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2023/2024

Management of Food Safety and Public Health

Code: 103262 ECTS Credits: 6
Degree Type Year Semester
2501925 Food Science and Technology OB 3 1

Contact

Name:
Maria Manuela Hernandez Herrero
Email:
manuela.hernandez@uab.cat

Teaching groups languages

You can check it through this link. To consult the language you will need to enter the CODE of the subject. Please note that this information is provisional until 30 November 2023.

Teachers

Artur Xavier Roig Sagues
Ferran Torres Benitez

Prerequisites

 Although there are no official prerequisites, it is convenient for the student to review the knowledge acquired in the subjects of first, second and third courses:

  • Microbiology and Parasitology
  • Statistics
  • Food Toxicology
  • Food Microbiology

Objectives and Contextualisation

The subject of Management of Food Safety and Public Health integrates knowledge as much of food safety risk analysis as of public health. Risk analysis is the cornerstone of food safety policy and consists of three components: risk assessment, risk management and risk communication.

General objective

The purpose is to introduce the student to food safety risk analysis as a tool for the protection of public Health. This tool is the cornerstone for selecting and implementing appropriate measures to control food safety risks, both by the administration and the food industry. Moreover, the research methodology and interpretation of epidemiological studies will be evaluated in aspects related to food safety, the prevention of diseases and the evaluation of Health.

Specific Objectives

  • Know the basis of food safety risk analysis
  • Apply tools for the scientific risk assessment
  • Know the policies for risk management applied to food safety both by the administration and the food industry
  • Know the strategies in risk communication applied to food safety
  • Know the basis of  Public Health and its determinants
  • Know the principles of the methodology in clinical research and its implications

Competences

  • Analyse, summarise, resolve problems and make professional decisions.
  • Apply the processes of evaluation, management and communication of food risk to all agrofood sectors.
  • Apply the scientific method to resolving problems.
  • Appreciate the human population's need for food and avoid its deterioration and loss.
  • Communicate effectively with both professional and non-professional audiences, orally and in writing, in the first language and/or in English.
  • Design experiments and interpret the results.
  • Develop individual learning strategies and planning and organisation skills.
  • Identify food hazards, their nature (physical, chemical, biological and nutritional), their origin or causes, their effects, and suitable methods for controlling them throughout the food supply chain so as to reduce risks to consumers.
  • Intervene in policies, programmes and projects on food safety in the public or private sector, and differentiate appropriately between real and perceived risk.
  • Make changes to methods and processes in the area of knowledge in order to provide innovative responses to society's needs and demands. 
  • Search for, manage and interpret information from different sources.
  • Show sensitivity to environmental, sanitary and social issues.
  • Use IT resources for communication, the search for information within the field of study, data processing and calculations.
  • Work individually or in unidisciplinary and multidisciplinary teams and in international contexts.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Analyse, summarise, resolve problems and make professional decisions.
  2. Apply suitable methods for monitoring the entire food supply chain in order to prevent the presence of biotic and abiotic agents in food.
  3. Apply the mechanisms necessary for irrigation assessment.
  4. Apply the scientific method to resolving problems.
  5. Communicate effectively with both professional and non-professional audiences, orally and in writing, in the first language and/or in English.
  6. Describe national and international nutritional risk prevention strategies.
  7. Describe the food safety policies of the European Union and apply their principles.
  8. Design and audit a self-control system in a food company.
  9. Design experiments and interpret the results.
  10. Determine the nutritional risk factors related to obesity, cancer, cardiovascular diseases and other diseases of nutritional origin.
  11. Develop individual learning strategies and planning and organisation skills.
  12. Evaluate the nutritional state of the population.
  13. Identify and describe the properties of the principal biotic hazards in foods and determine their origin and the factors that determine their presence.
  14. Identify consumers' needs for information and training on matters of food safety.
  15. Make changes to methods and processes in the area of knowledge in order to provide innovative responses to society's needs and demands. 
  16. Recognise the health and hygiene requirements of food businesses.
  17. Relate exposition to a toxic to the appearance of a particular symptomatology or pathology, in particular with the aim of establishing the origin and the agent of a particular contamination or food poisoning case.
  18. Search for, manage and interpret information from different sources.
  19. Show sensitivity to environmental, sanitary and social issues.
  20. Spread appropriate information on food risks and how to prevent and control them.
  21. Use IT resources for communication, the search for information within the field of study, data processing and calculations.
  22. Work individually or in unidisciplinary and multidisciplinary teams and in international contexts.

Content

Part 1. Public Health.

  • Concept and functions of Public Health.
  • Types of errors. Basic applied statistics.
  • Concept and applications of Epidemiology.
  •  Measures of frequency, association and impact.
  • Types of epidemiological studies.
  • Diseases and nutrition. Exposure to environmental toxicity.
  • Prevention. Health Management.

Part  2: Management of Food Safety

  • The risk analysis. Definition. Municipal, autonomous, state and European authorities involved in the analysis of risk, and their relationship with other international organizations.
  • The risk assessment: Hazard identification, hazard characterization, determination of the exposure assessment and risk characterization. Tools for risk assessment.
  • Food safety management: Food Safety Policies in Catalonia and Spain. The official control as a tool for protecting public Health: municipal, autonomous, European and International competencies. Network of food alerts.
  • Risk communication. Risk perception.

Methodology

The course development of the course is based on the next activities, following a blended learning format

1) Classroom theoretical sessions: the fundamental concepts of the basic topics of the subject will be explained.

2) Computer classroom sessions: Computer tools to carry out the risk assessment: biological and chemical.

3) Classroom practises sessions for group self-learning activities: Sessions will be held at the end of the Public health part and the Management of Food Safety part. Different sessions will be scheduled for their presentation and defence.

4) Tutorials: tutorials will be done throughout the course to monitor self-learning work, and other aspects related to the subject. The tutorials have the aim to guide and resolve the doubts of students. Tutorials can be done individually or in groups, depending on the objectives, in-person or via TEAMS on a fixed date and time.

5)  Group Self-learning activities: students will have to do two tasks on a topic proposed by the professor, following formal guidelines and contents common to all groups. Tasks will be delivered by Moodle

 

 

Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.


Activities

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
Classroom practice sessions 12 0.48 1, 4, 3, 2, 18, 5, 19, 6, 7, 10, 9, 13, 14, 17, 20, 22, 21, 12
Classroom theoretical sessions 34 1.36 1, 4, 3, 2, 18, 19, 6, 7, 10, 9, 8, 13, 14, 16, 17, 20, 21, 12
Computer classroom 2 0.08 4, 3, 21
Type: Supervised      
Tutorials 4 0.16 1, 4, 3, 10, 13, 14, 17, 20, 12
Type: Autonomous      
Self-learning activities 44 1.76 1, 4, 3, 2, 18, 5, 11, 10, 9, 13, 14, 17, 20, 22, 21, 12
Shelf-study 50 2 3, 2, 18, 5, 6, 7, 11, 10, 9, 8, 13, 14, 16, 17, 21, 12

Assessment

The skills of this subject will be evaluated by:

a)      First Control (Public Health part): Theory and activities related to individual or group self-learning will be evaluated. Weight of the final mark: 20%.

b)     Second Control (food safety management): Theory and activities related to individual or group-based self-learning will be evaluated. Weight of the final mark: 20%.

c)      Individual self-learning activities online will have a 10% weight in the final mark only if the participation has been at least an 80%.

d)     Attendance to the computer classroom session: Weight of the final mark: 5%.

e)     Group-based self-learning activities. Both written work and oral presentation will be valued. Public health activity will weigh in the final mark of 25%, and  Food Safety Management activity will weigh 25%. In the weighting of the note, the degree of participation of the students will be assessed. If the student does not attend at least 80% of the six seminars sessions of the discussion of the work, the note will be only 70% of the weighted average of both tasks.

 The student will be graded as “Not Evaluable” if the weighting of all conducted evaluation activities is less than ≤ 15% of the final score.

 To pass the course is required:

  1. A minimum of 5 points (over 10) in each of the two controls. If this mark is not reached, the student must present to the recovery exam of the control test not overcome.
  2. A minimum of 5 points (out of 10) in each group self-learning activity performed.

To average the marks of the self-learning activities, the mark of the controls must be at least 5 points (out of 10).

 

This subject does not include the single assessment system.


Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Attendance to the computer classroom session 5% 0 0 3, 21
First control (Part 1) 20% 2 0.08 4, 5, 10, 9, 20, 12
Group-based self-learning activities (document, presentation and defense): part 2 25% 0 0 1, 4, 3, 2, 18, 5, 7, 11, 9, 13, 14, 15, 17, 20, 22, 21
Group-based self-learning activities (document, presentation and defense): part 2 25% 0 0 1, 4, 3, 18, 5, 19, 6, 11, 10, 9, 14, 15, 20, 22, 21, 12
Individual self-learning activities on line: 5% 0 0 1, 4, 3, 18, 6, 11, 9, 20, 22, 21, 12
Second Control (part 2) 20% 2 0.08 3, 2, 7, 8, 13, 16, 17

Bibliography

Public Health

Management of food safety                                                                                                                  

WEBSITES Management of food safety 


Software