Traceability Problems
Drazenka Tubin-Delic
Deputy Head of Incidents Branch
Food Standards Agency
TAIEX Workshop on Incident Management – RASFF, traceability,
withdrawal and recall procedures, Zagreb 6-7th June 2011
Outline
• Rationale for traceability
• Case Studies: feed incident
meat incident
EC exercise
Rationale
• Interests of stakeholders: consumers government
and industry
• Consumers; protect food safety by effective
products recalls, avoidance of specific foods/food
ingredients
• Government; protect public health, control of
zoonotic diseases, help prevent food fraud
• Industry; comply with legislation, prompt action,
minimise the impact, protect brand reputation,
consumer confidence
Practical Problems
•
No specific requirements
•
Global nature of the food chain
•
Complex nature of the food chain
Case Study 1: Salmonella in brewer’s yeast
• Involved 2 batches of brewer’s yeast contaminated
with 2 different strains of Salmonella (Virchow and
Senftenberg)
• Used as an ingredient for animal feed prefixes
• Notified by UK distributor – following testing by its
customer
• Product originated from Portugal
• 20 tones consignment – distributed to various animal
Case Study 1: Salmonella in brewer’s yeast
(cont)
• Risk Assessment: due to potential patogenicity all
animal feed premixes to be quarantined and tested
• UK supplier very cooperative
• Traceability was detailed and clear throughout
distribution chain
• All of animal feed mixes and blends – pelleted and
heat treated blends were tested (all negative,
remained on sale)
• One blend for horses was not heat treated and
pelleted, tested positive and was recalled
• Two pet products were also recalled
• FSA informed the EC via RASFF
Case Study 1: Salmonella in brewer’s yeast
(cont)
Outcome:
– Excellent traceability records throughout the
distribution chain
– Prompt action
– Minimal quantities recalled
Case Study 2: Milk and meat from cloned
animal offspring
Overview
• An article in USA (29/09/2010) reported that
unnamed UK dairy farmer claimed to be including milk
from an offspring of the cloned cow into the food
chain
• EC asked for assurances from the UK that neither
meat nor milk from the cloned offspring was entering
the food chain
• Traceability exercise involved tracing 2 cattle
embryos from a cloned cow in the USA imported into
the UK in 2006 and their offsprings
Case Study 2: Milk and meat from cloned
animal offspring (cont)
Legislation
• Food from cloned animals is treated as a novel food
Reg EC 258/97 – can only be legally marketed if
formally authorised
• No concerns about the safety of the milk/meat from
healthy offspring of cloned animals
• EC did not consider that the novel food legislation
applies
Case Study 2: Milk and meat from cloned
animal offspring (cont)
• FSA worked closely with Defra (responsible for
legislation on importing of cloned embryos)
• Investigations revealed that three animals have
entered the food chain
• No milk entered the food chain
Case Study 2: Milk and meat from cloned
animal offspring (cont)
• DIAGRAM from one of the farm
V7 – 6/8/10
V8
4/8/10 10AM
4PM
Import of embryos
Imported early 2006
Remainder of
herd sold at
auction
5/3/08
8 embryos from
cloned animal
Farm A
Bull – A
UKxxxxxxxxxx
Born 3/3/07
Bull - B
UKxxxxxxxxxxx
Born 5/12/06
Sold 28/2/08
Farm B
Female – B
UKxxxxxxxxxxx
Born 2/12/06
Female A
UKxxxxxxxxxx
Born 24/4/07
Sold 27/2/08
Died 17/5/07
38 progeny of
Bull B
58 progeny of
Bull A
Still on farm
Not being milked
(all female)
10 have died
Farm C
Daughter of Female B
UKxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Born 16/4/09
Female B
Moved 29/7/10
Still on Farm C
Slaughterhouse A
Bull A
Slaughtered
27/7/10
Meat
disposed of
as Category
1 ABP
Daughter 2 of Female B
(Same owner as above)
Bull B
Slaughtered
23/7/09
Meat gone
Still on farm
Milk not
entering food
chain
Son* of Female B
Born 5/8/09
Sold 25/11/09
Farm C
Being fattened
for slaughter. Not
used as sire
* - calf from implanted embryo – not considered a novel food
Case Study 2: Milk and meat from cloned
animal offspring (cont)
• Intensive media coverage and number of interviews
given by CEO
• Collaborative working with Defra and devolved offices
• Scoping and stakeholders meetings held
• Correspondence with EC , local authorities, briefings
for Ministers
Case Study 3: EC exercise – RASFF
traceability 2010
• EU-wide exercise to test traceability systems and
the use of RASFF by EU Member States
• Held in September 2010
• Began with purchase of a pork product from London
retailer
• Product ‘contaminated’ with an unauthorised
veterinary medicine product
Case Study 3: EC exercise – RASFF
traceability 2010 (cont)
Required;
• Tracing the batch of pork used in production of the
product back to the farm of origin
• Identifying any other recipients of the batch in
question
• Identifying all products manufactured with the batch
in question
Case Study 3: EC exercise – RASFF
traceability 2010 (cont)
Information provided;
•
•
•
•
‘XYZ’ brand – Extra trimmed un-smoked back bacon
Use by date
Pack size
Producer code (UK company)
Case Study 3: EC exercise – RASFF
traceability 2010 (cont)
Action Taken:
• LA for the UK producer contacted to establish
traceability (backwards and forwards)
• UK producer supplied 5 UK retail chains
• UK producer sourced pork from Spain and Belgium via
2 UK intermediaries (RASFF issued)
• Identified that pork in question originated from a
Spanish supplier able to identify the limited number
of potential farms of origin
Lessons Learnt
• The implementation of traceability varies between
businesses and sectors
• It comes with cost
• But the cost of not having it or having insufficient
systems may be severe for consumers, individual
companies, governments
Thank you very much
Hvala na paznji
Drazenka Tubin-Delic
Incidents Response Branch
Food Standards Agency
drazenka.tubin-delic@foodstandards.gsi.gov.uk