Blanc Michel
Experagro, Saint-Cloud, France.
Mol Nutr Food Res. 2006 May;50(6):473-9. doi: 10.1002/mnfr.200600009.
To ensure a high level of consumer protection, the European Union has in the past years published several regulations setting very low limits for a given number of food contaminants (pesticides, mycotoxins, heavy metals) in many agricultural products (cereals, oilseeds, dry fruits, coffee, spices, etc). These new regulations regarding the sanitary quality of agricultural products, compel both economic operators and officials of different EU member states to set up sampling plans and rigorous analyses aimed at checking whether a product lot complies with the required standards prior to its release on the market. While the laboratory analysis management today is outstanding thanks to the validated and efficient detection methods and procedures available for quality assurance in laboratories (accreditation), this is not necessarily true of the sampling operation, which seems to be the weak link in the sanitary control system for agricultural products. The sampling operation is often the main source of error when assessing the sanitary quality of a lot of agricultural commodities, with both commercial (downgrading of the product) and sanitary (marketing of a product which poses a health risk for the consumer) consequences. Therefore, it is essential for the operators involved to be aware of the significance and difficulties of the sampling operation, which requires important equipment and human resources. Furthermore, drawing up specific standards and guidelines, as well as setting up quality assurance procedures, at the level in charge of carrying out this delicate and important operation, are necessary.
为确保高水平的消费者保护，欧盟在过去几年发布了多项法规，对许多农产品（谷物、油籽、干果、咖啡、香料等）中特定数量的食品污染物（农药、霉菌毒素、重金属）设定了极低的限量。这些关于农产品卫生质量的新法规，迫使欧盟不同成员国的经济运营者和官员制定抽样计划并进行严格分析，旨在在产品投放市场前检查一批产品是否符合要求的标准。尽管如今实验室分析管理因实验室质量保证（认可）中可用的经过验证且高效的检测方法和程序而非常出色，但抽样操作却未必如此，抽样操作似乎是农产品卫生控制系统中的薄弱环节。在评估一批农产品的卫生质量时，抽样操作往往是主要的误差来源，会产生商业（产品降级）和卫生（销售对消费者健康构成风险的产品）两方面的后果。因此，参与其中的操作人员必须意识到抽样操作的重要性和困难，这需要重要的设备和人力资源。此外，在负责开展这项精细且重要操作的层面制定具体标准和指南以及建立质量保证程序是必要的。
