Eggs and egg products contamination: Analysis of the EU RASFF notifications from 2000 to 2022

The European Union Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) serves as an information exchange platform to alert on food and feed that are risky. This study aimed to analyze 434 RASFF notifications on eggs and egg products from 2000 to 2022, based on the year, notification classification, origin country, notifying country, hazards categories, hazards, risk decision, and action taken. The results showed that the majority of notifications were classified as information, alert, and border rejection, accounting for 61.98%, 34.79%, and 3.23% of the total notifications, respectively. Italy, Germany, and France were the most notifying countries, accounting for 19.82%, 14.75%, and 10.14%, respectively. On the other hand, Italy, Poland, and Germany comprised the top notified origin countries, representing 16.13%, 15.90%, and 11.06%, respectively. Egg's top hazard categories were pathogenic microorganisms (40.78%), pesticide residues (27.88%), veterinary drug residues (7.37%), feed additives (5.99%), and environmental pollutants (5.07%). The detection frequency (%) of the top hazards in eggs was as follows: Salmonella (36.4%), fipronil (25.8%), lasalocid (3.92%), furazolidone (2.3%), dioxin-like PCBs (2.07%), nicarbazin (2.07%), dioxins (1.84%), enrofloxacin (1.6%), nitrofen (1.38%), and nitrofurazone (0.92%). The majority of these notifications resulted in undecided risk decisions (44.01%), followed by not serious (32.03%), and serious (23.96%). The most frequently observed response to notifications was market withdrawal, accounting for 24.88% of the actions taken. Interestingly, the findings indicate a notable surge in notifications during the year 2017, with 126 notifications recorded mostly due to fipronil. This study emphasizes the significance of regular surveillance and control of eggs and egg derivatives to maintain food safty and prevent consumer public health.