Predictive Microbiology Projects (with SARDI Food Safety Research) 

Quicklinks: | National Egg Risk Profile | Salmonella Risk Assessment in Eggs |  

 National food safety risk profile of eggs and egg products

Project leaders: Ben Daughtry, John Sumner, Greg Hooper, Connor Thomas, Tom Grimes, Rowly Horn, Abe Moses, Andrew Pointon

May - Oct 2004

Project Objectives and Technical Outputs

• Identify public health hazards that enter any point of the food chain for egg and egg products produced in Australia and rank them in terms of risks to the consumer.
• Identify hazards of potential high risk where too little information exists for a confident ranking of risk.
• Identify potential management strategies for the identified hazards.
• Identify areas where further information may be required to effectively assess or manage (potentially) significant risks.
• Identify product:pathogen combinations in which further risk analysis might be performed.

Outcomes

• Results to be used by AECL to inform policy, standards and R&D priority development
• Health jurisdictions at state and federal level involved in consultative process between risk assessors and managers some high risk areas identified already being regulated .

Project Report: Australian Egg Corporation Ltd Downloadable File (1165 kB).

An egg: Salmonella quantitative risk assessment model for the Australian egg industry

Project leaders: Connor Thomas, Ben Daughtry, David Padula, David Jordan, George Arzey, Ken Davey, Geoff Holds, Jo Slade, Andrew Pointon

2002 - 2004

Project Objectives and Technical Outputs

• Development of a quantitative risk assessment model for Salmonella in the Australian shell egg and egg pulp industry environment. 
• Provide a scientific basis for definition of critical control points from the point of lay, through transportation, processing and packaging and retail storage.
• Assist the industry in defining R & D priorities, devising alternative control measures, evaluating processing systems and relating public health outbreaks to industry performance and practices. 
• Assist in prediction of risk associated with establishment of Salmonella Enteritidis in Australian layer flocks and appropriate control measures.

Outcomes

• Potential priorities
  - review shelf life/use by dates
  - review pasteurisation standards
  - evaluate risk associated with non-cage production systems

Project Report: Australian Egg Corporation Ltd Downloadable file (669 kb)