FOOD SAFETY AND RESIDUES IN AUSTRALIAN AGRICULTURAL PRODUCE

A brief history of food safety in Australia in the context of the deve lopment of scientific knowledge is presented. Australia's food and foo d commodity residue and contamination surveillance and monitoring prog rams are outlined. Although chemical residues are perceived as a major health risk by the general community, the risk of food causing illnes s or death because of chemical residues is low. The major threat to hu man health from food is microbiological contamination, in terms of dea ths, sickness and economic loss. The emerging influences in food safet y are scientific and technical developments, deregulation, social and demographic factors, and the media. The risk of disruption of domestic and export markets by food safety issues is considerable. The emergen ce of international standards for food production and processing will enable commercial contractual arrangements to minimise the frequency o f disruptive food safety incidents.