We are pleased to transmit you an update from EC/JRC regarding the 3 Certified Reference Materials (CRMs) on SEA in cheese powder (IRMM-359a-c). Their certificates have now been updated with ELISA-based quantitative values derived from a collaboration with our laboratory, in particular. These values have been included in the section "additional material information" of the certificates. A short reference to this work was added to the certification report (addendum in page 5). Please see: https://crm.jrc.ec.europa.eu/p/q/359/IRMM-359-CHEESE-POWDER-SEA/IRMM-359 This information is important for the ones of you using these CRMs as well as for the national networks you coordinate.

“NeuroPaTick” (Neuro – Neurophysiology, Pa – Pathogens, Tick – Tick) is a new area in tick research established for the first time in the UMR-BIPAR (Anses, ENVA, INRA). This research direction merges the innovative approaches examining the interaction of tick neuropeptide signaling system with the pathogens entering tick body. Specifically, we hypothesize that pathogen benefit from manipulation of tick neuropeptidome to ensure their survival, dissemination, reproduction and transmission. Our approach aims to uncover for the first time the vulnerable spots in tick physiology, subsequently leading to the development of better control measures of these medically important arthropods and the pathogens they transfer. Besides the common research direction NeuroPaTick group investigates multiple fascinating aspects of tick  biology and their interactions with the fluctuating environments.

Discover the new presentation of the site EURL Residues.

We are delighted to inform you that  ISO 20976-1 : 2019 “Microbiology of the food chain -- Requirements and guidelines for conducting challenge tests of food and feed products -- Part 1: Challenge tests to study growth potential, lag time and maximum growth rate”  is now published ! You can find it on the ISO web site at the following address : https://www.iso.org/standard/69673.html. The time has come now  for us  to set up the revision of  the “EURL Lm Technical Guidance Document  for conducting shelf-life studies on Listeria monocytogenes in ready to eat foods – Version 3 of 6 June 2014 – Amendment 1 of 21 February 2019 .lom

Welcome to the website of the European Union Reference Laboratory for foot-and-mouth disease (EURL FMD). The consortium between ANSES (France) and Sciensano (Belgium) is designated as the European Union Reference Laboratory for foot-and-mouth disease. You will find on the site all the activities of the EURL and information related to FMD. It is accessible to all members of the network. Thank you for registering to have access to the private area.

Bertrand LOMBARD, as EURL Lm representative, presented the amendment to the EURL Lm Technical Guidance Document on shelf-life studies at the meeting of the EC Standing Committee on plants, animals, food and feed (PAFF)-Section Biological Safety of the Food Chain, held in Brussels on 11 February 2019. This amendment, modifying the temperature profile to conduct challenge tests, has been unanimously adopted by the EU Member States. The amended version is available on the front page of the EURL Lm website, section Guidance documents.

Bertrand LOMBARD, as EURL Lm representative, has been invited by ECDC (Johanna TAKKINEN, on the picture, at new ECDC offices) to participate to the annual meeting of the microbiologists of the Food, Water-borne Disease and Zoonosis Network (6 February afternoon) and of the whole network (microbiologists from the national public health laboratories as well as epidemiologists from the national surveillance institutes, 7-8 February), see the programmes, enclosed. This meeting, very well organised by Johanna and her team, gathered around 100 participants and took place in Stockholm. I have listened interesting presentations, fruitful exchanges took place and Lm was given a prominent place with several presentations. This is only food-borne bacterium for whom a WGS-based surveillance has been settled.

We are pleased to announce you that Commission Regulation (EU) 2019/229 of 7 February 2019, amending EC Regulation (EC) No 2073/2005 on microbiological criteria for foodstuffs, has been published on 8 February 2019. It modifies in particular: The Lm criteria for sprouted seeds: in the second indent of footnote 4 to criteria 1.1 and 1.3, the terms ‘excluding sprouted seeds,’ are deleted. The justification is given in recital (5): “Regulation (EC) No 2073/2005 sets a food safety criterion for ‘Listeria monocytogenes in ready-to-eat foods unable to support the growth of Listeria monocytogenes, other than those intended for infants and for special medical purposes’. In accordance with an opinion of the European Food Safety Authority of 15 November 2011, sprouted seeds support the growth of Listeria monocytogenes and should therefore be covered by the criterion for ready-to-eat foods able to support the growth of Listeria monocytogenes, other than those intended for infants and for special medical  purposes.” Article 5 on the conditions of validation/certification of alternative methods; Annex I: in the qualitative criteria on Lm (1.1, 1.2), the expression of the limit “absence in 25  g” is replaced by “not detected in 25g”, in accordance with the revised Standard method EN ISO 11290-1. As specified in Article 3 of this amendment, this Regulation shall enter into force on 28 February 2019. (the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union on 8 February 2019).

We are pleased to announce you that Commission Regulation (EU) 2019/229 of 7 February 2019, amending EC Regulation (EC) No 2073/2005 on microbiological criteria for foodstuffs, has been published on 8 February 2019. It modifies in particular: Article 5 on the conditions of validation/certification of alternative methods; Reference methods in Annex II further to the EC Mandate to CEN. In particular, in criterion 1.21, the method to detect staphylococcal enterotoxins (SE) in dairy products: the “European screening method of the CRL for coagulase positive staphylococci” is replaced by the Standard EN ISO 19020. As specified in Article 3 of this amendment, this Regulation shall enter into force on 28 February 2019. (the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union on 8 February 2019).

October 2018, EURL Lm visited NWVA (associated NL-NRL for Lm, Wageningen, Netherlands) to disscuss and share skills in WGS analysis. We have performed the cluster analysis on a selection of a panel of 10 genomes with the in-house pipeline of the NVWA (Variant Discovery) and the Anses in-house pipeline (iVARCall2). A perfect correlation between the two in-house pipelines was observed.