Ine van der Fels-Klerx: Smart monitoring for food safety

The title ‘prof.dr.ir.’ immediately reveals that Ine van der Fels-Klerx has an impressive academic background. However, anyone expecting a stuffy, academic professor across the table would be mistaken. Van der Fels speaks passionately and animatedly about her field of expertise: Food Safety Economics. What do food producers gain from her research?

Prof.dr.ir. H.J. (Ine) van der Fels-Klerx is affiliated with both Wageningen Food Safety Research and Wageningen University. She has a broad background in assessing food safety risks in supply chains, including the impacts of food system changes on food safety. At least, that’s what the internal publication of Wageningen University & Research, Resource, says. Despite her extensive expertise, the field of Food Safety Economics remains relatively new. As the name suggests, this discipline focuses on ensuring food safety, particularly monitoring (its central emphasis), and how to do this as effectively and cost-efficiently as possible. Numerous factors can be considered that will influence food safety in the future. What are the major threats, according to Van der Fels? And can these potential risks be mitigated through changes in cleaning and disinfection practices? “The most impactful change? I think that would be disruptions in trade markets.”

What exactly does ‘the economic side’ of food safety entail?

“We examine how to ensure food safety within the supply chain, combined with economics. What actions can you take, given the available resources, to achieve the greatest impact on food safety? I focus on measures related to both prevention and control, but the emphasis lies on monitoring. So, how can you monitor as cost-effectively as possible? Of course, we also evaluate measures to be taken and how to implement them cost-efficiently. In practice, this involves identifying where in the supply chain the most risks for specific food safety hazards lie. That’s where you want to take samples. The follow-up question is: how many samples? And can you mix them?”

How willing are companies to invest?

“It’s not about willingness. Investing in food safety is a license to produce, so to speak. ‘What has to be done, must be done.’ Producers themselves are responsible for ensuring the safety of their products. That is a legal requirement across Europe.”

Are there companies leading the way by innovating faster?

“Yes, they exist, but it’s challenging to position yourself based on that. It’s difficult to advertise that your food safety standards are higher than others. Food must be safe. Period.”

Where does your field of research stand at the moment?

“It’s still in its infancy. Globally, very little has been done scientifically in this area. At Wageningen, we’ve been working on it for about ten years now, but only on a limited scale. There’s still much work to be done. Does it have the potential to grow? Absolutely!”

Why?

“Look, the research I conduct will definitely help risk managers make higher-quality decisions. By providing insights, we aid in enhancing decision-making processes. For example, research may show that a relatively high number of samples are needed to detect a specific type of contamination using a particular analytical method. With that knowledge, you can make better choices, like opting for sample mixing or a different analytical approach. It’s always a matter of balancing options. Providing companies with scientific data showing which ingredients from which countries carry the highest contamination risks, and which methods to use, gives them a significant advantage.”

How do you make this practical?

“We develop tools. Recently, we created a dashboard for the animal feed industry, which sources ingredients globally. This tool, for example, highlights that Brazilian soybean meal has a higher-than-average contamination risk, helping users allocate resources more effectively.”

What are the most significant changes impacting food safety today?

“Disruptions in trade markets have an enormous impact. Consider the situation in Ukraine or the Suez Canal blockage caused by a stranded ship. What happens then? Normally, you’d source coffee, for example, from a specific supplier. Suddenly, you’re scrambling for an alternative, often with no prior relationship or history. You lose control.

“From Ukraine, we saw that corn was contaminated with mycotoxins for a long time. Perhaps it had been stored in a barn in Ukraine for too long, or maybe it had been stored in another country under poor conditions. Similarly, more grain was imported from South America, carrying higher pesticide residue risks. In short, these market disruptions are a critical factor, as far as I’m concerned”

Does climate change also have an effect?

“Absolutely. It increases the likelihood of certain contaminations. For instance, we’re seeing a shift in mycotoxin occurrences in grains toward northern Europe. But if your current HACCP systems are good, they’ll pick up on that. However, climate-related issues may force you to turn to alternative suppliers, leading to challenges elsewhere.”

So isn’t the transition to more plant-based foods a factor?

“Let’s be honest, consumption habits aren’t changing as quickly, not as quickly as predicted a decade ago. Take insects, for example. We’ve already conducted extensive research on them here at Wageningen. The shift is so gradual that food safety research has had time to adapt. I don’t expect significant impacts on food safety. Furthermore, many of the raw materials involved, such as wheat proteins, are already well-known.”

You didn’t mention the growing demand for fewer additives in food. Could this compromise food safety?

“If food safety or shelf life is at risk due to fewer additives, companies must solve it. Ultimately, they’re responsible for their products and compliance with legislation. While it’s not my area of expertise, I’d personally cook more with fresh, single-ingredient products if I wanted fewer additives.”

Could the fear of- and resistance to chemicals in cleaning and disinfection play a role?

“I think most consumers don’t know which chemicals are used during production. Again, companies bear the responsibility for ensuring product safety.”

You are also looking into the role of AI in food safety. Especially in terms of early detection of food safety risks with AI and big data. How far along are we?

“I mentioned that animal feed industry dashboard earlier. That case is already quite advanced. We could create something similar for food companies. However, when it comes to predicting unknown risks, we’ve only just begun at WFSR, and there’s still a long way to go. With AI, it’s important not to overwhelm risk managers with too much input. After all, the possibilities are endless, so smart choices are crucial.”

Will AI revolutionize food safety?

“For research, it’s undoubtedly a major leap forward because it allows us to work with far more data and generate more insights. The potential applications are unprecedented. One example we are already seeing is text mining, where you scrape news and social media to detect anomalies early. Imagine an outbreak somewhere, with local reports of people experiencing stomach issues—AI helps connect seemingly unrelated dots early on. We currently have two large projects focused on this.”

Can the risks discussed be mitigated through different cleaning and disinfection methods?

“No. That really lies within your HACCP system. However, I do believe cleaning and disinfection will play an even more significant role with climate change. Clean water will become scarcer. Picture overflowing sewers during floods, potentially contaminating crops irrigated with this water. Or during processing, when water is reused for washing potatoes, for instance. How do we disinfect and manage brown water? We’ll need to improve these systems in the future.”

What message would you give the food industry regarding food safety?

“For companies, it must be a tremendous challenge to stay up-to-date and adapt to ongoing changes. Stay informed and alert to new risks. In this era of geopolitical instability, climate change, and protein transitions, this is crucial. Knowledge exchange between science and industry must continue to ensure our food remains safe in the future.”

Photos © Koos Groenewold