What is food safety?

On their journey from the farm to the factory to the consumer, there is always the risk that food may become contaminated. In order to counteract the risks of contamination and protect the health of the consumer, preventive measures and practices are therefore integrated into every cycle of food production.

As an academic discipline, food safety draws on a wide range of fields: these include, among others, chemistry, microbiology, and engineering. They overlap in order to ensure the safety of food processing at all interfaces of sourcing, manufacturing, preparation, storage, and sale of food. The concept of food safety is therefore to be understood as a systemic approach to comprehensive, responsible hygiene in food production that significantly shapes the global food industry.

This article is devoted to the relevance of food safety and approaches its essential principles in the global food chain. Various authorities are initially explained, which act as the pillars of food monitoring.

Furthermore, the most important principles of food safety, its history, as well as the consequences of unsafe practices and procedures in handling food for companies and consumers, are discussed.

The international standards listed above offer global food manufacturers advice, certification, and auditing, but they are not responsible for the active implementation of the regulations.

Each nation defines and establishes its own regulations and implementations to regulate hygiene in food production. Food regulations can therefore vary from country to country and even regionally within a country. In order to position a food product in a foreign market, compliance with the food safety and consumer protection laws of the respective target market and its regional government authorities is always required.

In summary, the international food safety standards aim not only to simplify the approval process by foreign government authorities, but also to ensure responsible conduct in the most important markets.

Since time immemorial, foodborne illnesses have threatened human health. Even today, we use food preparation methods – for example cooking, canning, smoking, and fermenting – as food safety measures to protect ourselves from disease.

Today, we benefit from centuries of scientific and technological advancements, thanks to which we take for granted a wealth of safe foods and beverages. However, the concept of food safety as we know it today, and particularly the rigor with which it is enforced, is a relatively recent development in human history, closely linked to changes in our lifestyle and diet.

In 1905, American author Upton Sinclair published his novel “The Jungle,” which included a harrowing portrayal of Chicago’s meatpacking industry. The public outcry that followed led the US government to pass the “Meat Inspection Act” the following year, establishing the first hygiene standards for slaughtering and butchering. This law laid the foundation for subjecting food processing operations to regular audits and inspections by government authorities.

Throughout Europe and North America, the industrial revolution led to the establishment of numerous regulatory authorities and fundamental laws to safeguard food safety and control. With the increasing mechanization of food production and rising profit incentives, further laws were enacted to prevent the deliberate sale of mislabelled, contaminated, and adulterated foods. Since that time, ingredients and additives have also been regulated.

In the decades after World War II, electric refrigerators found their way into the households of European and North American populations, changing the way food was purchased and stored. The era of household refrigeration sparked a rapid expansion of industrial food production as well as a growing need for stricter food regulations. In this evolving food landscape, Mars Incorporated became the first major food manufacturer in 1947 to install metal detectors in its facilities.

The transition from reactive to proactive food safety principles began with the introduction of HACCP in 1959. With the emerging realization that testing finished products was not an effective means of ensuring food quality and safety, NASA scientists collaborated with the American food manufacturer Pillsbury. The goal was to develop a risk-based system that would identify "critical failure areas" posing a health risk in production. Under the leadership of Pillsbury, this hazard analysis and control system was adopted by a number of leading food manufacturers in the United States.

By the mid-1980s, scientists around the world agreed that the proactive nature of the HACCP system represented a more effective means of food control than traditional inspection methods. In the following decades, international regulatory authorities and independent auditing firms were established to implement and enforce regulations in an increasingly globalized food industry. On this basis, further modern regulations and practices for food control were developed.

While HACCP sets out the necessary steps to proactively ensure food safety in individual production environments, a functioning supply chain also requires measures at a higher level. The European Union has defined seven basic principles of food safety that are required for the entire food supply chain to function in the public interest.

1. Entrepreneurial Responsibility – Each company involved in the food supply chain is obligated to ensure the quality and safety of a food product with the required care. This includes carrying out self-controls according to HACCP. In addition, companies assume liability for any damage that their products may cause. 
2. Traceability – All EU food businesses must document where their food and raw materials come from and where they are shipped. This documentation helps the supervisory authorities quickly identify the source of contamination should a recall become necessary. 
3. Official Food Controls – The state authorities in the federal states are responsible for enforcing the requirements of EU food law through risk-based inspections, targeted sampling, and regular inspections. 
4. The Precautionary Principle – The competent authorities may take precautionary measures when they believe that doing so minimizes risks to food safety. These precautionary measures are regularly reviewed once new scientific data becomes available. 
5. Independent Scientific Risk Assessment – A state institution that operates independently of political, social, and economic influences is responsible for the scientific examination and assessment of the risks that food may pose to human health. 
6. Separation of Risk Assessment and Risk Management – Due to possible conflicts of interest, a clear distinction is made between those responsible for scientific risk assessment and those responsible for risk management. 
7. Transparent Risk Communication – The public must be informed immediately about imminent and potential dangers posed by food. The dissemination is carried out by the food manufacturer itself, as well as by the competent authorities.

Food safety is of great importance both from a financial and ethical perspective. The consequences of failing to comply with food safety standards are diverse. In addition to the extremely high costs for companies that have to recall their products, overhaul their processes, and manage reputational damage, inadequate food safety poses significant risks to the well-being of the population. 

Company Costs of Food Recalls

If an effective food safety program is not implemented, contaminated products can enter the food chain. Once an affected product is discovered, manufacturers face severe disruptions in their operations as they coordinate the product recalls and bear the costs.

Recall actions in the food industry cost affected companies an average of 10 million USD in direct, immediately measurable costs alone. However, even more costly is the diminishing trust caused by the product recall. Approximately 30 percent of European consumers say that they would never buy anything from manufacturers who have to recall one of their food products.   

The Consequences of Unsafe Food for People

The importance of food safety for modern society is omnipresent. Food safety issues are one of the main causes of more than 200 preventable diseases worldwide. Every year, one in ten people suffers from foodborne illnesses or injuries. It is estimated that 420,000 people die every year from the consequences of inadequate food hygiene, and more than a quarter of these victims are children.

In addition to the immediate consequences, inadequate food safety has a broader ripple effect that hinders socioeconomic progress, particularly in developing countries. The World Health Organization (WHO) states that food safety, nutrition, and food security are inextricably linked. A lack of safe food creates a "vicious cycle of illness and malnutrition" that overwhelms public health services, disrupts social and economic progress, and diminishes quality of life.