FAO Guide to Ranking Food Safety Risks at the National Level


Book Description

The objective of this guidance is to provide direction to decision-makers on how to start ranking the public health risk posed by foodborne hazards and/or foods in their countries. The primary focus is microbial and chemical hazards in foods, but the overall approach could be used for any hazard. This guidance was developed with a wide audience in mind, including but not limited to microbiologists, toxicologists, chemists, environmental health scientists, public health epidemiologists, risk analysts, risk managers, and policy makers. Political will and a strong commitment to modernize food safety are key to the successful development and implementation of any risk ranking effort at the country level.




Food safety risk management: Evidence-informed policies and decisions, considering multiple factors


Book Description

These FAO guidance materials were developed to support food safety risk managers and policy-makers in applying structured, evidence-informed processes to decision making. Food safety issues can have widespread impacts beyond public health. They may contribute to, or detract from the achievement of goals in areas including nutrition, food security, food trade and market access, economic and rural development. The risk analysis paradigm guides risk managers to ensure their decisions are based on an assessment of risks to health, and consideration of other factors in choosing the preferred risk management decision. The materials assist decision-makers in applying a multi-factor approach and is applied to two key decision areas – setting food safety priorities, and selecting risk management options. The principles and approaches can be applied to all food safety decisions. Case studies are included as examples of how to apply this decision-making process. Using this guidance will lead to improved food safety decisions, where decision-makers can demonstrate how evidence was used and any trade-offs made. It also facilitates stakeholder engagement, transparency and accountability throughout the decision-making process.




Principles of Risk Analysis


Book Description

In every decision problem there are things we know and things we do not know. Risk analysis science uses the best available evidence to assess what we know while it is carefully intentional in the way it addresses the importance of the things we do not know in the evaluation of decision choices and decision outcomes. The field of risk analysis science continues to expand and grow and the second edition of Principles of Risk Analysis: Decision Making Under Uncertainty responds to this evolution with several significant changes. The language has been updated and expanded throughout the text and the book features several new areas of expansion including five new chapters. The book’s simple and straightforward style—based on the author’s decades of experience as a risk analyst, trainer, and educator—strips away the mysterious aura that often accompanies risk analysis. Features: Details the tasks of risk management, risk assessment, and risk communication in a straightforward, conceptual manner Provides sufficient detail to empower professionals in any discipline to become risk practitioners Expands the risk management emphasis with a new chapter to serve private industry and a growing public sector interest in the growing practice of enterprise risk management Describes dozens of quantitative and qualitative risk assessment tools in a new chapter Practical guidance and ideas for using risk science to improve decisions and their outcomes is found in a new chapter on decision making under uncertainty Practical methods for helping risk professionals to tell their risk story are the focus of a new chapter Features an expanded set of examples of the risk process that demonstrate the growing applications of risk analysis As before, this book continues to appeal to professionals who want to learn and apply risk science in their own professions as well as students preparing for professional careers. This book remains a discipline free guide to the principles of risk analysis that is accessible to all interested practitioners. Files used in the creation of this book and additional exercises as well as a free student version of Palisade Corporation’s Decision Tools Suite software are available with the purchase of this book. A less detailed introduction to the risk analysis science tasks of risk management, risk assessment, and risk communication is found in Primer of Risk Analysis: Decision Making Under Uncertainty, Second Edition, ISBN: 978-1-138-31228-9.




Microbiological Risk Assessment – Guidance for food


Book Description

This document provides guidance on undertaking risk assessment of all microbial hazards which may adversely affect human health in foods along a food chain. This document is also intended to provide practical guidance on a structured framework for carrying out risk assessment of microbiological hazards in foods, focussing on the four components including hazard identification, hazard characterization, exposure assessment and risk characterization. These guidelines therefore represent the best practice at the time of their preparation, and it is hoped that they will help stimulate further developments and disseminate the current knowledge.




Halal and Kosher Food


Book Description

In both Islamic and non-Islamic countries many population groups worldwide, such as vegetarians and people of the Jewish faith, consumers do not eat pork. Amongst these groups consumers are concerned about importing processed food which may contain or has been contaminated with pork or swine-derived products. This is especially true of halal foods in Muslim communities where the foods may be prepared or processed utilizing one of more non-halal ingredients. Halal and kosher foodstuff play an incredibly important role in the Muslim and Jewish diet, economy and health. This makes halal and kosher food product quality, safety and shelf life preservation a major topic in these communities and for the manufacturers of halal and kosher food products. Halal and Kosher Food: Integration of Quality and Safety for Global Market Trends covers a wide range of important topics in halal foods including quality, standards, safety of food additives, antimicrobial and veterinary drug residues, aflatoxin in feedstuff, application of Hazards Analysis and critical Control Points (HACCP). Important data regarding halal and kosher food similarities and differences are covered in full. Best practices in halal food product manufacturing are covered, plus the importance of halal food safety for consumer health. Written by elite international halal food experts, this work differs from other books on the subject which focus on history, legislation and certification. Readers can utilize this book as an orientation and practical guidebook to recognize the quality and safety of halal food products.




Communicating in Risk, Crisis, and High Stress Situations: Evidence-Based Strategies and Practice


Book Description

COMMUNICATING IN R!SK, CRISIS, AND HIGH STRESS SITUATIONS LEARN THE UNIFYING PRINCIPLES BEHIND RISK, CRISIS, AND HIGH STRESS COMMUNICATION WITH THIS STATE-OF-THE-ART REFERENCE WRITTEN BY A MAJOR LEADER IN THE FIELD Communicating in Risk, Crisis, and High Stress Situations: Evidence-Based Strategies and Practice is about communicating with people in the most challenging circumstances: high stress situations characterized by high risks and high stakes. The ability to communicate effectively in a high stress situation is an essential communication competency for managers, engineers, scientists, and professionals in every field who can be thrust into demanding situations complicated by stress. Whether you are confronting an external crisis, an internal emergency, or leading organizational change, this book was written for you. Communicating in Risk, Crisis, and High Stress Situations brings together in one resource proven scientific research with practical, hands-on guidance from a world leader in the field. The book covers such critical topics as trust, stakeholder engagement, misinformation, messaging, and audience perceptions in the context of stress. This book is uniquely readable, thorough, and useful, thanks to features that include: Evidence-based theories and concepts that underlie and guide practice Tools and guidelines for practical and effective planning and application Experience-based advice for facing challenges posed by mainstream and social media Provocative case studies that bring home the key principles and strategies Illuminating case diaries that use the author’s breadth and depth of experience to create extraordinary learning opportunities The book is a necessity for managers, engineers, scientists, and others who must communicate difficult technical concepts to a concerned public. It also belongs on the bookshelves of leaders and communicators in public and private sector organizations looking for a one-stop reference and evidence-based practical guide for communicating effectively in emotionally charged situations. Written by a highly successful academic, consultant, and trainer, the book is also designed as a resource for training and education.




The Microbiology of Safe Food


Book Description

Exploring food microbiology, its impact upon consumer safety, and the latest strategies for reducing its associated risks As our methods of food production advance, so too does the need for a fuller understanding of food microbiology and the critical ways in which it influences food safety. The Microbiology of Safe Food satisfies this need, exploring the processes and effects of food microbiology with a detailed, practical approach. Examining both food pathogens and spoilage organisms, microbiologist Stephen J. Forsythe covers topics ranging from hygiene regulations and product testing to microbiological criteria and sampling plans. This third edition has been thoroughly revised to cater to the food scientists and manufacturers of today, addressing such new areas as: Advances in genomic analysis techniques for key organisms, including E. coli, Salmonella, and L. monocytogenes Emerging information on high-throughput sequencing and genomic epidemiology based on genomic analysis of isolates Recent work on investigations into foodborne infection outbreaks, demonstrating the public health costs of unsafe food production Updates to the national and international surveillance systems, including social media Safe food for consumers is the ultimate goal of food microbiology. To that end, The Microbiology of Safe Food focuses on the real-world applications of the latest science, making it an essential companion for all those studying and working in food safety.




Conceptualizing Plant-Based Nutrition


Book Description

This book deliberates on the various aspects of plant-based nutrition. Plant-based nutrition has numerous potential health benefits as it is low on calories nevertheless high on nutrient density and satiety, and also nutrient supplementation makes them wholesome diets.Starting with the importance of biodiversity contributing to the nutrition, the book discusses the development or utilization of nutrient-dense crops/foods with their bioavailability properties and health effects. Further, it deals with the enrichment of micronutrients through bio-fortification, fortification, the role of food matrix, and nutrient bioavailability, including the role of plant-based milk alternatives. The linkage between food and health is also being discussed in the context of anti-nutritional factors, metabolic fate of the food, and genomics. Finally, the implications of next-gen biotech crops and food safety issues imperative to define the concept of safe nutrition are discussed.With contributions from plant nutrition experts, this book serves as a one-stop reference for plant scientists, food technologists, and nutritionists looking to understand the concept of plant-based nutrition and its linkage with human health.




Chemical Analysis of Antibiotic Residues in Food


Book Description

An insightful exploration of the key aspects concerning the chemical analysis of antibiotic residues in food The presence of excess residues from frequent antibiotic use in animals is not only illegal, but can pose serious health risks by contaminating products for human consumption such as meat and milk. Chemical Analysis of Antibiotic Residues in Food is a single-source reference for readers interested in the development of analytical methods for analyzing antibiotic residues in food. It covers themes that include quality assurance and quality control, antibiotic chemical properties, pharmacokinetics, metabolism, distribution, food safety regulations, and chemical analysis. In addition, the material presented includes background information valuable for understanding the choice of marker residue and target animal tissue to use for regulatory analysis. This comprehensive reference: Includes topics on general issues related to screening and confirmatory methods Presents updated information on food safety regulation based on routine screening and confirmatory methods, especially LC-MS Provides general guidance for method development, validation, and estimation of measurement uncertainty Chemical Analysis of Antibiotic Residues in Food is written and organized with a balance between practical use and theory to provide laboratories with a solid and reliable reference on antibiotic residue analysis. Thorough coverage elicits the latest scientific findings to assist the ongoing efforts toward refining analytical methods for producing safe foods of animal origin.




Encyclopedia of Environmental Health


Book Description

Encyclopedia of Environmental Health, Second Edition, Six Volume Set presents the newest release in this fundamental reference that updates and broadens the umbrella of environmental health, especially social and environmental health for its readers. There is ongoing revolution in governance, policies and intervention strategies aimed at evolving changes in health disparities, disease burden, trans-boundary transport and health hazards. This new edition reflects these realities, mapping new directions in the field that include how to minimize threats and develop new scientific paradigms that address emerging local, national and global environmental concerns. Represents a one-stop resource for scientifically reliable information on environmental health Fills a critical gap, with information on one of the most rapidly growing scientific fields of our time Provides comparative approaches to environmental health practice and research in different countries and regions of the world Covers issues behind specific questions and describes the best available scientific methods for environmental risk assessment