Controls proportionate to the Risksfor the European meat Industry

Dream or Reality?

Controls proportionate to the Risksfor the European meat Industry

Dream or Reality?

Professor Patrick WallSchool of Public Health and Population Sciences

University College Dublin

Chairperson EFSA

Public HealthPublic Health

ScienceScience

Consumer ConfidenceConsumer Confidence

PoliticsPolitics

Trade $$$Trade $$$

Food SafetyFood Safety

RegulationsRegulations

Farm to Fork ??Farm to Fork ??

Animal FeedPharmaceuticalsAnimal WelfareProcessingStorage

Retail DriversConsumer TrendsNew ThreatsMass Media

National RegulationsInternational Regs.Mixed StandardsDifferent Starting PointsDifferent EnforcementFraud

Super-bugsin imported

chickens

CarcinogensCarcinogens

in processed meatin processed meat

NewCases

of BSE

Political ResponsePolitical Response often in proportion to often in proportion to the media interest rather than health risk?the media interest rather than health risk?

Media amplification of risk

BSE Was the SwitchBSE Was the Switch

HUMAN BEHAVIOURWe wouldn’t eat beef!Far too

dangerous!!

The “New” European

Globesity

I Don’t eat chicken !

Bird Flu

I Don’t eatBeef !

BSE !

ProbabilityNeglect

PublicPoliticiansPolicy makers

Dangerous

VeryBad

Safe

VeryGood

Nutritional Advice? Nutritional Advice?

Confused consumers

Reduce: Saturated fat

Sugar Salt

Eat moreFruit

Vegetables& Fibre

TakeMore

Exercise

Relationship Relationship between the between the

Regulators and Regulators and The Meat IndustryThe Meat Industry

??Collaboration orCollaboration or

Co-operationCo-operation

Regulators

Industry

Cooperation…

Food & Veterinary OfficeFood & Veterinary OfficeFood & Veterinary OfficeFood & Veterinary Office

Risk Assessment Provision of “Scientific Advice” and “Scientific Opinions.” Scientific and technical support for the Community’s legislation and

policies in all fields which have a direct or indirect impact on food and feed safety.

Risk Communication Risk Communication related to food and feed “Safety”

Not Risk Management

EFSA MISSIONEvidence Based Policy?Evidence Based Policy?

Plant Health

Plant Protection Products

Animal feed

Animal Health and Welfare

Biological Hazards

Chemical contaminants

GMOs

Nutrition/Diet Products and allergies

Additives, flavourings and contact mat

Scientific Scientific CommitteeCommittee

Risk Assessment:- Panels

Meat and bone meal

SRM risk

Carcasses washes poultry

Animal Health and Welfare

Liquid versus natural smoke

Nitrates in processed meats

Enzymes/additives/flavourings

Nutrient and health claims

GMOs

Salmonella prevalence in pigs and poultry

Cloning / nanotechnology etc

Increasing Scientific Capability

Fingerprinting bugs New compounds? Lower levels of detectablility - “parts per trillion” New techniques-eg cloning, nanotechnology

Improved Risk Assessment

Ingredients Labelling

This Slice Contains

the Following:

List of Ingredients

As a general rule the ingredients of a pre-packaged food m

ust be listed on the label in descending

order of weight. H

owever, there are som

e exceptions to this rule (56)(57):

         A

list of ingredients is not required for certain foods as listed in the Directive 2000/13/EC

article 6(57) such as fresh fruit and vegetables which have not been peeled or cut and products

comprising of a single ingredient.

         A

dditives which are used as processing aids and additives that are contained in an

ingredient of a foodstuff but serving no technological function in the finished product do not have

to be mentioned on the label. W

hether or not the additive performs a technological function in

the final product will depend both on the ingredient containing the additive and the food to w

hich

it is added. For example, preservatives used in fruit puree w

ill not necessarily be performing the

same function w

hen the fruit is added to heat-treated yoghurt and may not have to be declared.

         There are rules that sim

plify the declaration of ingredients on the label of a pre-packaged

foodstuff. Ingredients of a foodstuff that belong to a certain category of ingredients as listed in

the Directive need only be indicated by their designated category rather than their specific nam

e.

For example, w

here fish is an ingredient of a foodstuff all species of fish may be indicated sim

ply

as the category ‘fish’ in the list of ingredients provided that other information anyw

here on the

label does not refer to a specific species of fish. Other categories of foodstuff include “oil”

together with either the adjective “vegetable” or “anim

al” as appropriate and “crystallised fruit”.

See Annex 2 for a com

plete list of categories of ingredients, which m

ay be declared on the

label.

 It should be noted w

here the ingredient ‘starch’ or ‘modified starch’ (as listed in A

nnex 2)

originates from a source that contains gluten the source of its cereal origin m

ust always be given.

For example, w

here starch in a product comes from

wheat, oats, barley or rye, the declaration

‘Wheat Starch’ or ‘O

ats Starch’ as appropriate must be given in the list if ingredients (57). L

ist of

Ingredients

As a general rule the ingredients of a pre-packaged food m

ust be listed on the label in descending

order of weight. H

owever, there are som

e exceptions to this rule (56)(57):

         A

list of ingredients is not required for certain foods as listed in the Directive 2000/13/EC

article 6(57) such as fresh fruit and vegetables which have not been peeled or cut and products

comprising of a single ingredient.

         A

dditives which are used as processing aids and additives that are contained in an

ingredient of a foodstuff but serving no technological function in the finished product do not have

to be mentioned on the label. W

hether or not the additive performs a technological function in

the final product will depend both on the ingredient containing the additive and the food to w

hich

it is added. For example, preservatives used in fruit puree w

ill not necessarily be performing the

same function w

hen the fruit is added to heat-treated yoghurt and may not have to be declared.

         There are rules that sim

plify the declaration of ingredients on the label of a pre-packaged

foodstuff. Ingredients of a foodstuff that belong to a certain category of ingredients as listed in

the Directive need only be indicated by their designated category rather than their specific nam

e.

For example, w

here fish is an ingredient of a foodstuff all species of fish may be indicated sim

ply

as the category ‘fish’ in the list of ingredients provided that other information anyw

here on the

label does not refer to a specific species of fish. Other categories of foodstuff include “oil”

together with either the adjective “vegetable” or “anim

al” as appropriate and “crystallised fruit”.

See Annex 2 for a com

plete list of categories of ingredients, which m

ay be declared on the

label.

 It should be noted w

here the ingredient ‘starch’ or ‘modified starch’ (as listed in A

nnex 2)

originates from a source that contains gluten the source of its cereal origin m

ust always be given.

For example, w

here starch in a product comes from

wheat, oats, barley or rye, the declaration

‘Wheat Starch’ or ‘O

ats Starch’ as appropriate must be given in the list if ingredients (57).

 

“The Major Food Poisoning Pathogens are Zoonoses!”

ControlControl in the animal reservoirs!

in the animal reservoirs!

FMDBlue tongueAvian fluSwine fever

Zoonosis Directive- Community Summary Report

1. Brucellosis2. Campylobacteriosis3. Echinococcosis4. Listeriosis5. Salmonellosis6. Trichinellosis7. Tuberculosis (M bovis)8. VTEC9. Foodborne outbreaks10. Antimicrobial Resistant Salmonella & Campy

Danish Institute of Food &VeterinaryResearch

ECDC

Zoonotic agents not necessarily from meat

Climate Change:-contaminated water

E coliO157

Danish pigs are special?

More Science in

More Science in

Meat Inspection

Meat Inspection

Animal Welfare?

http://www.youtube.com/

A meatpacker accused of animal cruelty is making the largest U.S. meat recall on record -- 143 million lbs, the U.S. Agriculture Department said on Sunday.

Most of the meat, probably has already been consumed, said USDA officials at a briefing. Some 37 million lbs were bought for school lunches.

Largest Recall of Ground Beef Is Ordered

Published: February 18, 2008

Rapid

Alert

System

Rapid

Alert

System

Identifies a range of problems across all categories of foods suggesting that all is not well in the global village and equivalents standards are not being applied

Global Village:-Global Problems

Global Solutions

Global Solutions

Consistent science

Consistent science

Divergance of “political” opinion…Divergance of “political” opinion…

What about GMOs?

We are All for it

Absolutly Not

Need Further Discussion

Yes! But Politicans will Say No!

Should Be Banned

Some Time In Future

EFSA under attack

1. Too slow

2. Not rigorous enough

ZeroTolerance

One Ship tonnes of trouble….Asynchronous Authorisations

DG Agri ReportEconomic impact of unapproved GMOs on EU Feed Imports and

livestock production

Your Standards must protect your weakest customers

EFSA Advisory Forum

• EFSA is a resource for everyone in the EU, so use it!

• Your taxes are paying for it!