Report of the Scientific Committee of the Spanish Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition (AESAN) on preventative measures and appli- cable recommendations for avoiding possible food-borne infec- tions caused by strains of verotoxigenic/Shiga toxin-producing/en- terohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (VTEC/STEC/EHEC)

Escherichia coli is the predominant species of normal aerobic and facultative anaerobic microbiota found in the digestive tract of many species of animals, and it is excreted from the body through faeces. It can be found outside the body as it can survive for a certain period in water and in food. Its isolate in these elements is indicative of faecal contamination. Although most strains of E. coli are commensals and even beneficial, some are pathogens and can cause serious enteric infections (diarrhoea, hemorrhagic colitis, haemolytic uraemic syndrome) or extraintestinal infections (urinary tract infections, bacteraemia or septicaemia, meningitis, peritonitis, mastitis, and respiratory and wound infections) in humans and animals. The verotoxigenic E. coli (VTEC) group, also known as Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) and enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC), especially the highly virulent strains of the serotype O157:H7, is a dangerous group of pathogens which causes very serious diseases in human beings: hemorrhagic colitis (HC) and the haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS). Ruminants, especially cattle, are the main reservoir of this type of micro-organism, while the primary means of transmission are minced meat, hamburgers and vegetables which are consumed raw or lightly cooked. The necessary preventative measures, covering the whole food chain, should consequently be put in place. These include: good agricultural practices, biosafety programmes in farms with livestock, good hygiene and abattoir inspection practices, and good practices in vegetable processing for fresh consumption. Also, workers in the food industry must adopt procedures based on the principles of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP), and consumers must be taught the good practices of preserving and cooking food. All of these measures should help minimise the incidence of this food poisoning in human populations. These measures should, furthermore, be combined with specific analysis protocols which enable quick and accurate detection of the strains involved, and