Significance: Nutrition is one of the most basic of medical issues and is often ignored as a problem in the management of our chronic wound patients. Unfortunately, malnutrition is widespread in our geriatric patients even in nursing homes in developed countries. Attention to basic nutrition and providing appropriate supplements may assist in the healing of our chronic wounds. Recent Advances: Recent research has revealed the epidemiology of malnutrition in developed countries, the similarities to malnutrition in developing countries, and some of the physiologic and sociologic causes for this problem. More information is now available on the biochemical effects of nutrient deficiency and supplementation with macronutrients and micronutrients. In some cases, administration of isolated nutrients beyond recommended amounts for healthy individuals may have a pharmacologic effect to help wounds heal. Critical Issues: Much of the knowledge of the nutritional support of chronic wounds is based on information that has been obtained from trauma management. Due to the demographic differences of the patients and differences in the physiology of acute and chronic wounds, it is not logical to assume that all aspects of nutritional support are identical in these patient groups. Before providing specific nutritional supplements, appropriate assessments of patient general nutritional status and the reasons for malnutrition must be obtained or specific nutrient supplementation will not be utilized. Future Directions: Future research must concentrate on the biochemical and physiologic differences of the acute and chronic wounds and the interaction with specific supplements, such as antioxidants, vitamin A, and vitamin D.

Orientador: Danilo Florentino Pereira / Coorientador: Leda Gobbo de Freitas Bueno / Coorientador: Ricardo César Gonçalves Sant'ana / Resumo: O Brasil é o 3º maior produtor de ovos da América e para produzir é necessário que a cadeia produtiva esteja organizada para fornecer produtos com qualidade, além de ter bons níveis de produtividade. Os consumidores apresentam-se cada vez mais exigentes e a avicultura de postura precisa se adaptar para atender essa demanda. A rastreabilidade é um sistema que possibilita rastrear todas as informações relacionadas a um produto, desde o início da cadeia produtiva até o consumidor final e pode respaldar esse momento vivido pela indústria. Requisitos de qualidade referentes a avicultura de postura são apresentados em documentos orientadores como da EMBRAPA e da União Brasileira da Avicultura, que abrangem todas as etapas do processo produtivo, desde a origem dos insumos até etapas posteriores a produção. A fim de complementar as informações de qualidade, outras legislações, que regulamentam diversos processos produtivos, que tratam de rastreabilidade foram utilizadas. Apontados os requisitos que podem alimentar um sistema de rastreabilidade, tanto de qualidade, quanto informacional, a próxima etapa refere-se a coleta de dados, descrita no Ciclo de Vida dos Dados que dará suporte para o início da implantação de um sistema que seja capaz de rastrear as informações de produção dos ovos. O objetivo geral desse trabalho foi avaliar a viabilidade de coleta de dados para implantação de um sistema de rastreabilidade de informações do produto na cadeia de ovos, identificando os pontos crít... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: Brazil is the 3rd largest producer of eggs in America and to produce it is necessary that the production chain is organized to provide quality products in addition to having good levels of productivity. Consumers are becoming increasingly demanding and poultry keeping has to adapt to meet this demand. Traceability is a system that makes it possible to trace all information related to a product, from the beginning of the production chain to the final consumer, and can support this momentum experienced by the industry. Quality requirements for layinghens are presented in guidance documents such as EMBRAPA and the Brazilian Poultry Union, which cover all stages of the production process, from the origin of the inputs to the later stages of production. In order to complement quality information, other legislation, which regulates various production processes, dealing with traceability has been used. Given the requirements that can feed a traceability system, both quality and information, the next step refers to the data collection, described in the Data Life Cycle that will support the beginning of the implantation of a system that is capable to track egg production information. The overall objective of this work was to evaluate the viability of data collection for the implementation of a system of traceability of product information in the egg chain, identifying the critical points of this data collection. And, as specific objectives identify the main requirements for information, quality and legislation are required to implement a system of traceability of eggs on a farm; identify through interviews the critical points for collecting traceability information; validate the identified requirements; and, propose improvements in the quality system and in the process of data collection. (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre

The food sector accounts for $1 of every $6 in the U.S. economy, with more than $700 billion in revenue every year. However, incidents of food safety and substandard quality continue to rise. Consumers are beginning to mistrust and have lower confidence in the food supply chain. Food manufacturers need to address this issue to remain profitable. One approach includes the introduction of food policy programs that allow for independent auditing and certifications such as the Safe Quality Food (SQF) certification. The SQF certification was established as a rigorous and credible benchmark for food handlers to enforce food safety and quality standards. The purpose of this qualitative case study research was to evaluate the perceived usefulness of the SQF certification to food manufacturers. Guided by the theory of diffusion of innovation, data collection for this study included 35 stakeholder semistructured interviews and a review of 5 publicly available documents for triangulation. Thematic analysis of the transcripts was performed to generate answers to the research questions. Study findings revealed that if properly implemented, the SQF certification is a credible and robust GFSI scheme that provides effective guidelines for food production. Findings also revealed 2 opportunities for improvement. Participants noted that training programs for SQF practitioners and auditors should be improved, likewise more commitment and involvement of facility management should be required. The findings may contribute to social change by providing food producers with strategies to minimize food production failures. With the perceived benefits of the SQF certification, other food producers who have not adopted this scheme can benefit from this holistic certification to enhance their food production network.

This dissertation examined recently issued regulatory standards using cheese and produce as model systems. FDA's 2015 Domestic and Imported Cheese and Cheese Products Compliance Program Guidelines (CPG) E. coli standards on cheese safety, and the extent to which these standards affect domestic and imported cheese commerce, was assessed. Results from FDA's Domestic and Imported Cheese Compliance Program for samples collected between January 1, 2004 and December 31, 2006 were analyzed. Of 3,007 cheese samples tested for non-toxigenic E. coli, 76% (2,300) of samples exceeded 10/g, FDA's target for regulatory activity. In cheese samples containing E. coli levels of 10/g and 100/g, there was no statistically significant association with presence of Listeria monocytogenes. However, associations between Staphylococcus aureus levels of 10,000 CFU/g and presence of Salmonella and L. monocytogenes were statistically significant, indicating that EU regulations targeting S. aureus as the pathogen of concern may be more appropriate than E. coli for cheese safety assessment. Compost amended soils in the Northeastern U.S. were assessed for the presence and survival of E. coli and Listeria spp. against FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) requirements. Manure and poultry litter-based biological soil amendments of animal origin (BSAAO) must achieve pathogen reduction to reduce risk of pathogen contamination on the harvested produce. Two trials of replicated field plots of loamy (L) or sandy (S) soils were tilled and un-amended (NC) or amended with dairy compost (DC), poultry litter compost (PL), or poultry pellets (PP). Colony count and most probable number (MPN) methods were used to determine persistence of E. coli in these plots over 104 days post-inoculation. Detection of indigenous Listeria spp. were also examined in all plots. Higher E. coli populations were observed in PL and PP amended soils when compared to DC and NC plots. E. coli was detected at low levels on radish crops, where PL treatments encouraged greater levels of survival and growth than DC or NC. Study results verify that a 120 day interval following BSAAO application should be sufficient to ensure food safety of edible crops subsequently planted on these soils. The sensitivity of environmental monitoring methods and collection formats were evaluated to identify optimal procedures for detection of Listeria spp. on product contact surfaces within artisan cheese production environments. Four environmental surfaces (dairy brick, stainless steel, plastic, and wood; n=405/surface type) were inoculated with L. innocua, L.m. ATTC® 19115 and L.m. 1042, at high (106-107/cm2) and low (0.1-1/cm2) target concentrations. Inoculated surfaces were swabbed with World Bioproducts© EZ ReachTM and 3MTM environmental swabs (3MTM). Five enrichment and enumeration methods were used to compare sensitivity of recovery between environmental swabs. All swab formats performed equally on all environmental surfaces at high target concentrations. At low concentrations, PetrifilmTM and WBEZ swabs recovered Listeria spp. from 87.5% of plastic, stainless steel, and dairy brick surfaces, but only 62.7% of wooden surfaces; recovering 14.8%, 77%, and 96.3% of cells from initial inoculations of 0.01, 0.1, and 1/cm2, respectively . Our data demonstrate that results may be discrepant due to variation in the porosity of environmental surfaces and should be taken into consideration when implementing environmental sampling plans. Results from this thesis can be used to inform regulatory policy and help to achieve improved food safety.

The retail food safety chain is vulnerable to deliberate contamination, yet food safety professionals and emergency managers typically respond to intentional contamination in different ways. Little is known about the practices of environmental health food safety professionals (EHFSP) as compared to emergency managers and whether those approaches can be combined to more successfully impede intentional food contamination. The purpose of this narrative policy analysis was to use routine activity theory to compare the narratives of EHFSPs and emergency managers to determine whether there are opportunities to better understand the relationship between vulnerability and resiliency of the retail food safety chain. Data were primarily collected through interviews with 5 EHFSPs and 5 emergency managers from various regions in the United States. Interview data were inductively coded and then subjected to Braun and Clarke's thematic analysis procedure. Key findings indicate that EHFSPs generally are ill-suited to meet resiliency goals, ambivalence voiced by EHFSPs results from a lack of continual preparedness training, and neither EHFSPs nor emergency management officials' familiarity with the social dimensions of resiliency is at a point where they can design adequate measures for a resilient retail food system. Therefore, recommendations to policy makers focus on a need for an enhanced training that is inspired by principles of emergency management so that they are better able to respond to acts of intentional contamination, thereby building a resilient retail food chain with economic and social benefits.

The recent economic crisis in Puerto Rico has created decreased health department fiscal capabilities, adding more responsibilities to health department officials in charge of restaurant inspections without adding more operational funds, which in turn led to less regulatory capacity. This situation instigated increased food safety regulation violations, and food safety legislation changes, imposing more economic pressure to restaurant owners, which leads to a lack of restaurant sustainability. The purpose of this case study was to explore strategies six business visionaries, smart entrepreneurs, who have positioned themselves as successful restaurateurs, in the restaurant industry in Puerto Rico. They were key factors in the understanding of the business strategies applied to comply with food safety regulations for the sustainability of their business. The study was grounded in the socio-economic theory of compliance. Semistructured interviews and company documents provided the data for the study. Through thematic analysis, 4 themes emerged, legislative impact and food safety regulations, reducing economic stress and cost controls, customer conduct, and employee knowledge transfer. Although, the fiscal crisis has severely affected the entire restaurant industry and the economy in general, also undoubtedly holds great opportunities for developing new strategies appropriate to the fiscal situation. One recommendation is to build cooperative relations with government agencies such as the CDC, or the state health department, use of mystery shopper programs, and embrace social impact strategies to improve food service practices that may optimize healthier food consumption for restaurant patrons and increase profitability.

Thesis ( MPH.) --University of Limpopo,2014. / Introduction: To evaluate the food safety legislation (FSL) implementation in the red meat abattoirs of Mopani district in Limpopo Province, South Africa. Method: A cross sectional survey was conducted. Sampling: A questionnaire was distributed to abattoir managers of various red meat abattoirs. From 16 abattoirs with a population 169, a sample of 22 was selected. Results: The study revealed that 77% managers were male. Majority of managers were aged 40 and 59 years. Work experience was between 20 to 25 years. Educational background: thirty seven percent (37%) of managers hold certificates on various disciplines, mostly not food safety related. Fifty-four percent (54%) managers did not have food safety knowledge. Fifty-nine percent (59%) abattoirs did not comply with food safety practices. Twenty seven percent (27%) of the structures did not comply with R.1072. The pieces of FSL were less implemented by DoH&SD and DTI. Hygiene Management Systems showed slow progress. Sixty-four percent (64%) abattoirs did not receive training on HMS and PRPs. Very few abattoirs had multi-disciplinary skilled personnel to implement FSL. Abattoirs were reluctant to financial commitment to implement FSL. Eighty two percent (82%) of abattoirs did not involve all stakeholder during planning and decision making process. Conclusion: The red meat abattoirs of Mopani district did not comply with all standards and requirements of food safety legislation. Factors such as educational background in basics of food safety principles, involvement of role players during implementation process, prevented successful implementation of food safety legislation in the red meat abattoirs of Mopani district. Food safety knowledge and practices of management and malpractice of FSL were determined, results showed that majority lack adequate food safety knowledge and poor food safety practices were identified. One of the recommendation was to establish FSL enforcement forum to develop a FSL strategy.

Cette thèse examine la question de la santé au travail des agents publics en abattoir dans sa multi-dimensionnalité. Elle livre une analyse du travail dans le secteur public non seulement à partir de son cadre institutionnel, mais aussi des multiples interactions, souvent interdépendantes, entre l’activité, les organisations et la trajectoire de la politique du contrôle en abattoir. Elle bat en brèche à la fois la présomption de qualité au travail dans le secteur public et la forte étanchéité de ce secteur. Elle montre comment les douleurs sont négociées, entre activité quotidienne et dispositifs de déclaration en maladie professionnelle et de reclassement. A partir des années 2000, une part croissante des agents de l’Etat en abattoir souffrent de troubles musculo-squelettiques. Les TMS sont l’occasion pour l’encadrement intermédiaire de négocier avec les abattoirs mais aussi d’énoncer le « vrai travail » des agents en abattoir. La mise sur l'agenda de la santé au travail des agents affectés dans les abattoirs surgit dans le contexte de redéfinition des missions de l'Etat et les évolutions de la politique du contrôle en abattoir contribuent tantôt à faire émerger la santé au travail, tantôt à l’occulter en laissant de côté la question du devenir des agents dont les missions évoluent et dont le métier est susceptible de disparaître. Au croisement de la sociologie des groupes professionnels, de la santé au travail et de la sociologie de l’action publique, le cadre d’analyse propose d’articuler les régulations liées à la santé et aux conditions de travail à celles de l’activité et du métier d’inspecteur lui-même. / This thesis considers the occupational health of public officials in slaughterhouses in its multi-dimensionality. It provides an analysis of work in the public sector, not only from its institutional framework, but also from the many interactions, often interdependent, between the activity, the organizations and the trajectory of food safety policy. It undermines both the presumption of quality at work in the public sector and the strong tightness of this sector. It shows how pain is negotiated, between daily activity and occupational disease reporting and reclassification schemes. From the 2000s, a growing proportion of officials in slaughterhouses suffered from musculoskeletal disorders. MSDs are an opportunity for middle management to negotiate with slaughterhouses, but also to state the "real work" of slaughterhouse agents. The agenda setting of the occupational health of the agents affected in the slaughterhouses arises in the context of redefining the missions of the State and the evolutions of the food safety policy contribute sometimes to make emerge health at work, to overshadow it by leaving aside the question of the future of those officials whose missions evolve and whose profession is liable to disappear. At the crossroads between the sociology of professions, occupational health and the sociology of public action, the analysis framework proposes to articulate the regulations related to health and working conditions to those of the activity and the profession of inspector himself.

The purpose of this two phased study was to determine the challenges to implementing food safety and hazard analysis and critical control point (HACCP) in school foodservice and the adherence to food safety procedures in 15 schools. In phase one, food safety and HACCP procedures were studied utilizing a focus group and a national mailing of a three part survey instrument to school foodservice directors. The instrument examined the challenges and attitudes of directors toward the use of HACCP programs and food safety practices in their operations. Phase two examined the food safety procedures used in school kitchens. The researcher and two trained observers audited 15 middle school kitchens using an audit form developed by the researcher. Practices audited included temperature monitoring, personal hygiene, cold storage procedures, cleanliness of facility and other observable food safety practices. The survey yielded a response rate of 58% and the challenge and attitude statements were tested for reliability and analyzed using factor analysis and multiple regression. The responses indicated that the school foodservice directors did not perceive the same challenges to food safety as those revealed by the focus group participants. In general, the directors were positive about the use of HACCP programs and food safety practices. However, they did perceive the time and money necessary to maintain these programs to be a challenge. Results from the food safety audits revealed that food safety practices could be improved among the audited operations. Poor food safety practices were observed in the areas of hand washing, temperature monitoring, hair restraints, and sanitizing of equipment. This study suggests that school foodservice directors need to be committed to food safety programs if they are to be effective. Directors need to continually train and monitor employees and maintain a positive attitude about the necessity of food safety in order to assure safe food handling practices. / Graduation date: 2002

Novel intervention strategies such as food grade antimicrobials are used to enhance food safety. Nisin is a widely used naturally occurring antimicrobial effective against many pathogenic and spoilage microorganisms. However, its antimicrobial efficacy in food matrices is much reduced because of interactions with food components. Novel delivery systems may overcome this problem by protecting nisin in capsules and releasing it in a controlled manner. The overall goal of this research was to develop delivery systems of nisin to improve its long-term antimicrobial effectiveness. The first objective was to develop a low-cost method to extract nisin from a commercial preparation containing ~2.5% nisin. The best extraction yield was observed at 6 mg solids/mL 50% v/v ethanol. The nisin extract, after adjusting to 70% v/v ethanol, was dissolved with 2% zein (corn prolamins) and different amounts of Tween 20, glycerol, and thymol (another naturally occurring antimicrobial) for spray drying, a practical encapsulation method. Spray-dried capsules were characterized for release profiles of nisin at different pH conditions. Spray drying inlet temperature was first studied at 75 to 120°C, and the greatest sustained release of nisin was observed for capsules produced at 105°C, which was used in rest of this study. The impacts of Tween 20 and glycerol supplemented in spray-drying formulations were studied next. Addition of either 0.05% Tween 20 or glycerol in the spray-drying solution reduced the burst release of nisin at pH 6.0. Capsules with a higher amount of Tween 20 showed more complete release of nisin at pH 8.0, while glycerol had no apparent impact. The most sustained release of nisin at pH 6.0 was observed for capsules produced with both thymol and glycerol. Various capsules were then studied for their ability to inhibit the growth of Listeria monocytogenes at pH 6.0 during incubation at 30°C. Un-encapsulated nisin and thymol showed inhibition only for 12 h, while capsules with nisin and thymol containing either low or medium level of glycerol inhibited L. monocytogenes for >96 h. Our antimicrobial delivery systems, based on food grade ingredients and practical processes, have potential for practical application to enhance microbial safety and extend the shelf-life of foods.