Egg & Egg products: Hazard overview

Legislation: Egg & Egg products

Table 1 regulation for the egg sector legislation status of food safety

Regulation	Description
(EC) No 1069/2009	The legal framework for the control and supervision of animal products
(EU) No 142/2011	Implementing Regulation
(EC) No 178/2002	General principles and requirements of food law, establishing the European Food Safety Authority and laying down procedures in matters of food safety
(EC) No 852/2004	Food Hygiene
(EC) No 853/2004	Hygiene in the production of products of animal origin
(EC) No 2073/2005	Microbiological criteria for foodstuffs
(EC) No 396/2005	Maximum residue levels of pesticides in or on certain products
(EU) No 1169/2011	Provision of food information to consumers
(EC) No 1333/2008	Food additives
(EC) No 2160/2003	Control salmonella
(EC) No 2022/2388	amending Regulation (EC) No 1881/2006 as regards maximum levels of perfluoroalkyl substances in certain foodstuffs

Microbiology: Egg & Egg products

Table 2 Microbiological hazards occurring, full table with more extensive information about the hazards can be found here.

Genus	Pathogenic species	GR	Form, mobility	O₂	T (C.)	T1 (C.)	pH-O	pH-R	aW	Illness
Aeromonas	hydrophilic, sobria, caviae	–	Rod, mobile	Fa	20-35	4,0-42,0		4,0-10,0	>0.97	Infection: diarrhoea, stomachache and vomiting.
Salmonella	Two thousand three hundred species that might cause enteritis (stomach inflammation).	–	Rod, sometimes mobile	Fa	35-37	5,0-45,0	7.0	4,0-10,0	>0.93	Intestinal inflammation. For the elderly, small children and sick, illness can be fatal.
Salmonella	typhus; paratyphus	–	Rod	Fa	37	5,0-45,0			>0.93	Typhus, paratyphus are the most severe illnesses caused by Salmonella.

Chemical: Egg & Egg products

Table 3 possible chemical hazards derived from Hazard table Chemistry

Chemical component	Food product	Legislation	Comments
Dioxins: Polychlorinated dibenzodioxins (PCDD’s), Polychlorinated dibenzofurans PCDF and 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzodioxin (TCDD).	Herbs (through Feed) and poultry, fish (especially fatty fish such as herring and salmon) and Vegetables, Oils/fats, dairy and eggs	Maximum levels according to Regulation (EC) No 1881/2006	Formed from chlorinated linkages during heating with low oxygen levels. Carcinogenic for humans and animals above a threshold level.
Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and dioxin-like PCBs (dl-PCBs)	Herbs (through Feed), poultry, fish (especially fatty fish such as herring and salmon), Vegetables, Oils/fats, dairy and eggs	Maximum levels according to Regulation (EC) No 1881/2006	Carcinogenic for animals and humans. Moreover, it might induce skin disorders, reproductive toxicity and liver diseases. PCBs burn above 1200 °C, are insoluble and are applied as plasticizers, paint, ink, lacquer, glue and insecticides.
Residues: (animal)medicines, antibiotics, anti-microbial substances, growth promotors and vitamins.	Herbs	Forbidden	Herbs inspection. For each drug is, a Maximum Residue Level (MRL) established with a specific accepted amount in herbs, liver, kidney, fat, milk and eggs. The usage of Chloramphenicol and nitrofuran is forbidden in the EU and VS while still accepted in some Asian countries.

Table 4 Viruses, rickettsie in egg products, derived from Hazard table Other Biotoxins

Name poisoning	Origin	Food	Illness	Comments
Biogenic-amine Histamine	Plants, animals and microbes	Almost all food products are high in proteins. Histamine is formed from histidine by enzymes mainly from the Enterobacteriaceae.	Influences physiological processes in the body. Consumption of biogenic amines could lead to poisoning. Symptoms: nausea, stuffiness, palpitations, eczema, unnatural blood pressure and headache.	Often present in fish as histamine, a symptom similar to food poisoning.

Fraud

The Dutch Food Safety Authority-IOD focuses on various forms of fraud in the poultry sector, such as meat fraud, manure fraud and fraud with eggs and illegal use of plant protection products and biocides. It identifies the following forms of fraud with regard to eggs: re-catting of poultry products (destination); fraud with THT date; fraud with the classification of eggs. Category 3 eggs are upgraded to products for human consumption.