Poultry meat inspection: EFSA reviews risks for public health

Press Release
29 June 2012

The European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA) scientific opinion published today, suggests that traditional poultry meat inspection may not suffice to fully address the most relevant biological hazards to public health: Campylobacter spp., Salmonella spp. and ESBL/AmpC gene-carrying bacteria[1]. EFSA’s opinion that provides a scientific basis for the modernisation of poultry meat inspection proposes that risk-based interventions coupled with the improved use of information shared between farms and abattoirs (known as Food Chain Information) would be more effective. Such information would also play an important role in identifying animal health and welfare issues. Finally, the Authority concludes that chemical substances found in poultry meat are unlikely to pose an immediate or acute health threat to consumers.

In addition to identifying and ranking the main risks for public health from the current poultry meat inspection system, EFSA was asked to: assess the strengths and weaknesses of the current inspection methodology; recommend methods that take into account the hazards not addressed by current meat inspection; and recommend adaptations of methods and/or frequency of inspections based on the hazard rankings and harmonised epidemiological indicators.

Biological hazards...

Source: Poultry meat inspection: EFSA reviews risks for public health
Author: EFSA

Link: EFSA reviews poultry inspection public-health risks
Link: European Meat and Poultry Inspection Inadequate, EFSA Says