Agri Food Chain Microbiology

Connecting animal production and animal health with food safety concepts should be more integrated into modern food microbiology curricula. Within the concept of One Agri-Food Health, this includes all factors that influence the microbiological risks from the farm to the market.

The overall microbiological safety of food of animal origin should include the impact of measures and interventions at pre-harvest and post-harvest levels, such as feed safety and feeding modulations, hygiene and housing of farm animals, farm biosecurity, epizootiology/epidemiology of current biological hazards transmitted through the food chain, slaughterhouse hygiene and food processing hygiene. Furthermore, recent progress in laboratory tools and methods may significantly enhance the microbiological risk assessment applicable within the Agri-Food Chain approach.

During the course, practical training will be provided at several different locations: farms, slaughterhouses, molecular, -omics and microbiological laboratories and a computer classroom. The majority of lectures and seminars will be organized as Distance Learning.

Upon completion of this course students will be able to:
– explain the impact of feeding, biosecurity, and welfare of farm animals on (microbial) risks in the food chain;
– analyze food chain information (FCI) and harmonized epidemiological indicators;
– assess the microbiological risks in the food chain;
– conduct microbiological/serological/molecular analyses of food-chain samples and interpret results;
– explain the integrated meat safety system from farm to slaughterhouse; and
– select and implement the technological/hygiene interventions to reduce microbiological risks in the food chain.

ECTS credits: 60 ECTS
Duration: 2 semesters – 1 year
Price per semester: 6.000 EUR
Leader: Associate Professor Nevijo Zdolec, DVM, PhD
email: nzdolec@vef.hr