Hazards in Products from Northern Mediterranean Countries Reported in the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) in 1997–2021 in the Context of Sustainability

Marcin Pigłowski (), Alberto Nogales and Maria Śmiechowska
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Marcin Pigłowski: Department of Quality Management, Faculty of Management and Quality Science, Gdynia Maritime University, Morska 81-87, 81-225 Gdynia, Poland
Alberto Nogales: Center for Studies and Innovation in Knowledge Management (CEIEC) Research Institute, Universidad Francisco de Vitoria, Pozuelo-Majadahonda KM 1.800, Pozuelo de Alarcón, 28223 Madrid, Spain
Maria Śmiechowska: Department of Quality Management, Faculty of Management and Quality Science, Gdynia Maritime University, Morska 81-87, 81-225 Gdynia, Poland

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 3, 1-27

Abstract: The European Green Deal attaches great importance to sustainability, including food security, which is also linked to food safety. This is particularly relevant in such a sensitive region as the Mediterranean. The goal of this study was to investigate Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) notifications of hazards reported in 1997–2021 (a 25-year period) in products from northern Mediterranean countries considering products and other variables. A two-way joining cluster analysis was used. The most notable hazards in the latter years of the reported period were as follows: ochratoxin A and pesticide residues in fruits and vegetables imported from Turkey and ethylene oxide in various products, as well as Salmonella in chicken, Listeria in cheese, Escherichia coli in cheese and mussels from France, mercury in swordfish from Spain, and Anisakis in seafood from France and Morocco. The increasing number of notifications of ochratoxin A and pathogenic micro-organisms in recent years may be caused by climate change. This also results in the need to use more pesticides and the appearance of related hazards, i.e., residues of such compounds in food products. It is, therefore, vitally important that border posts and control authorities in particular European Union countries are vigilant.

Keywords: food safety; mycotoxins; pesticide residues; pathogenic micro-organisms; cluster analysis; European Union (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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