In this article we welcome guest author and industry expert, Alec Kyriakides, to explore some of the food safety developments, recalls and incidents that have happened recently.

 

Food Safety Developments

Food safety fines

Two UK businesses were fined for food safety contraventions. A company was implicated in an outbreak of salmonellosis following the consumption of ‘pork scratchings’, a seasoned product made from fried pork skin. The business was fined over £150 000 together with approximately £300 000 costs. One report estimated that over 500 individuals were affected by the outbreak although other reports indicated a lower number (179 cases). Another company was fined £640 000 for selling foods that were beyond their ‘use by’ dates. The retailer was reportedly found to be selling over 100 products at two of its branches that exceeded the ‘use by’ date, some up to seven days beyond. In the UK it is an immediate food safety offence to sell foods exceeding their ‘use by’ as this is designated as the date beyond which the food becomes unsafe to eat.

 

Risks associated with the consumption of plant lectins

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) panel on contaminants in the food chain (CONTAM) published a report on the ‘Risks for human health related to the presence of plant lectins in food’. Lectins (phytohaemagglutinins) are proteins that occur naturally in a wide variety of plants including legumes, grains and vegetables and have carbohydrate-binding properties. Legumes such as kidney beans are widely recognised as being hazardous if improperly soaked and cooked due to the high levels of lectins. Symptoms linked to the consumption of raw or undercooked pulses include nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and diarrhoea. The EFSA CONTAM opinion was that consumer exposure to lectins in undercooked beans indicates a health concern and that properly soaking and boiling beans avoids potential health risks. The general EFSA advice is “to soak pulses in water for 6-12 hours until they soften, then change the water and boil them for at least half an hour at 100° C. As preparation times depend on the variety of pulses, it is advisable to cook them until they become soft.”

 

Raw pet food microbiological risks

A survey published by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) on the microbiological contamination of raw pet food (RPF) on retail and online sale in the UK found that pathogenic bacteria were in 35% of the 380 samples (277 raw dog food and 103 raw cat food). Salmonella spp. were detected in 21% of samples, Campylobacter spp. in 14% and Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) in 12% of samples. A number of the samples were contaminated by more than one of the pathogens. Antimicrobial resistant bacteria were detected in the samples including E. coli with resistance to penicillins and other antibiotics (20% of all samples), E. coli with resistance to the antibiotic colistin (1% of samples) and Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) (circa 10%). Contamination with Salmonella spp. or Campylobacter spp. was detected on the external surface of 1% of packs. In light of the cross contamination risk that these bacteria present to the pet owners handling the raw pet foods, the FSA’s also issued advice to consumers on safe storage, defrosting and handling practices.

 

Antimicrobial resistance EU report

The European Union summary report on Antimicrobial Resistance in zoonotic and indicator bacteria from humans, animals and food (2023–2024) was recently published. The report highlights the findings of the harmonised antimicrobial resistance (AMR) monitoring in Salmonella spp., Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli from humans, food-producing animals (broilers, laying hens, fattening turkeys, fattening pigs and bovines under 1 year of age), and derived meat. Antimicrobial resistance to commonly used antimicrobials (ampicillin, tetracycline and sulfonamides) was found in a high proportion of Salmonella and Campylobacter isolates from humans and animals. Increasing trends in ciprofloxacin resistance, a critically important antimicrobial (CIA) for human medicine, were detected in Salmonella from laying hens in certain Member States (MSs), and in human infections for a poultry-associated Salmonella serovar and for C. jejuni in more than half of the reporting countries.

 

Microbiological risk assessment of viruses in foods

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) followed the publication in 2024 of Part 1 of the microbiological risk assessment of viruses in foods focussing on food attribution, analytical methods and indicators with Part 2 on prevention and intervention measures. In combination they provide an excellent overview of the major foodborne viruses including norovirus and Hepatitis A and E, together with the foods particularly implicated in their spread including shellfish, fresh and frozen produce, prepared and ready-to-eat foods and pork and wild game meat. Key interventions were identified for these viruses and commodities together with data gaps.

 

Alcohol free wipes safety

The UK Health Security Agency (HSA) re-issued an alert to the public that “non-sterile alcohol-free wipes, of any type or brand, should not be used for first aid, applied on broken or damaged skin and should never be used for cleaning intravenous lines”. This follows 59 confirmed cases of Burkholderia stabilis infections linked to some non-sterile alcohol-free wipe products between 2018 and 2026. This has included 1 death attributed to an infection. Burkholderia stabilis is an opportunistic pathogen that can be found in natural environments and causes infections in immunocompromised individuals, those with other risk factors such as cystic fibrosis and patients at home with intravenous lines.

 

EU Veterinary Medicines Report

EFSA has published its report for 2024 on the results from the monitoring of residues of veterinary medicinal products in live animals and animal products. The report that collated the sampling across all EU member states (including Northern Ireland) plus Iceland and Norway, found 0.13% of the near 500 000 samples to be non-compliant. The results are structured according to specified sampling plans and in relation to Plan 1, the national risk-based control plan, there were some marked differences in non-compliant rates across different commodity groups with higher non-compliances in aquaculture (0.35%), honey (0.33%), milk (0.22%), bovines (0.24%) and horses (0.25%) whereas lower rates were reported in sheep & goats (0.04%), poultry (0.03%), pigs (0.11%) and eggs (0.03%).

 

Foodborne disease outbreaks

An outbreak of listeriosis was reported in Norway implicating cooked meat products from a single manufacturer affecting 6 individuals aged between 60 and 90. A Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) outbreak affecting 9 people and resulting in two children with haemolytic uraemic syndrome has implicated raw milk from a dairy in the USA. Following the widescale recall of infant formula products due to contamination with the Bacillus cereus toxin, cereulide, a number of reports of illness consistent with exposure to the toxin have been reported in the UK with one indicating 36 cases and another more than 60 cases. A report by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control indicated over 100 reports of illness including a number of hospitalisations of babies across the EU and the UK. A traceability exercise conducted by one of the key infant formula manufacturers implicated in the incident supported with analytical testing established that cereulide contamination in the arachidonic acid oil dated back to October 2024 and persisted throughout 2025, with the highest concentration observed in deliveries in July 2025. An investigation into a salmonellosis outbreak that occurred in the USA in 2024 was recently published and highlighted the risks associated with the use of ice coolers. Thirteen cases of Salmonella enterica serotype Agbeni infection (seven confirmed and six probable) were linked to ice that was contaminated during handling of cans in a beer cooler. All cases reported drinking beer served from a cooler that was reused for multiple days and not cleaned. Another outbreak of salmonellosis attributed to moringa leaf powder was reported by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) affecting 7 individuals across 7 states with 3 individuals hospitalised. The Salmonella Newport strain is reported to be resistant to all first-line and alternative antibiotics commonly recommended for the treatment of Salmonella infections i.e. multi-drug resistant. 

Norovirus has been implicated in an outbreak in Washington, USA associated with the consumption of oysters harvested from British Columbia, Canada. Eleven people from 5 different meal parties reported norovirus like symptoms after consuming the oysters prompting recalls in Canada and the USA. A large outbreak of food poisoning is under investigation in Uzbekistan with the food and causative agent not yet identified. Reports estimate over 1000 children may have been affected in several state kindergartens.

 

Food Recall Highlights

The data used for this food recall highlights review is sourced from open access recall databases covering different countries and continents including the USA (Food & Drug Administration and the United States Department of Agriculture), the UK (Food Standards Agency), Germany (Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety) and Australia (Food Standards Australia New Zealand).

 

Microbiological recalls included a large number due to infant formula contaminated with cereulide plus one due to high levels of Bacillus cereus. Contamination with Salmonella spp. and Listeria monocytogenes also caused several recalls.

 

Allergen recalls were ppredominantly driven by undeclared milk plus multiple allergen mislabelling.

 

Physical contamination recalls included one due to material clumping causing a choking risk although glass and plastic continued to dominate.

 

Chemical recalls included a range of contamination events with lead and mycotoxins continuing to feature.

  

   

Author

Alec Kyriakides

Independent Food Safety Consultant