4. Hazard to human health

5. Establish corrective action. These shall be implemented if monitoring shows that a certain

6. Preparing procedures to verify and confirm the successful operation of the HACCP system. 7. Recordkeeping that considers all processes and records concerning the principles and their

With the EU Basic Food Regulation, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) was established. The EFSA assumes tasks that relate to the scientific evaluation of relevant food topics at the EU level. The EFSA is also the point of contact for the scientific evaluations related

Every food producer is subject to controls along the entire process chain, starting at the farmer/ producer up to the food retailer, to inspect the adherence to relevant production standards. Over the last years, many standard-setting bodies have established themselves on the market. In the area of egg production, this is the KAT System (Association for Controlled Alternative Animal Husbandry) [6]; for meat production, the QS GmbH (Quality scheme for food) [7]. Both systems cover the entire process chain with specific standards and criteria, and they are ultimately demanded by retailers for animal product distribution. The International Featured Standard (IFS) [8] is another controlling body, a standard developed by the food retailers that places very stringent process quality and traceability demands on processing companies. The IFS Standard offers additional safety guarantees. The controls take place annually, with the socalled integrity audits (unannounced inspections) offering further security. By now, producers and distributors from across the globe operate by the IFS Standard to meet globalised quality, transparency and efficiency demands. It ensures that the certified companies attain a high

Figure 1 represents the dialogue between scientific and regulatory actors within the process chain. Biological, chemical and physical agents, as well as insufficient allergenic property information, can all pose health hazards. Additionally, the German General Administrative Regulation for the implementation of the Rapid Alert System for Food, Food Contact Material and Feed (AVV Schnellwarnsystem) [9] offers a guideline for the evaluation of a food that poses a potential health hazard. However, it should be noted that the General Administrative Regulation has no legally binding qualities and solely serves to harmonise the implementation of Food Law. Put differently, the General Administrative Regulation has an internally binding effect for

The normal consumer usage conditions should first be considered when deciding whether a food product is safe or not. For example, this relates to improper handling, which runs counter to the principle of proper kitchen hygiene in a private residence such as improper storage of

The result is that hazardous food products purchased by consumers should be recalled publicly via the media, while the product that is 'only' unsuitable for human consumption will be

to certain approval procedures, for example during the approval of food additives.

CCP is no longer under control.

quality and product safety standard.

the Food Enforcement Authority at most.

products that should be refrigerated.

recalled 'quietly' through the commercial buyers.

application.

8 Food Safety - Some Global Trends

The exact definition of a hazard to human health as it relates to regulations is not concretised or clarified further legally. However, as it concerns a hazard that is triggered by the consumption of affected food, the basics of Food Law apply at the least. Following Article 3 (14) of the Basic Regulation, a hazard is a biological, chemical or physical agent in a foodstuff, or condition of a foodstuff, that might negatively influence health.

In principle, physical, biological and chemical hazards to human health are imaginable. However, in the production of food commodities, focus is clearly placed on 'chemical components' due to the complex structures [10].

Biological dangers that originate from the commodity itself are not plausible. If finished products, such as kitchen utensils, are passed onto the consumer, there is only limited necessity due to the common household cleaning before use.

with it, the European Union renewed its food hygiene regulations. Since 2004, there has been another paradigm shift in the distribution of food product of animal origin. Another example from the commercial exploitation of game: This industry was also plagued by complaints and scandals that cast a shadow on the commercial viability of game distribution, as old traditions were followed, and the cooling chain was not immediately adhered to, or adhered to at all, after the kill. This led to microbiological values that in part far exceeded the regulated maximum values and in turn led to recalls and closures of game-processing companies. In his function as the General Manager of European Poultry, Egg and Game Association, the author of this article initiated regulations for good game hygiene, connected to a microbiological assessment. This was in the interest of the associations' member companies and served as a foundation for consumer health protection. Extensive studies of killed game under various cooling requirements and game carcase treatment after killing showed that it is well possible to adhere to the microbiological regulations. The so-called game guidelines [15], with specific provision for the handling of killed game and distribution regulations, as well as the associated consequences, have established standards that ultimately contributed to restoring consumer

Food Safety: Food Crisis Management http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.73687 11

The illustrations and explanations on food safety mentioned above merely represent a foray into Food Law. The regulations are very complex at a national and EU level and cannot be treated more comprehensively in this article. In the following discussion of food safety, further practical examples serve to illustrate the influence of crisis management and food safety.

All parties involved in refining food products, at all levels, are responsible for their safety, with the primary responsibility placed on the producer. The responsibilities of producers and distributors are orientated following the principle of concrete influences within the scope of

trust, making properly treated game considered a safe food product again.

6. Levels of responsibilities and competences

Figure 3. The process chain: Levels and participants.

The circumstances are different for convenience food. A possible, if still unlikely, practical scenario might be the contamination of food commodities during production, for example due to an ill employee. Today, legal requirements (instruction obligations) make the risk of transmitting certain legally relevant illnesses significantly less likely and rather negligible.

Food commodities can also pose a threat through physical contamination. Foreign bodies, as well, are not that uncommon. Material fatigue and damages might lead to foreign bodies entering a food product such as metal residues because of a malfunctioning or broken metal detector.

Another example comes from game: metal residues from pellets have led to a (in part complete) ban on wild hare meat. However, this was not due to the metal residues themselves, but rather due to the fact that the pellets contained lead. Lead residues in game can pose a risk to human health from a food inspection perspective. Pellets containing lead were the standard hunting shot until recently. The German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL) [11], German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) [12] and the European Poultry, Egg and Game Association (EPEGA) [13] have assumed responsibility and performed large-scale lead-residual monitoring in killed game. The research project 'Food Safety of Killed Game' can be accessed publicly on the BMEL website.

The results did not indicate a direct health hazard with proper hunting. However, the indicated consumption was rather negligible at 0.5 kg per inhabitant. All the same, heavy game consumers (hunters), children and pregnant women were deemed at risk. The situation has led to changes as lead-containing shot is increasingly replaced by lead-free ammunition since then. This makes game a safe product again. This example shows that small effects can lead to serious issues that cast shadows over entire industries.
