FDSC 200 Lecture Notes - Lecture 14: Food Microbiology, Sauerkraut, Xl Foods

• School: McGill University
• Department: Food Science
• Course: FDSC 200
• Professor: Lawrence Goodridge

Document Summary

Food safety: presence of disease-producing (pathogenic) organisms, microorganisms. Includes viruses, bacteria, molds and protozoa (parasites: parasitic nematodes. Current concerns are largely related to #1: several factors are responsible, including, globalisation of trade, trend towards distribution over a broad geographic area from centralized production & storage facilities, emergence of new foodborne pathogens. ex: pathogenic e. coli o157:h7 in beef (hamburger disease) in the 1980s. subsequent outbreaks traced to contaminated sprouts, lettuce and spinach, as well as beef (xl foods in alberta in 2012) In general, food poisoning remains highly prevalent: 75 million cases/year in the usa (up to 30% of the population, 325 000 hospitalizations, 5000 deaths, economic costs, estimates range from billion to billion/year. Loss of market share (in company responsible for an outbreak) Loss of consumer confidence (can be far-reaching: microbiological contamination is also a leading cause of food loss / waste through spoilage, food microbiology addresses both safety & waste concerns.