The horticulture industry has met to discuss ways to build on Australia’s strong food safety regime, with key stakeholders coming together for a roundtable in Sydney on Wednesday 14 February.

Growers, researchers and other stakeholders met for a discussion facilitated by Hort Innovation about how to manage current and emerging food safety issues in Australian horticulture. The group included representatives from the National Horticulture Research Network along with food safety experts from AUSVEG, CSIRO and SARDI.

Key areas of action identified by the group included finding ways to share knowledge and resources among stakeholders, and how to assist growers in maintaining compliance with Australian food safety requirements.

Importantly, the group also mapped out next steps to help the industry manage food safety risks proactively now and into the future.

If you’re interested in existing research into new methods of enhancing food safety, check out the Hort Innovation website for information on the Health, Nutrition & Food Safety Fund, which is aiming to develop novel products, technologies and processes in the area of food safety – like the use of cold plasma technology to kill or inactivate a broad range of microorganisms.

This post appeared in the AUSVEG Weekly Update published 20 February 2018.