TABLE OF CONTENTS

Title page    –         –         –         –         –         –         –         –         –         i

Declaration  –         –         –         –         –         –         –         –         –         ii

Certification –         –         –         –         –         –         –         –         –         iii

Dedication   –         –         –         –         –         –         –         –         –         iv

Acknowledgements         –         –         –         –         –         –         –         v

Table of contents   –         –         –         –         –         –         –         –         vi

CHAPTER ONE 

1.0     INTRODUCTION –         –         –         –         –         –         –         1

CHAPTER TWO

2.0     FOOD BORNE ILLNESS AND SOURCES OF FOOD CONTAMINATION    

2.1     Foodborne illness   –         –         –         –         –         –         –         4

2.2     Sources of food contamination –         –         –         –         –         6

2.3     Detection of food borne pathogens      –         –         –         –         7

2.4     Prevention of foodborne infections      –         –         –         –         9

2.5     Control of microorganisms in food      –         –         –         –         10

2.6     Approaches to microbiological control in food        –         –         13

2.6.1  Education and training programs         –         –         –         –         13

2.6.2  Inspection of facilities and operations  –         –         –         –         14

2.6.3  Microbiological testing    –         –         –         –         –         –         16

2.6.4  The Hazard Analysis Control Point (HACCP) system       –         17

CHAPTER THREE

3.1     Food safety and food security    –         –         –         –         –         19

3.2     Effect of microorganisms in food safety        –         –         –         22

3.3     Effect of microorganisms in food quality       –         –         –         25

3.4     Use of Microbes for improving food safety and quality     –         28

CHAPTER FOUR

4.0     SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

4.1     Summary     –         –         –         –         –         –         –         –         32

4.2     Conclusion  –         –         –         –         –         –         –         –         33

References

CHAPTER ONE

1.0     INTRODUCTION

During the last decade, food safety has emerged as a very significant global issue for the consumers, regulatory agencies, industry, and the research community (Beier et al., 2004; Pal, 2013). The increasing number and severity of outbreaks of foodborne illnesses worldwide has considerably increased public awareness about the microbial food safety. This is partly due to well publicized incidences of food irradiation, bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), Escherichia coli O157:H7 and genetically modified foods (Forsythe, 2000). Recently, toxoplasmosis is recognized as an emerging foodborne parasitic disease.

Presently, increasing social, political and economic interdependence occurred as a result of the rapid movement of people, produce and other commodities across national borders. However, globalization of the food supply have introduced new food safety risks, revived previously controlled risks, and spread contaminated food wider. With greater connectedness, new and emerging diseases have the potential to travel very fast and subsequently trace back, and control is often difficult. The international circulation of food products as commodities, along with the transnational expansion of food-based cooperation, has resulted in the need for global governance of food safety and quality (Krause and Hendrick, 2011).

Our understanding of the epidemiology of foodborne diseases has evolved in recent decades corresponding, in part, to improvements in pathogen detection and reporting systems. In addition, new pathogens have emerged to correspond with a changing food supply, an increase in the number of people with heightened susceptibility to foodborne diseases and a greater diversity of food preparation practices and food preferences. This has posed a number of challenges for the veterinary profession and public health agencies (Krause and Hendrick, 2011).

As the human population continues to grow there is an ever increasing need to develop and maintain food products of different kind, and this development could further awfully signify the importance of food safety concerns (Tomasevic et al., 2013).

The epidemic nature of outbreaks of food-borne diseases varies from localized and self-limiting outbreaks – which would not be relevant to international trade to rapidly spreading epidemics that can quickly cross international borders via trade (Krause and Hendrick, 2011). Improving the safety of the food supply on stronger public health capacity around the world, better understanding of new challenges and translating that understanding into effective prevention from farm to fork is very essential. The present paper delineates the challenges due to microbial food safety.