Every day, millions of tonnes of meat are produced, processed, and traded across international borders before reaching consumers. Ensuring that this meat is safe requires coordinated action from farmers, veterinarians, processors, laboratories, regulators, retailers, and governments. Meat hygiene encompasses the practices that prevent contamination by harmful biological and chemical hazards throughout the food chain, protecting public health while supporting consumer confidence and the livestock economy.
Globalized meat trade has increased consumer choice and created significant economic opportunities, but it has also amplified the consequences of food safety failures. A contamination event in one country can rapidly affect multiple markets through product recalls, illness outbreaks, and trade disruptions. The 2017–2018 South African listeriosis outbreak—the largest recorded globally—caused more than 1,000 confirmed cases and over 200 deaths after contaminated ready-to-eat processed meat entered the market. Similarly, Escherichia coli O157 outbreaks linked to beef and recurrent Salmonella outbreaks associated with poultry have resulted in major recalls and highlighted vulnerabilities even in countries with advanced food safety systems.
Meat hygiene also plays a central role in international trade. Under the World Trade Organization's Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Measures, countries must base food safety requirements on scientific evidence while avoiding unnecessary barriers to trade. Nevertheless, disputes continue over issues such as hormone-treated beef, pathogen reduction treatments for poultry, bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), avian influenza, and more recently South Africa's poultry import measures discussed in the WTO SPS Committee.
This paper https://www.nature.com/articles/s41538-026-00767-x explores how science-based meat hygiene systems safeguard public health, strengthen consumer confidence, and facilitate international trade. Drawing on lessons from major foodborne disease outbreaks and SPS disputes, it examines emerging challenges and increasingly complex global supply chains—and argues that effective meat hygiene is a cornerstone of safe food systems and sustainable global trade.