In 2005 a large outbreak of verotoxin-producing Escherichia coli (VTEC) occurred in Sweden. Cases were interviewed and cohort and case–control studies were conducted. Microbiological investigations were performed using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to detect the Shiga-like toxin (Stx) genes followed by cultivation and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. A total of 135 cases were recorded, including 11 cases of hemolytic uremic syndrome. The epidemiological investigations implicated lettuce as the most likely source of the outbreak, with an OR of 13.0 (CI 2.94–57.5) in the case–control study. The lettuce was irrigated by water from a small stream, and water samples were positive for Stx 2 by PCR. The identical VTEC O157 Stx 2 positive strain was isolated from the cases and in cattle at a farm upstream from the irrigation point. An active surveillance and reporting system was crucial and cooperation between all involved parties was essential for quickly identifying the cause of this outbreak. Handling of fresh greens from farm to table must be improved to minimize the risk of contamination.

Global food security is one of the most pressing issues for humanity, and agricultural production is critical for achieving this. The existing analyses of specific threats to agricultural food production seldom bring out the contrasts associated with different levels of economic development and different climatic zones. We therefore investigated the same biophysical threats in three modelled types of countries with different economic and climatic conditions. The threats analysed were environmental degradation, climate change and diseases and pests of animals and plants. These threats were analysed with a methodology enabling the associated risks to be compared. The timeframe was 2012–2050 and the analysis was based on three underlying assumptions for 2050: the world population will have increased to 9 billion people, there will be a larger middle class in the world and climate change will be causing more extreme weather events, higher temperatures and altered precipitation. It is suggested that the risks, presented by the biophysical threats analysed, differ among the three modelled types of countries and that climate zone, public stewardship and economic strength are major determinants of these differences. These determinants are far from evenly spread among the world’s major food producers, which implies that diversification of risk monitoring and international assessment of agricultural production is critical for assuring global food security in 2050.

This review discusses food safety aspects of importance from a One Health perspective, focusing on Europe. Using examples of food pathogen/food commodity combinations, spread of antimicrobial resistance in the food web and the risk of transmission of zoonotic pathogens in a circular system, it demonstrates how different perspectives are interconnected. The chosen examples all show the complexity of the food system and the necessity of using a One Health approach. Food safety resources should be allocated where they contribute most One Health benefits. Data on occurrence and disease burden and knowledge of source attribution are crucial in assessing costs and benefits of control measures. Future achievements in food safety, public health and welfare will largely be based on how well politicians, researchers, industry, national agencies and other stakeholders manage to collaborate using the One Health approach. It can be concluded that closer cooperation between different disciplines is necessary to avoid silo thinking when addressing important food safety challenges. The importance of this is often mentioned, but more proof of concept is needed by the research community.

Improvement of knowledge, attitudes and practices among urban livestock farmers could have a significant impact on the reduction of many zoonotic infections in urban farming. This study aimed to describe and evaluate weak areas in knowledge, attitudes and practices with regards to brucellosis among urban and peri-urban small-scale dairy farmers in a low income country to generate information essential for control programmes and public health interventions. The cross-sectional study was conducted during six weeks in 2011. The study subjects were small-scale dairy farmers living in the urban and peri-urban area of the capital Dushanbe in Tajikistan. In total, 441 farmers were interviewed using a questionnaire with questions about demographic characteristics, knowledge, attitudes and practices relating to brucellosis. Descriptive statistics were used and a logistic regression model applied to evaluate potential predictors to knowledge about brucellosis. The majority (85%) of the farmers had never heard of brucellosis. Low educational level was found to be associated with low awareness of brucellosis (P = < 0.001). Respondents who talked about animal health issues with family members or friends were less likely to have heard of brucellosis compared to those who often talked to veterinarians (P = 0.03). Sixty three per cent of the participants wanted more information about brucellosis. Seventeen per cent sold unpasteurized dairy products on a regular basis direct to consumers. Almost 30% of the households consumed unpasteurized dairy products on regular basis. A majority of the respondents did not use any protection when handling cows having an abortion or when dealing with aborted materials. Poor knowledge, high-risk behaviours and a willingness to learn more strengthens the logic for including health education as part of control programmes.

Uganda is a low‐income country with the largest pig population in East Africa. Pig keeping has a large potential, commercially and as a tool for poverty reduction, but African swine fever (ASF) is a major hurdle for development of the sector. The objective of this study was to evaluate knowledge, attitudes and practices related to ASF in the smallholder pig production value chain in northern Uganda. The study included three separate series of participatory rural appraisals (PRA), comprising purposively selected farmers and other actors in the pig production value chain. In the PRAs, various participatory epidemiology tools were used. A total of 49 PRAs and 574 participants, representing 64 different villages, were included. The results indicate that participants were well aware of the clinical signs of ASF, routes for disease spread and measures for disease control. However, awareness of the control measures did not guarantee their implementation. A majority of middlemen and butchers acknowledged having sold live pigs, carcasses or pork they believed infected with ASF. Outbreaks of ASF had a strong negative impact on participants’ socio‐economic status with loss of revenue and reversal into more severe poverty. In conclusion, lack of knowledge is not what is driving the continuous circulation of ASF virus in this setting. To control ASF and reduce its impact, initiatives that stimulate changes in management are needed. Because the behaviour of all actors in the value chain is largely influenced by the deep rural poverty in the region, this needs to be combined with efforts to reduce rural poverty.

Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) is transmitted to humans from pigs or birds by mosquitoes. In this study, the association between urban pig keeping and mosquito vectors was analyzed. A total of 7, 419 mosquitoes were collected overnight in urban households with and without pigs in Can Tho City, Vietnam. The most prevalent vectors were Culex tritaeniorhynchus (36%), Cx. gelidus (24%), and Cx. quinquefasciatus (15%), which were present in all parts of the city. Pigs were associated with increased numbers of Cx. tritaeniorhynchus. Traps close to pigs had higher numbers of Cx. tritaeniorhynchus and Cx. gelidus than traps close to humans. Increased number of persons in the household was associated with increased numbers of Cx. quinquefasciatus. We demonstrate that JEV vector species are present at urban households with and without pigs, and show that keeping pigs in an urban area increase the number of mosquitoes competent as vectors for JEV.