2024, Vol. 6, Issue 5, Part B

Background: Food safety is a critical public health concern, encompassing all hazards (biological, chemical, and physical) that can cause food to be detrimental to consumers. It aimed to assess food safety compliance with Iraqi standards and identify potential areas for improvement.

Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional design with analytical elements was employed. A convenience sampling approach analyzed data from 20,024 food samples received by the Nutrition Research Institute (NRI) in Baghdad, Iraq, over two-years (December 2020 - December 2022) from various sectors within Baghdad. The samples were subjected to routine bacteriological, chemical, and physical investigations.

Results: Only 1.2% (235) of the samples did not meet the compliance standards. The categories investigated the most frequently were processed foods and those with potentially high-risk factors. The beverages had the highest failure rate (3.6%), followed by meat and poultry (3.3%) and ready-to-eat meals (3.1%). Interestingly, imported samples had a lower overall failure rate (0.6%) compared to domestically produced samples (3.9%). Analysis of failures by origin and category revealed that domestically produced dairy products, beverages, and ready-to-eat meals had significantly higher failure rates compared to their imported counterparts. On the contrary, failures in the salt, sauce, and yeast categories were more frequent in imported products. This suggests areas for improvement in both domestic production practices and import regulations.

Microbial contamination, particularly bacterial issues such as E. coli and Salmonella, has emerged as a major concern in various categories, including dairy, meat, and beverages. Chemical failures related to acidity, total SOS, and humidity were also identified.

Conclusions: This study highlights the importance of continuous monitoring of food safety in Iraq. The findings suggest a need for stricter quality control measures, particularly for domestically produced high-risk food categories. More research is recommended to pinpoint the root causes of failures and implement targeted interventions to ensure safe food supplies for the Iraqi population.