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The OH-HARMONY-CAP project aims to collect information on current capabilities, capacities, adaptabilities and interoperability at both the National Reference Laboratory and the primary diagnostic level, focusing on a set of microbial foodborne hazards. For this purpose, a survey aimed to provide an overview of the current procedures for microbiological sampling and analyses among food business operators’ Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP)- based self-control programmes in the European Union (EU), was developed within the project and conducted for the first time in EU/ European Economic Area (EEA) countries. It focused on regulated and non-regulated microorganisms, namely six bacteria: Salmonella spp., Listeria monocytogenes, Campylobacter spp., Shiga toxin-producing E. coli, Shigella spp. and Yersinia spp.; and five genera/species of parasites: Trichinella spp., Cryptosporidium spp., Echinococcus granulosus (sensu lato), Echinococcus multilocularis and Toxoplasma gondii. Participating EU/EEA countries distributed an online questionnaire to food business operators’ laboratories within their countries; and overall, responses from nine EU/EEA countries were received and feedback from 35 laboratories were considered for data analysis. The results reported that dairy products were analysed most frequently and the majority of laboratories analysed both ready-to-eat and non-ready-to-eat products. Accreditation for ISO-standards or an alternative method, was in place in a considerable proportion of the laboratories, but did not cover all the microorganisms selected in this survey. Sending isolates for further confirmation to external laboratories was common for laboratories analysing bacteria and Cryptosporidium spp. In contrast, storing isolates was less frequently established. Around 60% of laboratories used more than one typing or characterisation method, predominantly MALDI-TOF, antimicrobial resistance typing and PCR, while 40% did not type nor characterise the isolates of the microorganisms detected. Variability was also observed regarding use of Whole Genome Sequencing; and participation in external quality assessments or in Proficiency Tests programmes. A low proportion of laboratories mainly analysed the targeted microorganisms included in this survey, representing 61 to 100% of their total workload. The study gathered insight into current microbiological sampling and analyses in food business operators’ HACCP-based self-control programmes. Further efforts are needed to harmonise sampling and analytical protocols among these laboratories to gain better insight into the prevalence of foodborne pathogens and related risks of transmission. |
