Microbiological Risk Assessment Associated with the Food Processing and Distribution Chain

Jeanne-Marie Membre

• Editorial: Wiley-ISTE
• Año: 2022
• ISBN:
  9781119986973
• Edición: 1
• Categoría: Technology & Engineering
• Categoría: Food Science

According to the World Health Organization, one in every ten people worldwide falls ill from eating contaminated food every year, with 550 million cases of diarrheal diseases. Microbiological risk assessment aims to characterize the nature and probability of harm resulting from human exposure to the biological agents that are present in foodstuffs. This assessment must take into account all stages of the chain: from the production of raw materials to consumption. After briefly introducing food safety and risk assessment, this book details the four major steps of microbiological risk assessment. The contributors first present hazard identification and then exposure assessment, which is subdivided into methods for the detection and enumeration of pathogens and for the quantification of the level of exposure. Then, hazard characterization is subdivided into pathogenicity mechanisms and quantification of the dose–response relationship. Finally a guide for microbiological risk characterization is provided. The conclusion presents possible development avenues for microbiological risk assessment, particularly its integration into a holistic assessment of food systems.

PART 1
Hazards and Food

1
Biological Hazard Identification

Jeanne-Marie MEMBRÉ and Nabila HADDAD

SECALIM, INRAE, Oniris, Nantes, France

1.1. Introduction

Contamination of food with microbial agents is a global public health problem. Microbial hazards in food include bacteria such as Salmonella, viruses such as norovirus, parasites such as trematodes and also prions. Diarrheal diseases are the most common diseases resulting from the consumption of contaminated food and are the cause of 550 million illnesses and 230,000 deaths each year (WHO 2020). Hazard identification serves to establish whether the hazard is probable or actual in the food product and to document important known information about the relationships and interactions between the hazard, the food and the host, and also their relationship to human disease. Given that a wide range of microbiological hazards can cause foodborne illness, hazard identification should determine whether a potential hazard is realistic for the food product concerned (FAO and WHO 2020).

Epidemiological data from disease surveillance programs or investigations of food-borne outbreaks are often the first clearly documented indications of a food safety issue associated with a pathogen causing adverse effects. Food contamination surveillance data, along with product and process assessments, can help identify combinations of hazards and foods. Evidence from these sources is usually quantitative (i.e. it includes information on the concentration or number of units of the hazard in the food) and may also provide information that feeds into other stages of microbiological risk assessment, such as exposure assessment and/or establishment of a dose–response relationship. Whole genome sequencing (WGS) is increasingly used for the surveillance of foodborne pathogens, the investigation of epidemics and the search for the sources of contamination throughout the food supply chain (Rantsiou et al. 2018).

That being said, the epidemiological data must be cross-referenced with product knowledge, in other words its formulation, its process, its distribution channel and the way it is used by the consumer, before conclusions can be drawn on the relevant hazards. Finally, the behavior of the hazard in the food, in other words its ability to multiply, its resistance to stress and its survival, or its inactivation, is the third key element to be taken into account in hazard identification. (Figure 1.1). We will return later in the chapter to these different types of data and their cross-use.

Figure.1.1. Structuring of information essential to hazard identification. Created with BioRender.com

1.2. Who conducts hazard identification?

Hazard identification is the first stage in risk assessment. It is therefore often carried out by health agencies such as the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) in Europe or ANSES in France when these agencies are seeking to clarify an action or a decision relating to food safety.

However, hazard identification is also implemented by companies, or more precisely by companies’ quality departments, when they are setting up their Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) systems. The HACCP system is a methodology that identifies, assesses and helps control hazards that have significance for food safety (Membré 2014). The HACCP system is a preventive operation, specific to a manufacturing unit, which begins with the purchase of raw materials, ingredients and packaging materials, follows the entire production process and ends at the finished product, ready for consumption. The HACCP system is based on seven principles, the first being “carry out a hazard analysis”. This first principle includes hazard identification. Conducting this identification should be assigned to a highly qualified team with proven skills in food microbiology.

1.3. Sources of useful information for hazard identification

The WHO and the FAO have listed the various types of data that can be used in hazard identification (FAO and WHO 2020), along with their benefits and drawbacks. Their main conclusions are summed up in Table 1.1.

The data cited by the WHO and FAO can be categorized according to their origin (whether they have been obtained from the scientific literature or from surveillance) and nature (epidemiological studies, prevalence and concentrations, early warning, toxi-infection, public health).

Food safety agencies provide professionals in the agrifood sector with factsheets describing biological hazards transmissible through food. These factsheets are updated regularly and are available online; they can also provide useful information for hazard identification. By way of example:

• – ANSES’ factsheets are available in French at https://www.anses.fr/fr/content/fiches-de-dangers-biologiques-transmissibles-par-les-aliments;
• – Canadian factsheets are available at https://www.canada.ca/fr/sante-publique/services/biosecurite-biosurete-laboratoire/fiches-techniques-sante-securite-agents-pathogenes-evaluation-risques.html.

Table 1.1. The various types of data that can be used in hazard identification (FAO and WHO 2020)

Type of data	Description	Benefits	Drawbacks
Literature data: epidemiological studies	Epidemiological investigations relate to studies that have been commissioned to specifically study the cause and effect relationship between the appearance of foodborne diseases and exposure to certain microbiological risks through the consumption of food.	Epidemiological studies are very specific and provide a vast amount of detailed information about the hazard and the group of consumers studied.	The data are often generated for a relatively small number of consumers and therefore are not representative of larger consumer groups.
Literature data: prevalence and concentration data	Studies identifying the prevalence and count/concentration of target microorganisms at various stages of production/distribution and studies identifying their evolution, such as the effectiveness of a transformation procedure.	These studies are particularly useful for exposure assessment, but can also be used for hazard identification.	The diversity of detection and/or counting methods makes it difficult to compare final estimates. Internationally validated microbiological methods to facilitate this comparison should be preferred.
Surveillance data: early warning systems	A food-safety early warning system allows national authorities to share information on measures taken in response to serious risks detected in relation to food and can thus provide useful information for hazard identification. The European RASFF system is an example of a food-safety early warning system that provides valuable information on product withd...