to food safety when they have the potential for causing psychological or physical harm, and when they lead to deficiencies in expected food safety behaviors

Lone Jespersen Ph.D. Bob Lijana M.Sc.

April 9, 2024

Ignoring psychosocial risks in a food business—including control and support—gives a false sense of security for leaders, who may believe that high external inspection and audit scores mean that the company has a strong food safety system and culture.

Controlled Environment Agriculture: A Systematic Review

The intensification of indoor agricultural systems must be achieved by specific processes that minimize negative impacts on the environment and place food safety front and center

Javier Martinez M.Sc.

April 10, 2024

Controlled environment agriculture can help meet food requirements of the future, but this objective must be achieved by specific processes that minimize negative impacts on the environment and place food safety front and center.

Medically Important Foodborne Parasites: A Consequential Challenge for Food Safety Assurance

Foodborne parasitic diseases are often overlooked in food safety control schemes, even though they are known to pose a severe threat to human health

Larry Keener CFS, PA

April 11, 2024

Parasites are reported in all manner of foodstuffs across the entire food supply, and they are challenging to detect and control. For risk assessment purposes, food safety personnel must be cognizant of the occurrence and significance of these foodborne organisms.

Applying Industry 4.0 to Food Safety

The opportunities for strengthening food safety through the adoption of Industry 4.0 technologies across the food supply chain are vast

Quincy Lissaur

April 11, 2024

Industry 4.0 relies on a group of disruptive technologies to drive insights and speed in decision-making. This article demonstrates the potential benefits that can be created and captured across a food business through thoughtful and deliberate application of Industry 4.0 technologies.

Development and Application of AI for Food Processing and Safety Regulations

AI technologies have potential to revolutionize the food industry and the way USDA-FSIS employees inspect and ensure the safety of meat, poultry, RTE, NRTE, egg, and thermally processed products

Davis W. Cheng Ph.D.

April 10, 2024

This article explores the transformative strategies, methods, and approaches of AI technologies in the realm of USDA-FSIS operations, with an introduction of ten major AI systems for different applications and purposes.

California Tightens Requirements for Labeling Products as 'Compostable'

A number of challenges need to be addressed for compostable packaging to meet its potential

George G. Misko Esq.

April 11, 2024

Contamination is a major challenge for composters. California AB 1201 expanded requirements for compostable products, but a recent study by CalRecycle found it unfeasible to separate suitable products for organic agricultural use from non-suitable ones. This decision affects compostable product requirements in other legislation.

Review and Update of Methods for Metals Analysis in Foods

Metals detection at low concentration in food can be challenging from an analytical perspective and requires suitable guidance in terms of the instrumentation used and methodological approaches

Eve Kroukamp Ph.D. Christopher J. Smith Ph.D. Kevin Kubachka Ph.D. Stéphane Dubascoux Ph.D. Erik Konings Ph.D.

April 12, 2024

AOAC INTERNATIONAL's metals scientific community has formed a working group to review regulations and requirements for metals content in food, and to update the AOAC Standard Method Performance Requirements for metals analysis. The working group is also reviewing existing methods based on Codex Alimentarius requirements for metals analysis.

PFAS Litigation and FDA Updates for the Food Industry

Managing PFAS litigation risk requires food manufacturers and suppliers to take adequate steps to assess their exposure and allocate responsibility

Michael A. Walsh J.D. Emma C. Jenevein J.D. Christopher B. Clare J.D.

April 12, 2024

In evaluating the thousands of existing PFAS compounds and at what level they present a risk to the health of humans and animals, FDA, USDA, CPSC, and EPA are focusing on three issues: bioaccumulation, persistence, and toxicity.

Fundamentals of Conducting an Allergen Gap Assessment

Conducting an allergen gap assessment is one way to ensure regulatory compliance and consumer safety

Tim Lombardo

April 15, 2024

Allergen-related food recalls have increased since the introduction of FDA's Food Safety Modernization Act in 2011. This article shares the fundamentals of conducting an allergen gap assessment to help companies comply with new FDA guidance on allergen management.

Rapid Testing Methods—The Future

Most companies no longer have a microbiology lab or pathogen analysis capabilities, which will change the types of rapid test methods that will be in demand in the future

Bob Ferguson

April 12, 2024

Part 3 of this Food Safety Insights series on rapid testing asks food safety professionals whether the vast increase in outsourcing of testing to contract labs has made rapid methods less useful, or if the methods' ease of use and speed are still important for better management and decision-making.

The Art of Bacterial Warfare: Know Thy Enemy

A new European project investigates the antibiotic resistance microbiome in oyster culture regions and seeks to unravel how antibiotic resistance genes move in the surrounding habitats

Karl B. Andree Ph.D.

April 15, 2024

Advances are being made in aquaculture practices that will reduce the overuse of antibiotics. This article discusses a new European project that investigates the antibiotic-resistant microbiome in oyster culture regions and how antibiotic-resistant genes move in surrounding habitats.

Malevolent AI: Navigating the Shadows of Technology Advancement in the Food Industry

AI's integration into the food industry has been largely beneficial, streamlining processes from production to distribution; however, this integration also opens doors for malevolent use

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.

April 10, 2024

Artificial Intelligence (AI), while offering remarkable advancements in various fields, also presents a paradoxical threat, especially when misused.

Our Publications

Food Safety Magazine

Cover Story

Digital Transformation of Foodservice: Potential Contributing Factors for Foodborne Illness Outbreaks

Features

Improved Sampling and Testing are Foundational to Poultry Safety

Sustainable Wet Sanitation to Reduce Equipment Damage

Where Food Safety Systems and Culture Collide: Do You Know Your Company's Psychosocial Risks?

Columns

Controlled Environment Agriculture: A Systematic Review

Medically Important Foodborne Parasites: A Consequential Challenge for Food Safety Assurance

Applying Industry 4.0 to Food Safety

Development and Application of AI for Food Processing and Safety Regulations

California Tightens Requirements for Labeling Products as 'Compostable'

Review and Update of Methods for Metals Analysis in Foods

PFAS Litigation and FDA Updates for the Food Industry

Fundamentals of Conducting an Allergen Gap Assessment

Rapid Testing Methods—The Future

The Art of Bacterial Warfare: Know Thy Enemy

Malevolent AI: Navigating the Shadows of Technology Advancement in the Food Industry

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