The Food Standards Agency (FSA), Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and Defra have launched a strategy aimed at reducing the risks of the food-borne pathogen through increased risk management processes across the whole supply chain. 2 Sisters aims to complement this by showing its commitment to reducing the presence of campylobacter on farms through these workshops.
Michelle Waterman, group agricultural director for 2 Sisters Food Group, said: “We’re committed to ensuring the very best standards across all of our UK farms, in both food safety and quality. We want biosecurity best practice to become a way of life for everyone on our farms. By working closely with our farmers, we believe we can send less bacteria into the food chain and play our part in producing safer chickens.
The workshops form part of a 12-month nationwide campaign, with all 2 Sisters Food Group farms receiving training materials. At the end of the 12 months, each farm will be audited to evaluate campylobacter results against each implemented measure to identify which controls had the greatest effect. The information will then be fed back to the FSA to form part of the documented research evidence.
Waterman added: “We’re also pleased that the results of our campylobacter reduction initiatives will aid the FSA’s research into the most effective methods to prevent colonisation at farm level – something the whole farming community across the globe could benefit from in the future.”
