In the news

Stephen Hahn, Commissioner of Food and Drugs in the Food and Drug Administration, released details about the new era of food safety. Traceability, in minutes not days, is critically important in outbreak investigation. FDA wants to encourage food companies to adopt tracing technologies and to harmonize these efforts. This will allow the FDA to spot potential problems in advance and help us prevent or lessen their impact. The FDA intends to conduct more meaningful and predictive data analysis that is strategic and prevention-oriented. The FDA is conducting a pilot program that will leverage artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to strengthen the agency’s review of imported foods. To ensure food safety FDA intends to continue oversight as technology evolves. @ https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-launches-new-era-smarter-food-safety-initiative-releases-blueprint-and-pilot-study?utm_campaign=071320_PR_FDA%20Launches%20New%20Era%20of%20SFSI%2C%20Releases%20Blue%20Print%20and%20Pilot%20Study&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua

Morbidity and mortality reports that among 23 states reporting COVID-19 outbreaks in meat and poultry processing facilities, 16,233 cases in 239 facilities occurred, including 86 (0.5%) COVID related deaths. Among 14 states reporting the total number of workers in affected meat and poultry processing facilities (112,616), COVID-19 was diagnosed in 9.1% of workers.  Among 9,919 (61%) cases in 21 states with reported race/ethnicity, 87% occurred among racial and ethnic minority workers. Commonly reported interventions and prevention efforts at facilities included implementing worker temperature or symptom screening and COVID-19 education, mandating face coverings, adding hand hygiene stations, and adding physical barriers between workers. The proportion of asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic infections among meat and poultry processing workers was 11.2%. High population-density workplace settings such as meat and poultry processing facilities present ongoing challenges to preventing and reducing the risk for COVID transmission. @ https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6927e2.htm

Tyson Foods currently relies on about 122K workers to produce about 20% of chicken, beef, and pork produced in the U.S. Due to the coronavirus pandemic Tyson is pushing further into robotics, developing an automated deboning system destined to handle some of the roughly 39M chickens it processes each week. Pilgrim’s Pride the second-largest U.S. chicken processor, deboning machines now trail humans by only 1% – 1.5%, in terms of meat yield per chicken. “Everybody’s thinking about automation, and it’s going to increase,” said Decker Walker, a managing director with Boston Consulting Group, who works with meatpackers. @ https://seekingalpha.com/amp/news/3590102-pandemic-meatpackers-thinking-automation

The CDC, along with FDA and state and local partners continue to investigate a multistate outbreak of Cyclospora infections linked to salad products that were made by Fresh Express containing iceberg lettuce, red cabbage, and carrots and that was sold in several regions of the United States. The investigation includes Fresh Express-branded products as well as products made by Fresh Express for retail store brands sold at ALDI, Giant Eagle, Hy-Vee, Jewel-Osco, ShopRite, and Walmart. On June 27, 2020, Fresh Express recalled products containing iceberg lettuce, red cabbage, or carrots. The products are branded with the Fresh Express label or store brand labels of ALDI Little Salad Bar, Giant Eagle, Hy-Vee, Jewel-Osco Signature Farms, ShopRite Wholesome Pantry, and Walmart Marketside. As of July 8, 2020, a total of 509 people with laboratory-confirmed Cyclospora infections associated with this outbreak have been reported from 8 states: Illinois (151), Iowa (160), Kansas (5), Minnesota (63), Missouri (46) Nebraska (48), North Dakota (6), and Wisconsin (30). In Canada, PHAC also issued a notice about the ongoing Cyclospora investigations of the outbreak of Cyclospora infections occurring in three Canadian provinces. Exposure to certain Fresh Express brand salad products containing iceberg lettuce, carrots, and red cabbage, has been identified as a likely source of the outbreak.@ https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/cyclosporiasis/outbreaks/2020/index.html