Reducing foodborne disease: meeting the Food Standards Agency’s targets

The Food Standards Agency has set a five‐year target to reduce foodborne disease in the UK by 20 per cent. The Agency’s strategy proposes measures throughout the food chain, from the farm to the kitchen. It is designed to reduce the risks associated with common vehicles of foodborne infections, such as raw meat, poultry, milk and dairy products, and to promote effective management of food safety, based on the principles of Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points, in all food businesses. Measures to improve food hygiene in the kitchen, whether commercial or domestic, are also planned, underpinned by a media‐based food hygiene campaign. The campaign will aim to raise the profile of food safety on the public agenda and deliver key preventative messages about the cooking and handling of food. Reduction in foodborne disease will be monitored through laboratory reports of key foodborne pathogens.