Produce Food Safety

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Produce Food Safety

• Food Safety Forum
• February 20, 2006
• Ben Chapman
• bchapman_at_uoguelph.ca

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Food Safety Network at the University of Guelph

• Research interests
• Information Centre
• Policy evaluation
• Commentary
• From farm-to-fork

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Everybody's getting too anal about it -- I
mean, come on now, we're dealing with living
fruits and vegetables
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Foodborne Illness Canada

• Annually more than an inconvenience
• 10,000 cases reported
• 2,000,000 cases estimated
• 30 deaths
• 1 billion in medical costs and productivity
  losses

Under reporting for every 1 case reported, 100
go unreported
Health Canada

Farber, 1995
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The Bugs

• Norovirus
• Camplylobacter spp.
• Salmonella spp.
• Clostridium perfringens
• Staphylococcus
• EHEC (such as E. coli O157)
• Shigella spp.
• Giardia lamblia
• Listeria monocytogenes
• Hepatitis A

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In Ontario

• Estimated 90,000 illnesses each year in Ontario
  due to produce
• 145 million dollars
• Estimated more illnesses due to produce than meat
• Surveillance

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Thought (Cdn) vs Implicated (US)

• 1 Chicken
• 2 Meats
• 3 Ground meats
• 4 Fin fish
• 5 Shellfish

• 1 Mixed dishes
• 2 Greens
• 3 Turkey
• 4 Fruits and Vegs
• 5 Beef

As far as you know, what specific foods may
cause food poisoning or foodborne illness?
Environics, 1999
CDC, 2000
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• 1990-2003 Produce linked to 554 outbreaks and
  28,315 illness (CSPI, 2005)

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Risks Associated with Fresh Produce

• Healthy eating guidelines recommend
• fresh fruits and veggies
• Changing food systems wider distribution,
  outbreaks affect more people.
• Changing consumer preferences Increased
  consumption of raw or minimally processed
  products. Natural Foods
• Changing microorganisms adaptation to stress and
  the environment, small infectious dose.

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Produce-related media coverage 1995-2003
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Pathogen Cycle in Vegetable Production (Beuchat,
1998)
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Documented produce outbreaks 1995-2003 (N188)
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Produce outbreaks in representative media
1995-2003 (N186)
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Produce-related media coverage 1995-2003
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February 2006

• Aquafuchsia Quebec
• Product Recall
• Presumptive Salmonella on alfalfa
• Previous recall 2003
• Follow good practice

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Ontario 2005

• 648 cases of salmonellosis traced to contaminated
  mung bean sprouts
• Product Recall 24th Nov 2005
• Production re-started Dec 14th 2005
• Product Recall 24th Dec 2005

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www.fark.com
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Factors Driving On-farm Food Safety

• Branding Food Safety
• Liability/crisis
• Buyer demand
• if exporting, need the real deal
• Threat of regulation

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On-farm food safety comparisons
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Contamination Factors

• Growing conditions
• Facilities
• Sanitation
• Pests/Animals
• Harvest equipment
• Storage
• Packing materials
• Transport

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2005 Mexican study

• Open-air greenhouses, similar to fields
• 910 tomato samples
• 3 year study -- 3 per cent average
• 2003-04 -- 7.9 per cent of tomatoes had
  salmonella
• Shoes
• Puddles
• Wheels

Orozco, et al. 2005
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Things you really need to worry about

• Water
• Handling
• Management of your system

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Water

• Wash
• Irrigation
• Source for handwashing/drinking
• Rain events

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Almonds

• Recent outbreaks of salmonellosis from
  consumption of raw almonds
• Shown to migrate through hulls and shells
• Wet conditions allow for multiplication

Danyluk, et al. 2005
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People

• 50 per cent of recorded outbreaks traced directly
  to worker sanitation
• Handwashing vs. sanitizer
• Training
• Discipline -- gloves and washroom use

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Management

• No significant difference between
• farm size
• municipal water source
• Issues are common to all, despite perceptions in
  the media
• Be practical with food safety steps
• Create a culture of food safety

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Canadian Horticultural Council

• Developing national, generic food safety manuals
  for fresh fruits and vegetables.
• Manuals will be reviewed by CFIA
• Working with retailers
• Retailers beginning to ask about programs

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On-farm food safety program strategies

• Industry-led, regulator supported
• Dynamic programs based on best available science
• Involve stakeholders
• Transparent and proactive communication
• Multi-dimensional implementation

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Learning From the Outbreaks

• Supplier guidelines
• Dialogue with suppliers
• Know the risky items
• Handling of produce within facilities

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Acknowledgements

• Dr. Keith Warriner, University of Guelph
• Dr. Linda Harris, Michelle Danyluk, UC Davis

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Where Are the Illnesses?
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FSN future directions

• Investigate factors influencing food safety
  behaviours
• Interdisciplinary approach
• Biological sciences and social sciences

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Disclosure Systems
Public Health Inspector Relations
Liability and Outbreaks
Theory of Planned Behaviour
Communication, Training and Managerial Style
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FSN Projects

• Response to outbreaks at U of G
• Norovirus 2006
• Community dinners
• Observation techniques
• Thermometers
• Listeria communication

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