00529 - Inspection of Products of Animal Origin

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course the student is able to: make a judgement on the safety and product requirements of foods of animal origin. Assess the main working and conservation processes to which foods of animal origin are subjected. Explain the main health and bromatological control methodologies performed on foods of animal origin. Apply the national and European Union legislation in force regarding foods of animal origin.

Course contents

This course is part of the C.I. of "Prevention Sciences in Food Safety", the verbalizing teacher is Prof. Alessandro Seguino.

Teaching is based on frontal lessons (36 hours). Teacher Prof. Alessandro Seguino

The Inspection of Food of Animal Origin includes the scientific, regulatory, economic and social aspects of the production of food of animal origin aimed at the prevention and protection of consumer health. But it also deals with animal welfare, the principles of food microbiology and food preservation. Problems with food production can cause disease in humans. The links between animal husbandry, food safety management systems, environment, animal health and welfare are emphasized in this course.
This course will provide a foundation that will allow students to develop interest and knowledge in topics relating to the inspection of Animal Source Food. At the end of the course students will be able to:

• Underline the role of the health inspector in protecting public health, included in a ‘One Health’ approach to the hygienic production of food of animal origin in the UK and in Europe.
• Describe the key steps of the food chain and assess them using the ‘Farm to Fork’ approach.
• Apply the main European and Italian legislation related to the identification of zoonotic diseases, the traceability of animals and food of animal origin, hygienic production of food and animal welfare.
• Describe the key principles involved in food producing establishment hygienic design and operational processes.
• Explain the importance of animal welfare during transport and at slaughter and how this is related to food safety and quality of product in the food chain (including poultry and fishery products).
• Describe the link between animal identification, food chain information, traceability and labelling of food of animal origin, and prevention of food fraud.
• Assess hygienic production and prevent the risk associated with food of animal origin (including milk, poultry, eggs, wild game and fish).
• Demonstrate the advantage of using a food safety management system (FSMS) to control hazards in food of animal origin and how auditing of FSMSs are performed.
• Discuss the importance of food microbiology, including principles of antimicrobial resistance in food, the main food preservation techniques and interpret microbiological testing results.
• Make a judgement on fitness of food of animal origin for human consumption.
• Explain the various aspects of public health including non-foodborne zoonoses.
• Explain the relationships between the environment and the correct disposal of waste from the farm and food producing establishments.
• Explain the importance of the National Surveillance Scheme on residues in Italy and prevent the risk to public health derived from chemical hazards in food.
• Explain the main control measures in place in Italy and Europe for TSEs (BSE and Scrapie).

Readings/Bibliography

• Material provided by the teacher (slides of the lectures in PDF format) and available from the dedicated Teaching Resources website on Virtuale.
• Book: Manuale di ispezione e controllo delle carni. Autori: Stella - Scanziani - Ghisleni (2023).
• Book: Igiene e tecnologie degli alimenti di origine animale. Autori: a cura di Giampaolo Colavita (2023).

Teaching methods

Frontal lessons

Assessment methods

The verification and evaluation of learning is carried out through an end-of-course exam. The end-of-course exam aims to evaluate the achievement of the main educational objectives of the course: (1) Use the terminology used in food safety and being able to express oneself correctly; (2) apply the hygiene, health and animal welfare parameters set by the legislation; (3) assess the methods of slaughter of the main species of livestock animals; (4) be able to analyse production processes and correctly identify the critical issues of a process and the methods to ensure its management; (5) apply the basic principles relating to the inspection of products of animal origin.
The End of Course exam consists of a written test (a) and an oral test (b). The written and oral tests contribute 50% each to the final exam grade (100%) expressed out of thirty.

a) Written test
The main purpose of the written test is to evaluate whether the student has adequate knowledge relating to the contents covered in the course, and problem-solving skills. The written test is structured in this way:
- 40 Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs).
- The total duration of the written test is 60 minutes (approximately 1 minute and 30 seconds per question).
- The written test is closed book. During the written test, the use of support material of any kind such as textbooks, notes, IT media, etc. is not permitted.
Each multiple choice question has four alternatives and only one correct answer. The score can be 0 (zero) for an incorrect answer or 1 (one) for a correct answer. The answer not given is considered incorrect (score: zero). The grade of the written test (score obtained based on the number of correct answers out of 40 available expressed in thirtieths, for example, a student who achieved a score of 24 correct answers out of 40 will receive a grade of 18/30) will be averaged with the score of the oral exam to obtain the score of the End of Course exam.

b) Oral test
The purpose of the oral test is to verify the learning of the basic notions and the student's ability to apply their knowledge to make the necessary integrated logical-deductive connections.
The oral test is based on questions taken from at least two topics covered during the lectures. The student is asked to contextualize the topics and analyse the reasons that make the application of a certain rule necessary. The teacher can use teaching aids such as images to contextualize the exam question. The criteria for evaluating the acquisition of knowledge/skills are: i) understanding of the student with respect to the individual topics required; ii) ability to connect and compare the different aspects and contents covered; iii) ability to apply theoretical knowledge to a food inspection context; iv) presentation skills and language skills.
The evaluation is expressed with a mark out of thirty for the oral exam. The oral test is passed with a grade of at least 18/30.
Oral exam grade standards:
- A very in-depth knowledge of the topics addressed in the course, together with high critical analysis and connection skills and a sure mastery of specific terminology and excellent practical skills will be assessed with the maximum score (30-30L).
- An in-depth knowledge of the topics addressed in the course, together with good analytical and critical skills and the possession of a secure command of specific terminology and good practical skills will be assessed with good grades (27-29).
- Technically adequate preparation and sufficient analytical ability, even if not particularly articulated, expressed in correct language and discrete practical skills, will produce discrete evaluations (23-26).
- Sufficient preparation and analytical ability, expressed in a barely formally correct language and sufficient practical skills, will determine sufficiency (18-22).

How the final exam grade is made up:
The weight of the different parts for the achievement of the training objectives is represented as follows:
- 50%: written test result (score of the written test expressed in thirtieths).
- 50%: oral test result expressed in thirtieths.
Please note: The oral test is passed with a grade of at least 18/30. The End of Course Exam (written test and oral test) is passed with a grade of at least 18/30. The student has the right to refuse to have the grade of the proposed End of Course Exam recorded, but will have to repeat the End of Course Exam in its entirety (written test and oral test). The teacher taking the minutes is Prof. Alessandro Seguino.


Students with DISABILITIES or DSA will have to contact the teacher to have adjustments to the teaching during the lesson or in the final evaluation phase. They will do this by e-mail, entering in the C/C the reference staff who follow them in the faculty.

Teaching tools

The teaching material consists of current legislation, the material made available to students via the website, and a collection of technical and scientific documents made available to the teacher and aimed at carrying out theoretical and practical lessons and in-depth study.

Office hours

See the website of Alessandro Seguino