Low-moisture foods, such as nuts, generally have been considered low risk for foodborne illness because they are consumed in a dry state. In low-moisture foods the water activity (available moisture) is too low to support microbial growth. For example, the water activity in tree nuts is generally less than 0.7. This may lead to the common misconception that low levels of pathogenic bacteria in foods such as tree nuts are not a food safety concern. However, it is increasingly recognized that many foodborne pathogens, including Salmonella and EHEC, can cause illness when present at very low levels, i.e. for illness to occur microbial growth does not need to take place. In addition, once ingested, the high fat content in tree...

To assist member countries prepare themselves to deal with such food safety emergencies, FAO and WHO prepared a framework for developing National Food Safety Emergency Response (FSER) Plans. To support countries in applying the framework, a pilot for the development of a FSER Plan was carried out in Thailand during 2011-2012. FAO also assisted Bangladesh in developing its Food Safety Emergency Response Plan in 2012 under the project Improving Food Safety, Quality and Food Control in Bangladesh. With these two recent experiences of Thailand and Bangladesh in the region, it was decided to share the experiences in developing FSER Plans with other ASEAN countries, including lessons learnt in the process.

As part of FAO's Quality & Origin Programme, the present study proposes a methodological participatory approach to identifying products of origin?linked quality to be used as levers for sustainable rural development, through the virtuous circle to which they could give rise (FAO and SINER?GI, 2009). Quality is a collective construction, which depends on the vision of the producers themselves and on the perceptions of consumers; it is progressive and includes objective and subjective elements. The proposed approach aims to involve local actors in the identification of such potential and to provide lines of enquiry according to the characteristics identified and the available information that producers and other stakeholders can explore and confirm, depending on the strategy they decide to implement....

In recognition of regional standards as important means for ensuring safe and fair food trade among countries in a given region, FAO and WHO, with the financial assistance of the Codex Trust Fund, organized a training workshop on "Understanding Regional Standards" on November 4th 2012 in Tokyo, Japan. This workshop was held prior to the 18 the Session of CCASIA. Among the forty five participants that attended the workshop, thirty one participants from sixteen Asian countries were supported by the Codex Trust Fund.