Melon food safety monitoring and support – phase 2 (VM24001)

Ongoing project

Delivery Partner: Department of Primary Industries NSW

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What is it all about?

This project aims to further promote and nurture a robust food safety culture within the Australian melon industry by implementing science- and data-based food safety monitoring and support systems.

Since 2018, the 'Safe Melons' initiative has continually worked to improve food safety across the melon supply chain. The national program adopts a systems approach, engaging various stakeholders such as growers, packers, exporters, regulators, and supermarkets. It has enabled the industry to achieve zero recalls and food safety incidents for six consecutive years.

This project will continue to support industry efforts to maintain these high food safety standards by identifying vulnerabilities along the farm-to-fork continuum and building resilience against food safety risks.

Challenge

Food and public health authorities are now regularly using whole-genome sequencing (WGS) for outbreak investigations, leading to higher success rates and increased number of product recalls. Public health data-sharing arrangements are evolving, requiring the melon industry to align these with advancements.

To align with the new Primary Production and Processing (PPP) Standards (4.2.9), developed by Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ), the industry must further enhance its food safety culture and integrate WGS into its food safety management systems. These new regulatory standards will take effect from 12 February 2025 and be enforced differently across state and territory food regulators, requiring additional support and guidance for industry compliance.

These regulatory changes could impact the number and scale of melon growers, depending on how the enforcement is carried out and how well the industry adapts. Ultimately, the long-term success and profitability of the melon industry will depend on its ability to mitigate risks, comply with standards, and maintain export opportunities.

Response

To address these challenges, this project will:

Continue national melon food safety surveillance and monitoring to proactively detect, predict, and manage microbial food safety threats across the supply chain.
Enhance the ‘Safe Melons’ program by applying whole-genome sequencing (WGS) in a real-time collaborative approach. This will position the industry at the forefront of food safety by integrating strong food safety culture with world-leading science, data, and technology.
Establish a ‘Community of Compliance’ platform to serve as a central hub for compliance resources, technical support, and guidance for growers and packers transitioning into new regulations.
Maintain the Food Safety Helpdesk, providing a direct point of contact for technical enquiries and liaison with Melons Australia and relevant regulators.
Strengthen industry knowledge sharing through site visits, industry forums, and conferences, ensuring growers receive up-to-date food safety insights, building their capacity to manage food safety effectively.

The project consists of two key components:

Monitoring: Ensures growers and packers follow best practices in food safety by continuously assessing critical processes in production and postharvest handling. Ongoing monitoring will verify the credibility of food safety practices at the farms and packing sheds and their ability to mitigate risks.
Support: Develops technical and compliance resources to assist growers in meeting new standards and conducting root-cause analyses to address food safety vulnerabilities.

Benefit

This project's activities and outputs will achieve outcomes for the melon industry's Strategic Investment Plan (2022–2026) and the Australian Horticulture Sustainability Framework, particularly the 'Nourish and Nurture' pillar (Goal 3), which highlights the importance of food safety and traceability.

Expected benefits include:

Ensuring a safe supply of melons for domestic and export markets.
Maintaining market access by ensuring industry stakeholders understand food safety risks and adopt recommended mitigation strategies.
Sustaining zero food safety incidents and recalls through improved industry knowledge of food safety risks and adoption of mitigation strategies.
Minimising food safety risks to consumers through a preventative and proactive approach.
Tracking key food safety indicators to identify trends, risks, and opportunities, with findings confidentially shared with growers to enhance best practices.
Enhancing collaboration between growers and researchers to ensure that food safety research and development investments are relevant, accessible, and address industry needs.

By implementing these strategies, the project will support long-term industry growth, strengthen food safety culture, and ensure the continued success and reputation of the Australian melon industry.