The changing face of food safety

The changing face of

food Safety

According to the latest estimates from the CDC, about 48 million Americans succumb to foodborne infections each year and of these, 128,000 are hospitalized and 3,000 die.

As well as the impact on health, foodborne illness has significant economic impact. When the full costs associated with this burden of illness are taken into account, the estimated annual cost to the U.S. economy is about $78 billion. The estimates for Canada suggest that the number of cases of foodborne illness each year amount to about 4 million with an associated cost approaching $10 billion. Canada has witnessed a number of significant outbreaks of foodborne illness in the past five years, including the listeriosis outbreak linked to the consumption of ready-to-eat meat produced by Maple Leaf Foods, which resulted in 23 deaths and, more recently, the contamination of beef with E. coli O157:H7 produced by XL Foods. The increase in high profile outbreaks both here and in the U.S. have led to significant changes in the laws governing food safety and has prompted the Canadian government to re-think the way in which the food industry is inspected.

There has been a shift away from foods of animal origin being the major vehicles for foodborne infection and it is now generally accepted that, at least in North America, fresh fruits and vegetables account for the majority of outbreaks. Some recent examples of large outbreaks attributable to fruits and vegetables are the outbreak of listeriosis linked to cantaloupe melon produced on one farm in Colorado, which resulted in at least 147 people in 28 states becoming ill and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed at least 32 deaths and 1 miscarriage were also associated with the outbreak. It is also now recognized that viruses, particularly norovirus, are the leading cause of foodborne illness. Indeed, in a study of milk borne cases of illness in the U.S. between 1993 and 2008, 44 per cent of outbreaks associated with pasteurized dairy products were the result of contamination with norovirus. More recently, frozen berries sold at Costco stores across several U.S. states have been linked to 143 cases of hepatitis A, with 63 individuals requiring hospitalization.

But the question is often asked: is foodborne illness on the increase? With more than 250 known causes of foodborne illness and surveillance being performed on only a small fraction of those, the question is almost impossible to answer. What is obvious is that food safety is going to be a primary concern of the food industry for many years to come. The reasons for this are many and include changes to the way food is produced and distributed. We are seeing the emergence of larger distribution networks, which means that if something goes wrong a lot of people will be affected. Does that mean locally sourced or organic food is safer? Probably not, it just means that the impact of the infection will be smaller and it may be more difficult to attribute a source. In fact a large outbreak caused by E. coli O157:H7 resulted from contamination of organically produced spinach in the Salinas Valley of California. We also have yet to determine how climate change will impact food safety. We have seen the migration of animal diseases further northward as evidenced by the emergence of blue-tongue disease in cattle in the UK. and even in Scandinavia. The virus that causes the illness is usually associated with warm climates as it is killed by frost.

Consumers are also demanding “healthier foods” and the move to reduce salt in foods reflects this demand. Other constituents of food that have antimicrobial effects, such as fat, sugar and preservatives, are also on the hit list. Thus, we must be careful that these changes do not result in riskier foods for the consumer. Not only are the appetites of

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consumers changing, but so are their demographics. The average age of the population in most developed countries is increasing and with that increase in age comes a decrease in the ability of our immune system to combat infection. So populations in general are becoming more susceptible to foodborne disease. Other sectors of society vulnerable to foodborne illness are the young, the pregnant, and the immunocompromised (through illnesses such as cancer and HIV AIDS as well as individuals who have undergone organ transplant). It is also worth noting that antacids can increase the likelihood that foodborne pathogens will evade the acidity in the stomach and make it easier for them to make it to the sites where they cause problems. Other population factors that make foodborne illness more likely are travel and, possibly eating out. Although many cases of foodborne illness occur through improper handling of food in the home, many studies have confirmed that eating in restaurants or at social gatherings are among the leading routes of transmission of foodborne pathogens.

Not only is society changing, but the organisms that make us sick are also adapting to new niches and acquiring genetic information that increase their virulence and/or propensity to survive in harsh environments. A good example of this is the emergence of the shiga-toxin producing E. coli STEC (of which E. coli O157:H7 is a member). These E. coli have gained genetic material from a closely related bacterium, Shigella, through transmission by bacteriophage (bacterial viruses). This new genetic material has enabled them to produce shiga-toxins that have made them into more harmful pathogens. The STEC also seem to be more resistant to acidic environments, which means they survive better in fermented foods and it is easier for them to transverse the stomach. E. coli O104, which caused a large outbreak in Germany linked to fenugreek sprouts in 2011 that killed nearly 50 people, landed over 800 in hospital with hemolytic uremic syndrome, and sickened 4,000. This serovar of E. coli has the properties of two types of pathogenic E. coli and is an enteroaggregative strain that has acquired the ability to produce shiga-toxins; making it particularly virulent. As well as acquiring virulence factors, many foodborne bacterial pathogens are now resistant to several antibiotics.

Despite the doom and gloom, the majority of the time the food industry produces food that is safe to eat. However, we need to be cognisant of the changing nature of the factors and agents that cause illness so that the industry can continue to produce safe and nutritious foods.

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