The food safety watchdog said the reporting update involves abandoning the distinction between ‘verified’ and ‘possible’ foodborne outbreaks. From now on, member states should tell the European Union about all foodborne outbreaks that meet the definition laid down by Directive 2003/99/EC.
This regulation ensures that zoonoses, zoonotic agents and related antimicrobial resistance episodes are properly monitored. Its purpose is also to make certain and that food-borne outbreaks receive proper and that all relevant information is collected.
The update on the technical specification, made in conjunction with European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, has been introduced after a review of the programme during its first three years.
No particular vehicle
Where no particular food vehicle is suspected and where the evidence implicating one is weak, national authorities are only required to report a limited dataset. This includes the number of outbreaks, as well as the numbers of human cases, hospitalisations and deaths per causative agent.
Only where there is strong evidence that a particular food vehicle is implicated in a foodborne outbreak are member states obliged to submit more detailed datasets.
This information includes data on causative agents, food vehicles and the factors in food preparation and handling that contributed to the food-borne outbreaks.
National bodies should also detail information on the nature of the evidence - microbiological or epidemiological – to support the link between cases of disease in humans and the food vehicle.
EFSA said it had selected the evidence to be reported based on an assessment of its relevance at a regional level and whether the data could be analysed at an EU level.
“Specifically, it is important to address the relevance of different food categories as outbreak vehicles and the causative agents most frequently associated with these food vehicles,” said the body.
To read a full copy of the report click HERE