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. 2023 Oct 7;11(12):8009-8026.
doi: 10.1002/fsn3.3721. eCollection 2023 Dec.

Risk assessment of norovirus and hepatitis A virus in strawberries imported into China

Junjie Zhong  1 , Yunfeng Yang  1 , Hui Zhang  1 , Shuwen Zhang  1 , Xiaosheng Qu  2 , Qin Chen  1 , Bing Niu  1
Affiliations

Risk assessment of norovirus and hepatitis A virus in strawberries imported into China

Junjie Zhong et al. Food Sci Nutr. .

Abstract

Norovirus (NoV) and hepatitis A virus (HAV) pose a considerable health risk worldwide. In recent years, many cases of virus infection caused by virus-contaminated strawberries have occurred worldwide. This study applied a critical control point system to analyze the main hazards during the production and marketing of strawberries imported into China and explore the key control points in the whole process. To further evaluate the risks in the supply chain, the established quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) was used to determine the probability that residents would be infected with viruses after consuming imported strawberries. It was found that the risk of virus contamination from imported strawberries was low, and the virus contamination mainly results from water resources and personnel. This research helps the regulatory authorities formulate strategies to ensure the long-term microbial safety of imported strawberries. In addition, the methods may prove useful in evaluating the risks of other agricultural produce.

Keywords: QMRA; critical control point system; strawberries; supply chain; virus.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Trade status of imported strawberries in China from 2010 to 2018. (a) Source countries and total trade value of imported strawberries, (b) total trade value of strawberry exporting countries from 2010 to 2018.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
The supply chain involved in the import of strawberries. The dotted line represents the processing flow of strawberries in the processing plant.
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
Diagrammatic representation of a decision tree for the determination of the critical control points.
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 4
The fitted distribution curves of virus concentration in the surface water. a‐1, a‐2 represent NoV; b‐1, b‐2 represent HAV.
FIGURE 5
FIGURE 5
The possibility distribution of NoV and HAV contamination levels in a single strawberry. The weight of strawberry is 15 g; a‐1, a‐2, a‐3 and b‐1, b‐2, b‐3 represent NoV; c‐1, c‐2, c‐3 and d‐1, d‐2, d‐3 represent HAV. PS means processed fresh strawberries, US means unprocessed fresh strawberries, and FS means frozen strawberries.
FIGURE 6
FIGURE 6
Mean levels of NoV and HAV contamination in strawberries.
FIGURE 7
FIGURE 7
Sensitivity analysis of factors affecting the final concentration of NoV and HAV in a single strawberry. a‐1, a‐2, a‐3 and b‐1, b‐2, b‐3 represent NoV; c‐1, c‐2, c‐3 and d‐1, d‐2, d‐3 represent HAV.
FIGURE 8
FIGURE 8
Residents' daily exposure to virus derived from strawberries when separated into different age groups. a represent NoV; b represent HAV.
FIGURE 9
FIGURE 9
The distribution of probabilities for virus infections among the population. a‐1, a‐2, a‐3 and b‐1, b‐2, b‐3 represent NoV; c‐1, c‐2, c‐3 and d‐1, d‐2, d‐3 represent HAV.
FIGURE 10
FIGURE 10
Average probabilities for NoV and HAV infections among the population.
FIGURE 11
FIGURE 11
The operating interface of the risk assessment system.
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