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Seventy-five years of advancing food safety

Words by Deon Mahoney

As the pre-eminent publication on food science and technology in Australia, food australia (and its antecedent Food Technology in Australia) has reliably communicated the latest scientific and technical information and innovations impacting food industry professionals for threequarters of a century. From its first edition in August 1949 until today, the journal has strived to publish research findings, make known the latest advice and guidance, as well as provide a connection between the multi-disciplinary cast of personnel across the food supply chain.

The food science and technology landscape has changed considerably during these 75 years, and this journal has been at the forefront of communicating developments to the food industry and its collaborators.

The beginnings of the journal

A 1949 editorial proposed the journal as a medium for disseminating knowledge of value to the Australian food industry. The journal was under the stewardship of Professor Fritz Reuter of the University of New South Wales, who worked with a small editorial committee to create a journal that would make a real contribution through abstracts, comments and critical reviews of literature.

Early editions drew attention to published content from across the world, rather than publishing technical articles, reflecting some of the scientific capacity at that time. A concern highlighted at the time was the perceived inability to access sufficient food technologists with the necessary skills and knowledge to take the food industry forward.

Hence in early editions of Food Technology in Australia, the focus was on the fundamentals of manufacturing and technology adoption, and not so much on the challenges of placing safe and nutritious food on the plates of Australian consumers. In fact, the food scientists of the 1940s and 1950s were concentrating on building and improving Australia’s food processing industry, addressing topics such as:

• Modern equipment to improve the efficiency of canning operations

• Cleaning and sanitation in the food industry

• Utilisation of waste products

• Rat infestation and control

• Control of mould wastage. Today the journal provides an allembracing source of intelligence for food scientists and technologists, promoting ideas, providing resources and supporting the industry with upto-date guidance.

The food science environment

Much was happening in the Australian food industry in the late 1940s. The food scientist and historian Keith Farrer described the period 19451955 as the decade of decision.1 There was the establishment of organised Food Technology Associations, the creation of tertiary courses in food technology to address skill shortages and industry professionals coming together in associations and institutes.

To address skills, a food technology diploma course commenced at the Sydney Technical College in 1947. Then in the 1950's, Hawkesbury Agricultural College established its food technology diploma focussing on modern trends in the canning of fruit and vegetables. The fee for the course was £64 per annum for tuition, board and lodgings (equivalent to $3,363 in

2023). Subsequently, courses in food, wine, and dairy technology were established at colleges such as Gatton Agricultural College, Roseworthy College, and the Gilbert Chandler Institute of Dairy Technology. Nowadays, there are more than 30 Australian institutions offering qualifications in food science and technology.2

Research activities were also gearing up, with CSIRO actively engaged in researching food preservation to meet growing export opportunities for Australian food. Plus in 1954 the Defence Science and Technology Group established its primary food research facility in Scottsdale, Tasmania. The unit undertook research in food science and nutrition and developed a range of specialised food products to meet the energy and nutritional needs of frontline personnel.

Internationally, journals such as the Food, Drug, Cosmetic Law Quarterly were launched in the late 1940s, publishing articles on procedures for appraising the toxicity of chemicals in foods, introducing the concept of food adulteration and highlighting the need for legislation to regulate the use of chemicals in foods. In 1946, Rutgers University in New Jersey established the Department of Food Science. It remains one of the leading research and teaching facilities for food scientists and technologists.

Around 75 years ago, the profession of food scientist and food technologist was taking off and gaining a standing in the community. There was a growing recognition of the opportunities to convert agricultural products into consumer products for both domestic and export markets. However, there were rising concerns regarding the way food safety was being regulated across the states and territories.

Regulating food safety

In the 1940s, the state of Victoria introduced legislation to make milk pasteurisation compulsory following an outbreak of milkborne typhoid fever in Moorabbin. This resulted in heating times and temperatures being stipulated in the Victorian Milk Pasteurisation Act (1949). What followed was an increasing national focus on requirements designed to protect the health of consumers.

At that time each state was setting its own food regulations and standards, reaffirming that responsibility for food standards was the domain of the States following Federation. Attempts to frame uniform national food standards and avoid inconsistencies continued to be pursued but were not successful until 1952 when the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) agreed to work with the Council of Australian Food Technology Associations (CAFTA) to address differences in food and drug legislation between the States. This led to the NHMRC establishing the Food Standards Committee in 1954, and the drafting of proposals for uniform food regulations covering safe manufacture, food composition, packaging and labelling, storage, display, advertising and sale of food.

Over the next three decades, the Committee met regularly to consider and develop standards for a wide range of food commodities.3 Ultimately Australian health ministers agreed to the establishment of

Model Food Legislation and, in 1980, a Model Food Act was agreed to. It covered the offences relating to the hygienic preparation, labelling and sale of food.

Then in 1991, the National Food Authority Act was passed, establishing a National Food Authority (NFA) with responsibility for the preparation of unified food standards. Subsequently, this role evolved to the Australia New Zealand Food Authority, and then to Food Standards Australia New Zealand.

Managing food safety

Over the last 75 years, there have also been notable advancements in the way food safety is managed by the food industry. Quality control practices which reacted to defects in finished products, progressed to quality assurance programs, and eventually to quality management systems and the development of comprehensive food safety programs that the food industry has in place today.

During the 1960s the adoption of the hazard analysis critical control points (HACCP) system supported an effective and rational means of identifying and preventing hazards and assuring food safety along the food supply chain. The system was originally created to support the provision of safe food for the Apollo space program and encompassed three guiding principles: conduct a hazard analysis; identify points where these hazards could be introduced; and determine how they could be prevented, controlled, or eliminated at each point. Over the past 60 years, HACCP has evolved to cover seven principles, which are designed to identify and control potential problems before they occur.

Alongside an increased focus on food control was the establishment of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) in 1963. The CAC is an international body established jointly by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) to implement the Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Program. The objective of the CAC is the protection of consumer health and ensuring fair practices in food trade, through the creation of international food standards, guidelines and codes of practice.

Innovations in food science

The industry’s embrace of technology and innovation over the past 75 years to create our modern food supply has been breathtaking. Cutting-edge research in the second half of the twentieth century led to advances in dairy processing in Australia –including the introduction of spray drying and fluidised bed technology to improve the functionality of powdered milk, the mechanisation of cheese-making,4 and the introduction of ultra-high-temperature (UHT) processing. In other parts of the food industry, there were advances in freezing processes, canning technology, freeze drying, the application of irradiation, modified atmosphere packaging and more recently high-pressure processing. All these developments have resulted in improvements in the safety and quality of processed foods.

The challenges now faced by the food industry include how to maintain food safety, whilst reducing waste, improving energy use and enhancing biodiversity and sustainability along the entire food supply chain.

Innovative technologies are supporting the development of biodegradable and eco-friendly packaging material, the production of cell-cultured meat, enhanced traceability along the food chain, genetically modified organisms and alternative protein sources. Real-time tracking enables food producers to match demand, and upcycling is keeping food out of landfills. Robots are replacing employees on farms and in food processing plants. Importantly, there is a need to ensure these innovations don’t compromise the safety of our food supply.

Food safety research

Australia has always possessed a rich research and development environment with scientists actively exploring ways to make our food supply safer. During the period from the 1960s to the 2000s research scientists such as John Christian, Bill Murrell and John Pitt at the CSIRO Division of Food Processing oversaw major advances in our understanding and management of microbiological hazards associated with our food supply.

They and other microbiologists such as Margaret Dick, Sue Dixon, Nancy Millis, Frank Fenner and Tom McMeekin have been front-runners in advancing food safety and public health through their research and stewardship. Australian scientists have provided leadership both locally and globally in bodies such as the CAC, Codex Committees and Expert Meetings, and the International Commission on Microbiological Specifications for Foods (ICMSF).

The next 75 years

The challenges associated with the production of safe and suitable food in the 1940s are quite different from those of today. While we have observed improvements in food safety through the evolution of our regulatory system, structured food safety management programs, advances in rapid testing and diagnosis and the use of technology, our burden of foodborne illness is still too high. Plus we have the challenge of feeding an ever-increasing global population which is projected to reach 10.3 billion by 2099.5

The uptake of technology to meet production demands, regulatory requirements and consumer expectations in the agri-food sector will continue into the future. The need to increase productivity and efficiency will change what we eat and how it is created. Sourcing food from sustainable and ethical sources will continue to be a high priority, along with an increased focus on food safety and the role of food in public health.

Changes to the global climate, the mounting emergence of antimicrobial resistance, the challenge of accessing clean water for agricultural production and increasing numbers of vulnerable consumers and people with special dietary needs mean we will need to double our efforts to better manage food safety and suitability.

References

1. K.T.H. Farrer (1987). Australian food science and technology: the decade of decision 19451955, Food Technology in Australia, 39, pp. 22-3

2. Institutions offering food-related qualifications https://www.aifst.asn.au/Universities-andCourses

3. NHMRC Health and national food standards: Case Study https://www.nhmrc.gov.au/ file/17490/download?token=05nTp-QE

4. R. Birtles (2020). Throwback Thursday: how we brought cheese to the world. https://blog.csiro. au/cheese-making-australia/

5. https://database.earth/population/bycountry/2099

Deon Mahoney is a food safety consultant at DeonMahoneyConsulting and is Adjunct Professor in the School of Agriculture and Food Sustainability at the University of Queensland.

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