The Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) and APHA recently published the UK Veterinary Antimicrobial Resistance and Sales Surveillance (UK-VARSS) report for 2023.

This year’s UK-VARSS report marks 10 years of bringing together data on antibiotic sales, usage and resistance. It shows long-term trends and demonstrates how reducing antibiotic use has been followed by a reduction in antimicrobial resistance (AMR) at a national level.

In the UK, from 2005 it has been a statutory requirement for pharmaceutical companies to report to the VMD the amount of antibiotic products sold for use in animals. The quantity of active ingredient is calculated from the amounts sold and the product characteristics. These sales data do not take into account wastage of veterinary antibiotics. However, this is the best currently available approximation of the quantity of antibiotics administered to animals in the UK.

The report reveals that sales of veterinary antibiotics for use in food-producing animals has not changed since 2022 but there has been an overall 59% decrease since 2014.

You can read the report in full here

Navigating social events with an allergy is a challenge many people face throughout the year. During the festive period we often go out more with family, friends and colleagues and we still need to prioritise our safety when it comes to allergies – without feeling excluded.

BFFF member, Anaphylaxis UK, have issued a short list of Dos and Don’ts to apply to your social calendar this Christmas:

Do tell your party about your allergy and make them aware of what to do in an emergency.

Don’t assume staff understand the seriousness of allergies. Remember to discuss how your food will be prepared and if it will be in contact with your allergen (for example, cooked in the same pan or oil).

Do your own research and always check in advance if a restaurant can cater for your allergy. Make suggestions for places you feel safe to eat at.

Don’t be afraid to send food or drink back or leave the restaurant if you don’t feel safe.

Do check the top 14 allergen information which all UK catering businesses must provide.

Don’t forget that allergens can also be present in alcoholic drinks. Common allergens include milk, sulphites and cereals such as wheat, barley or corn.

Do confirm when ordering and again when you receive your order that it does not contain your allergen.

Don’t visit during busy times. This may be unavoidable over Christmas but if possible, try to pick a time when the restaurant will be less busy such as a weekday or early evening.

Do look out for hidden allergens, for example, a complementary bread roll may contain nuts or seeds, and festive sauces, such as cranberry sauce or gravy, can come in lots of variations.

Do always carry two adrenaline auto-injectors with you at all times.

For more advice on eating out and what to do if something goes wrong, visit Anaphylaxis UK’s Eating Out page.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA), Food Standards Scotland (FSS) and Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) have all now updated precautionary advice to consumers with a peanut allergy to advise that they no longer need to avoid eating foods that contain or may contain mustard, mustard powder, mustard seeds or mustard flour. This applies to eating at home and eating out.   

Following on from investigations by Leicester City Council, the enforcing Local Authority, and FGS Ingredients Limited, FSA and FSS, have been assured that measures have been put in place by FGS Ingredients Limited to minimise the risk to people with a peanut allergy.  

FGS Ingredients Limited has advised their customers to remove products containing the contaminated mustard ingredients from sale.  

Working closely with the relevant local authorities, all the food businesses affected have been advised to review their food supply chains and remove any products that may have been contaminated with mustard ingredients from sale.  Where these products were sold at retail, product recalls have also been undertaken. 

As an additional safety precaution, increased sampling and surveillance of mustard products has been put in place to ensure that any further products that may be affected are identified as quickly as possible.

It is important that people with a peanut allergy should continue to avoid products that are listed in the allergy alert. Consumers and businesses are urged to check whether they still have any of the affected products listed and if so, they should follow the advice in the alerts.

More information can be found here

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) have recently published an overview of Waves 7 and 8 of the Food and You 2 survey for Northern Ireland.

Food and You 2 is a biannual ‘Official Statistic’ survey commissioned by the FSA. The survey measures self-reported consumers’ knowledge, attitudes and behaviours related to food safety and other food issues amongst adults in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

The modules presented in the report include ‘Food you can trust’, ‘Concerns about food’, ’Food security’, ‘Eating out and takeaways’, ‘Food allergies, intolerances and other hypersensitivities’, ‘Eating at home’, ‘Food shopping and labelling’ and ‘Healthy eating’. 

Wave 7 fieldwork was conducted between 28 April 2023 and 10 July 2023 with 1,526 adults in Northern Ireland. Wave 8 fieldwork was conducted between 12 October 2023 and 8 January 2024 with 1,550 adults in Northern Ireland.

Some of the key findings included:

91% were confident that the food they buy is safe to eat

84% were confident that the information on food labels is accurate

76% were confident in the food supply chain

83% had no concerns about the food they eat, and 17% had a concern

The most common concerns were food prices (67%) and food quality (64%)

73% said it was important to them to buy food which has a low environmental impact and 35% said they often buy food which has a low environmental impact

64% believed that eating less processed food contributes most to a sustainable diet

77% said they ate fruit and vegetables every day or most days, and 55% said what they usually eat is fairly healthy

Read the report in full here

The Bread and Flour (Amendment) Regulations 2024 have now been published, amending the Bread and Flour Regulations 1998, and setting minimum compositional and labelling requirements for bread and flour.

The amendment updates current requirements on the addition of specified vitamins and minerals to non-wholemeal wheat flour and introduces the mandatory addition of folic acid to help reduce incidences of Neural Tube Defect (NTD) affected pregnancies.

NTDs are birth defects of the brain, spine, or spinal cord of the foetus and affect approximately 800 pregnancies a year in England and around 1,000 pregnancies in the UK as a whole. NTD risk is associated with low levels of blood folate among pregnant women and women who could become pregnant. In the UK, women who could become pregnant are advised to take a daily supplement of 400 micrograms of folic acid (synthetic form of folate) prior to conception and up until the 12th week of pregnancy. However as approximately half of pregnancies are unplanned, many women do not take folic acid supplements during this period.

The instrument introduces the compulsory addition of folic acid to non-wholemeal wheat flour, which is expected to reduce incidences of NTD affected pregnancies by 15-22% per year preventing around 100-210 potentially life-threatening spinal conditions in England and 150-220 in the UK as a whole.

The policy is supported by recommendations from the Science Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) and research modelling the potential impact of fortification of flour with folic acid.

The amendment also clarifies requirements and certain definitions, as well as removing some technical barriers to compliance to ensure the regulations are fit for purpose. The instrument introduces exemptions for small-scale producers and modernises the enforcement regime by moving to an improvement notice approach.

From the end of 2026 millers and flour producers will be required to fortify non-wholemeal wheat flour with folic acid.

The new regulations can be found here

The first case of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N5 of the current outbreak was confirmed in England on 5th November 2024.

The first case of HPAI H5N1 of the current outbreak was confirmed in England on the 17th November 2024.

Whilst there have been no cases of HPAI confirmed in Wales or Scotland during this outbreak. In line with World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) rules, Great Britain is no longer free from highly pathogenic avian influenza.

No cases of HPAI have been confirmed in Northern Ireland this season and Northern Ireland continues to have WOAH self-declared zonal freedom from highly pathogenic avian influenza.

The risk of HPAI H5 in wild birds in Great Britain is assessed as high (event occurs very often).

This means that the risk of poultry exposure to HPAI H5 in Great Britain is assessed as:

medium (event occurs regularly) (with low uncertainty) where there is suboptimal or poor biosecurity

low (event is rare but does occur) (with low uncertainty) where good biosecurity is consistently applied at all times.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) advise that bird flu is primarily a disease of birds and the risk to the general public’s health is very low.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has said bird flu poses a very low food safety risk for UK consumers. Properly cooked poultry and poultry products, including eggs, are safe to eat.

Keep up to date with the latest information here

Dining out should be an enjoyable experience for everyone, including those with food allergies. But the reality can be very different with the feeling of enjoyment often replaced with fear, anxiety and worry.

With a growing number of people affected by food allergies, it’s vital that all restaurants provide a safe environment for customers, with the right information, and good staff attitude and awareness.

That’s why, this Anaphylaxis UK have partnered with Serve Legal to deliver the Anaphylaxis UK AllergyWise® Audit Programme, focusing not only on allergen safety but also on enhancing the overall customer experience for individuals with food allergies. 

The AllergyWise® Audit Programme is designed to provide businesses with a comprehensive, independent compliance audit. Through this programme, delivered by Serve Legal, food establishments across the UK can confidently assess and enhance their allergen procedures, ensuring a safe and positive dining experience for customers with allergies.

Simon Williams, Chief Executive of Anaphylaxis UK, commented: “At Anaphylaxis UK, we believe that everyone should feel safe and warmly welcomed when dining out, particularly those living with serious allergies. Through the Anaphylaxis UK AllergyWise® Audit Programme, we’re proud to be helping restaurants create a space where customers can dine with confidence, knowing their needs are understood and respected. By fostering a culture of proactive allergen awareness, we’re not only raising safety standards but also making dining experiences more inclusive and enjoyable for all.”

Read more here