The number of hygiene and safety complaints received by the Irish food agency in 2023 was higher than previous years, according to statistics recently released.
A total of 7,732 complaints and queries were handled by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland’s (FSAI) Advice Line in 2023.
There were 4,395 complaints
Continue Reading Food-related complaints increase in Ireland in 2023
Belgium has joined a pilot project looking at the accuracy of Salmonella testing in poultry flocks.
The Netherlands received permission from the European Commission to study to what extent initial positive Salmonella results can be confirmed during verification testing.
Belgium is adopting the protocol from the trial in the Netherlands
Continue Reading Belgium joins Dutch Salmonella poultry testing project
The Belgian food agency officers have investigated more than 450 complaints about websites or social media profiles selling food in the past two years.
Inspectors at the Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain (FASFC) found that, in most cases, the seller was not registered. Authorization from the
Continue Reading Belgium deals with more complaints about food sold online
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) monitors the situation after some countries reported a spike in Hepatitis E infections.
In January 2024, 520 Hepatitis E virus (HEV) infections have been noted in 10 countries. No connection has yet been established between all these cases.
An increase was
Continue Reading ECDC monitoring Hepatitis E cases in Europe
A food safety barometer in Belgium has found improvements in the country during the past decade.
The purpose is to measure food safety and enable evidence-based risk management and policy decisions. It consists of 30 indicators that cover various aspects of food safety from farm to fork.
It relies on
Continue Reading Belgium shares benefits of food safety barometer
Use of food irradiation in Europe has continued to fall, according to recently released figures.
More than 5,000 tons of foodstuffs were irradiated in EU member states in 2020 and 2021 compared to 7,832 tons in 2018 and 2019.
Data was forwarded from member states to the European Commission for
Continue Reading EU food irradiation data shows a continued decline
The European Commission’s health and safety unit has published findings from two assessments looking at controls on fish in Mexico and Belgium.
A DG Sante audit in Mexico in November 2022 assessed the systems covering checks on fishery products exported to Europe.
Auditors found that although the official control system
Continue Reading EU audits find issues with Mexican and Belgian fish controls
Belgian authorities have temporarily closed an events venue linked to more than 50 Shigella infections.
The Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain (FASFC) and the Flemish Departement Zorg reported that over recent weekends, people had been infected with Shigella after attending the Zandberghoeve venue in Beernem. The
Continue Reading Belgian officials search for source of Shigella infections
The number of outbreaks and people sick in them was higher in 2022 than the year before, according to the Belgian food agency.
Belgium recorded 830 outbreaks in 2022 compared to 547 in 2021, with 4,247 people affected compared to 2,070 in 2021. In 2022, 125 people were hospitalized, and
Continue Reading Outbreaks and illnesses rose in Belgium in 2022
Ferrero has informed Belgian authorities that it has found Salmonella at the site that was behind a major outbreak in 2022.
The confectionery company notified the Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain (FASFC) of the Salmonella detection in the environment of the Arlon factory. It is not
Continue Reading Ferrero finds Salmonella again at Belgian factory