Experts from 16 countries have participated in a course on "Control of zoonoses through the food chain", organized by the department of Microbiology of the University of Navarra. The meeting was part of the COST 920 Action, a European initiative that aims to promote research projects on infections and diseases that originate in animals and are transmitted through food: salmonella, listeria, etc.

The meeting, organized in partnership with Dr. Begoña Sesma, representative of Spain in the committee executive of this COST Action and associate professor of the department of Microbiology of the University of Navarra, brought together 72 experts from different European countries.

The workshop addressed issues such as "harmonization in the collection of data on zoonoses in Europe; the need to assess the magnitude of the problem and decide on control measures; and the advisability of legislating on the basis of this expert information," explained Professor Isabel García-Jalón, from area of Food Microbiology.

"From farm to table".

As this expert explained, "it is a matter of making effective the motto of the Consumer Directorate: 'From farm to fork'. That is, to establish an integrated control of the entire production process from the animals on the farm to the food on the consumer's plate".

This meeting COST 920 was preceded by the celebration of the "International Course evaluation on Microbiological Risks", organized with the partnership of four institutions: University of Navarra, the Veterinary School of Alfort (France), the high school of Veterinary Medicine (Cornell University, USA) and the School of Veterinary Medicine of Lisbon (Portugal).

In addition to this COST Action, the department of Microbiology of the University of Navarra is involved in two other more specific actions on brucellosis and salmonellosis.