Environmental recovery training to respond to biological incidents affecting food production systems.

Large events involving biological threats in the food chain can have severe consequences for human health and require rapid and appropriate management to protect the public. We have created training at De Montfort University (UK) to respond to these events, which includes the use of the novel methodology developed by Public Health England (PHE) to recover environments affected by biological hazards in the UK Recovery Handbook for Biological Incidents (UKRHBI). The UKRHBI provides a series of recovery options to decontaminate three types of environment: food production systems, water environments and inhabited areas. The user, following the methodology from PHE, can select the recovery option(s) most applicable and effective for the scenario impacted and according to the physiological characteristics of the biological hazard/pathogen involved. Postgraduate students enrolled in the MSc. Advanced Biomedical Science in 2017/18 at DMU have completed a highly specialised workshop to respond to an outbreak-scenario due to Cyclospora cayetanensis affecting a berry farm and the food chain. Students, working in teams, were able to select effective options for their scenario using the UKRHBI and a workbook with all the necessary information about Cyclospora. Students indicated an acquisition of public health prevention knowledge and preparedness against a biological incident (66.7% agreed; 33.3% strongly agreed); and reported that the UKRHBI aided their learning on environmental recovery (33.3% agreed; 66.7% strongly agreed). The training developed seemed to be successful to provide future health care professionals with the necessary skills and tools to respond to outbreaks of infection affecting food production systems.