Assessment of the risk of human exposure to Brucella spp.

The Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES) was asked by the Federal Ministry of Health to assess the risk of human exposure to Brucella spp. through consumption of dairy products made from raw and pasteurised milk.
According to Regulation (EC) No. 853/2004 raw milk from animals showing a positive reaction to the prophylactic tests vis-à-vis brucellosis must not be used for human consumption. However, milk from officially brucellosis free herds may be consumed or further processed before an infection with brucelllosis is suspected. Therefore, assuming the organism is present in raw milk, survival of Brucella spp. was assessed in dairy products made from pasteurised milk and products made from raw milk, in which no heat, physical or chemical treatment was applied.
Pathogenic organism are usually not destroyed in milk heated to a maximum of 40°C during the production of raw milk cheeses. Hence, an infection with Brucella through consumption of unpasteurised milk and dairy products especially soft cheeses cannot be excluded. The production conditions and the ripening time of hard cheeses, however, were described to destroy Brucella. Therefore, a risk to consumers from hard cheeses made from raw milk appears to be unlikely. Absolute safety however cannot be guaranteed.
Present milk pasteurisation standards provide sufficient protection to the consumer when the organism is present in raw milk. The risk of infection through the consumption of pasteurised milk and dairy products is negligible.
It was concluded that the consumption of pasteurised milk and derived products does not pose a health risk to consumers. A possible risk associated with the consumption of raw milk and derived products is considered to be low, but cannot be excluded, especially for soft cheeses made from raw milk.

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Wissenschaftliche Stellungnahmen zur Risikobewertung von Milcherzeugnissen bei Verdacht auf Tuberkulose oder Brucellose