Parasites: HACCP hazard table overview

Introduction to parasites

We have several HACCP risk tables. Below you can see the HACCP variation table we have compiled on parasites. As this table is very extensive, we recommend using the download below to view the table properly.

Table: Possible hazards parasites

Parasite	Group	Origin	Food product	Disease	Measurements	Comments
Anisakis marina	Roundworms	Marine mammals are the final hosts; fish shellfish are intermediate hosts.	Fish, raw and not correctly treated herring.	Anisakiasis by larvae: consumed larvae cause stomach and intestine infections similar to appendicitis.	Deep frozen: 24 hours at -20 °C. Heating until 50 °C, Marinating until pH.	Illness is under control in the Netherlands.
Cryptosporidium parvum	Protozoa	Farm animals are intermediate (intestine parasites); humans are the final hosts.	Meat and food products are contaminated with animal faeces.	Cryptosporidiosis by the consumption of encapsulated fertilized eggs (=oocytes) that develop in the human intestine into full-grown protozoa and could cause diseases. Incubation is between 3-14 days.	Good hygiene during slaughter.	Calves and poultry are frequently contaminated. Risks for humans are, in general small. Livestock keepers and slaughters are risk groups that could prevent diseases with the help of good hygiene.
Echinococcus granulosis	Tapeworm	Dogs are the final hosts. Eggs, in faeces. Humans, pigs and sheep are intermediate hosts.	Through faeces contaminated food/water.	Echinococcosis eggs develop in the lungs or liver of the human until the next intermediate stage, called bladder worm and possibly causing dangerous illnesses.	Slaughter waste as feed for dogs and other animals should be adequately cooked. Hygienic contact with dogs. No slaughtering at home, good meat examination.
Entamoeba histolytica	Protozoa (amoeba)	Human	Through faeces contaminated food/water and transport by flies and cockroaches.	Amoebic dysentery: intake of cysts leads to diarrhoea or more severe symptoms with death as a consequence.	Good sewerage. Cysts are being destroyed at temperatures above 55 °C and freezing.	Lives mainly in subtropical areas; illness is sometimes found in the Netherlands but it is often caught abroad.
Giardia lamblia	Protozoa	Intestinal tract; mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians.	Through faeces contaminated food/water.	Giardiasis: cysts cause illness (nausea, diarrhoea), the disease can take between 1 to 3 months, and the incubation is between 1 to 3 weeks.	Personal hygiene, good sewerage, no faecal contamination of water, and heating.	Cysts are chlorination resistant.
Fasciola hepatica	Sunction worm	Cattle, sheep and humans as final hosts; the snail functions as the intermediate host.	A snail, especially watercress contaminates vegetables.	Fascioliasis: human consumes cysts that develop into completely grown harmful parasites.	Good examination at slaughter and diligent slaughter processes where organs are being removed.
Clonorchis sinensis	Coli		Inadequate heated or raw fish from freshwater	Clonorchiasis: infection of the gall bladder, liver by consumption of cysts.	Cysts are being destroyed at 50 °C.	Typically in Asian countries.
Taenia saginata	tapeworm	Cattle as intermediate hosts with humans as final hosts.	Beef	Examination of cattle. The heating of meat at 70 °C is the minimum core temperature. Freezing.	Examination of cattle. Heating of meat at 70 °C is the minimum core temperature. Freezing.	Contamination is probable, and regulations are still needed.
Taenia solium	Tapeworm	Pigs are intermediate hosts, humans can function as intermediate and final hosts.	Pork	Damage to the intestinal wall and spread to other organs with severe diseases.	The same as Taenia saginata	Rare in the Netherlands but common in middle and south America.
Toxoplasma gondii	Protozoa (sporozoa)	Cat is the final host, and all warm-blooded animals can function as intermediate hosts.	Meat and vegetables are contaminated by cat faeces.	Toxoplasmosis. Healthy individuals: intake of a cyst leads to light flu symptoms, the organism could stay for a longer time in the muscles; risk groups are pregnant women (meningitis, hydrocephalus for the child). Older adults and young children could get severe symptoms such as blindness. The incubation time is 1-3 weeks.	Acceptance. Raw and contaminated meat should not be consumed. Hygienic relations with cats. Proper washing of vegetables (probably contaminated with oocytes of cat). Cysts (infectious) are killed at 70 °C and by freezing.	Contamination of cattle in the Netherlands decreased. Awareness is still important because of the high contamination value.
Trichinella spiralis	Roundworm	Pigs and horses are contaminated by wild and rodents.	Pork, horse meat and wild meat.	Trichinellosis. Diseases are induced by the consumption of encapsulated larvae. The first symptoms are stomach and intestine issues. Larvae are full-grown worms formed that reproduce in the intestines and transport through the lymph. After that, they encapsulate in muscles and cause diseases with severe symptoms such as paralysis. In addition, death could be the consequence.	Proper examination and acceptance of slaughtered cattle. Don’t feed unheated animal-based waste and have good oral hygiene. Manufacturer heats with a core temperature of a minimum of 70 °C, lowering aw, salting, smoking or freezing. According to meatinspection-legistation. Finally, it is advised that the consumer prevents eating raw pork or wild.	In the Netherlands have porks and horses with a low infection rate. Examination of the presence of parasites in meat takes place but still, but control is still needed.