‘The idea that food safety in the Netherlands and Europe is a given is a dangerous misconception’

On 10 November, Lapo Mughini-Gras will deliver his inaugural lecture, following his appointment as Professor of Food Safety and Public Health in October last year. Although food in the Netherlands and Europe is generally safe, he warns that assuming food safety is automatically guaranteed is a dangerous misconception. Globalisation is making food systems increasingly complex, and even promising innovations, such as the shift toward alternative proteins, may introduce new, still unknown risks. To ensure food safety remains robust in the future, Mughini-Gras argues that the Netherlands needs more stable public research funding and stronger collaboration across all relevant sectors and scientific disciplines.

According to estimates from the World Health Organization, one in ten people worldwide fall ill each year after eating unsafe food. In the Netherlands, the RIVM estimates that as many as 2 million people were affected in 2024. Food can become unsafe when it is contaminated with bacteria, viruses, parasites, or toxic substances, leading to anything from mild gastrointestinal complaints to severe, sometimes life-threatening illness.

Yet much of this is preventable. Safe food is an achievable goal, Lapo Mughini-Gras argues in his inaugural lecture, but only if we work together. Collaboration is needed not just among stakeholders such as government, industry, and public health organisations, but also across scientific disciplines and methodologies, from microbiology to epidemiology.

Multidisciplinary research

In his research, Mughini-Gras investigates the origins and transmission routes of food-related diseases. A clear understanding of where infections come from and how they spread, he argues, is essential for taking effective action and developing evidence-based policies. His work focuses particularly on infections caused by food contaminated with animal-derived pathogens, such as Salmonella, Campylobacter, and Shiga-toxin–producing E. coli. These are the so-called alimentary zoonoses.

Mughini-Gras typically begins by examining confirmed human cases of illness and then works backwards to trace the pathogen’s source. To build a realistic picture of its origins and transmission routes, he combines insights from multiple scientific disciplines. Epidemiological studies help identify intermediate sources, such as high-risk foods or certain eating habits, key risk factors in the chain. But to pinpoint the original animal reservoirs that harbour the pathogen, epidemiology alone is often not enough; microbiological analyses are essential to complete the picture.

There is growing evidence that pathogens traditionally considered food-related can also spread through environmental routes

Looking beyond food

According to Mughini-Gras, gaining a complete picture of all possible infection routes requires not only multiple scientific perspectives but also measurements taken at different points along the entire chain of infection. Research increasingly shows that many important zoonotic pathogens can reach humans through a variety of pathways. There is growing evidence, for example, that pathogens traditionally considered food-related can also spread through environmental routes.

Take Campylobacter. Many human infections originate from animals such as chickens and cattle and are often linked to the consumption of contaminated poultry or beef. But this is only part of the story. People can also become infected through contact with contaminated environments, such as surface water. If policy measures were to focus solely on meat consumption, they would prevent only a fraction of cases, leaving other significant sources of infection unaddressed.

Normalising veterinary careers beyond clinical practice

In his lecture, Mughini-Gras places particular emphasis on education. Through his chair, he aims to strengthen the connection between research, fieldwork, and teaching in veterinary public health, and to collaborate more closely with other universities, government bodies, and the private sector. Such cooperation, he argues, is essential for staying responsive to emerging challenges.

He also calls for greater recognition and normalisation of veterinary career paths outside traditional clinical practice. Food safety, he notes, is not typically the most popular field among veterinary students, many of whom are eager to move straight into clinical work. Yet in roles such as inspector, researcher, or food-safety specialist, veterinary professionals can have a profound impact on human, animal, and environmental health.

Without structural public funding, fundamental knowledge will lag behind, leaving us unprepared for the new challenges that are already emerging

Looking to the future

Mughini-Gras concludes by looking ahead. Food safety is becoming increasingly complex, driven by globalisation and the growing interconnectedness of food chains. Pandemics, natural disasters, climate change, and geopolitical tensions further complicate the consistent application of safety standards. Meanwhile, population growth, income inequality, ageing populations, multicultural societies, misinformation, and shifting dietary habits are placing additional pressure on the system.

Fortunately, powerful tools such as advanced molecular techniques and artificial intelligence are helping us meet these challenges. According to Mughini-Gras, achieving full food safety is possible, but only if industry, government, and other stakeholders collaborate across disciplines to foster a shared culture of food safety.

A key requirement for this is more structural public funding for food safety research, a major concern for Mughini-Gras. Foodborne zoonoses are often overlooked in broader infectious disease funding programmes, yet effective policy, technological innovation, and public confidence all depend on solid research. “It is a dangerous misconception to take food safety in the Netherlands and Europe for granted,” he warns. “Without structural public funding, fundamental knowledge will lag behind, leaving us unprepared for the new challenges that are already emerging.”