Background information
Fresh fruits and vegetables are an important part of a healthy diet and are protective against many chronic health conditions. Yet, fresh fruits and vegetables are increasingly being implicated in food safety incidents involving microbiological hazards around the globe. Fresh produce contaminated with foodborne pathogens (bacteria, viruses, protozoa, helminths, etc.) have resulted in numerous outbreaks of foodborne disease and trade disruptions.
The Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) initially developed the “Code of Hygienic Practice for Fresh Fruits and Vegetables” in 2003 then later revised it in 2010 following a Joint FAO/WHO Meeting on Microbiological Risk Assessment (JEMRA), held in 2008, to address microbiological hazards associated with leafy vegetables and herbs (MRA14). In addition, several commodity-specific annexes were added to the code of practice in 2012, 2013, and 2017.
Subsequently, in 2018, FAO and WHO published the report Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) and food: Attribution, characterization and monitoring report (MRA31) wherein fresh fruits and vegetables were identified as important sources of STEC infection. In 2019, following a request from the Codex Committee on Food Hygiene (CCFH), the CAC approved new work at its 42nd Session on the development of guidelines for the control of STEC in leafy greens and in sprouts. More recently, in October 2020, a Joint FAO/WHO Expert meeting on Microbiological Risk Assessment (JEMRA) of Listeria monocytogenes in Ready-to-Eat (RTE) Foods noted increased reports of listeriosis acquired from fresh and minimally processed fruits and vegetables.
To meet the requests of the CCFH and to update and expand the information available in the FAO/WHO Microbiological hazards in fresh leafy vegetables and herbs Meeting report (MRA14), FAO and WHO have decided to hold a series of expert meetings on preventing and controlling microbiological hazards in fresh fruits and vegetables. The goal of these meetings is to gather recent data, evidence and scientific opinions on the topic.
The purpose of the meeting is to collect, review and discuss relevant measures for controls of microbiological hazards from primary production to consumption in:
- Fresh leafy vegetables;
- Ready-to-eat, fresh, and minimally processed fruits and vegetables; and
- Sprouts.
The scope of the meeting shall include aspects of primary production (in open fields or in protected facilities such as high and low tunnels, greenhouses and net houses and address hydroponic and aquaponics systems and other systems as required) and post-harvest
activities, including activities performed prior to packing, including minimal transformation of fresh fruits and vegetables (washing, sorting, culling, grading, cutting and trimming), marketing and the cold chain. Emphasis will be placed on the identification and evaluation of solutions to reduce foodborne illnesses associated with fresh fruits and vegetables, taking into consideration their effectiveness and practicalities.