ATR-FTIR spectroscopy and chemometrics as a quick and simple alternative for discrimination of SARS-CoV-2 infected food of animal origin.

Alternative routes such as virus transmission or cross-contamination by food have been suggested, due to reported cases of SARS-CoV-2 in frozen chicken wings and fish or seafood. Delay in routine testing due to the dependence on the PCR technique as the standard method leads to greater virus dissemination. Therefore, alternative detection methods such as FTIR spectroscopy emerge as an option. Here, we demonstrate a fast (3 min), simple and reagent-free methodology using attenuated total reflection-Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy for discrimination of food (chicken, beef and fish) contaminated with the SARS-CoV-2 virus. From the IR spectra of the samples, the "bio-fingerprint" (800 - 1900 cm-1) was selected to investigate the distinctions caused by the virus contamination. Exploratory analysis of the spectra, using Principal Component of Analysis (PCA), indicated the differentiation in the data due to the presence of single bands, marked as contamination from nucleic acids including viral RNA. Furthermore, the partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) classification model allowed for discrimination of each matrix in its pure form and its contaminated counterpart with sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of 100 %. Therefore, this study indicates that the use of ATR-FTIR can offer a fast and low cost and not require chemical reagents and with minimal sample preparation to detect the SARS-CoV-2 virus in food matrices, ensuring food safety and non-dissemination by consumers.

Technical recommendations for updating good food manufacturing practices (GMP) aimed at preventing COVID-19 in food services: checklist and review of GMP manual / Recomendações técnicas para atualização das boas práticas de fabricação de alimentos (BPF) visando a prevenção da COVID-19 em serviços de alimentação: checklist e revisão de manuais BPF

The COVID-19 pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus brought additional challenges to the Food and Nutrition Service, so in addition to meeting the hygienic-sanitary conditions of food, companies now need to incorporate new manufacturing practices. foods that aim to preserve the health of workers as well as consumers. In this context, this study aimed to carry out a literature review on technical recommendations for good food manufacturing practices related to the prevention of COVID-19 and prepare a checklist to facilitate the identification of failures, assess risk COVID-19 transmission in food services and guide how to adapt the good manufacturing practices manuals. Based on technical notes (NT) 47, 48 and 49 of 2020 that were edited by ANVISA, based on the standards of the World Health Organization (WHO), a questionnaire was created containing 100 questions in the various categories of the food production sector, such as physical structure/building, hand washing conditions, general worker protection measures, material storage area, personal hygiene conditions, food storage area, company personnel, customer service area, preparation area, portioning and distribution area, food consumption area for workers, area for reception and food services received and food delivery services. In this way, we understand that biosafety measures must be adopted from the update of the manuals of good manufacturing practices in food services, and, to support this action, we propose the use of the checklist in the appendix to identify non-conformities related to the prevention of COVID -19.

A pandemia da COVID-19 causada pelo vírus SARS-CoV-2 trouxe desafios adicionais ao Serviço de Alimentação e Nutrição (SAN), pois, além de atender as condições higiênicas sanitárias dos alimentos, as empresas agora precisam incorporar novas práticas que visem preservar a saúde das pessoas. Nesse contexto, esse estudo buscou realizar uma revisão da literatura sobre as recomendações técnicas de boas práticas de fabricação de alimentos relacionadas com a prevenção da COVID-19 e elaborar uma lista de verificações (check-list) para facilitar a identificação de falhas, avaliar risco de transmissão da COVID-19 nos serviços de alimentação e orientar as adaptações dos manuais de boas práticas de fabricação. Com base nas notas técnicas vigentes no Brasil e baseadas nas diretrizes da Organização Mundial de Saúde (OMS), foi elaborado um questionário contendo 100 perguntas nas diversas categorias do setor de produção de alimentos. Dessa maneira, entendemos que medidas de biossegurança devem ser adotadas a partir da atualização dos manuais de boas práticas de fabricação nos serviços de alimentação, e, para apoiar essa ação, propomos a utilização do checklist em apêndice para identificar as inconformidades relacionadas a prevenção da COVID-19.