Mars Global Food Safety Center

🧧The New Year Family Day at the Mars Global Food Safety Center is one of the most cherished memories of our Lunar New Year celebrations—a time to gather, share love, and cherish precious moments together🎉. Wishing everyone joy, health, and prosperity in the Year of the Snake! 金蛇舞动迎新岁，福运连绵入家门。愿君新年皆顺遂，喜乐安康福满园！新春快乐！#LunarNewYear #Family #Celebration #ProudlyMars

Little insects to the rescue! Transforming Food Safety and Sustainability with Black Soldier Fly Larvae What if the solution to food contamination and waste came from the tiniest of creatures? Black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) are proving to be a game-changer in addressing one of agriculture’s biggest challenges: aflatoxin contamination. At the Mars Global Food Safety Center, we’re proud to announce the publication of a groundbreaking study in collaboration with Wageningen University & Research . Our latest paper explores an innovative solution for addressing aflatoxin contamination in groundnut by-products and found that BSFL can safely consume peanut press cake (PPC) contaminated with aflatoxins without accumulating the toxins. The results provide a promising outlook for rearing insects on aflatoxin contaminated PPC for use as human food and/or animal feed. This is early-stage research and further work is needed to thoroughly evaluate the technology. But this approach offers a new pathway to reduce waste, promote food safety and create sustainable feed sources. It has the potential to support agricultural sustainability, help mitigate losses from contaminated crops, and contribute to a more circular bioeconomy. This study underscores our commitment to advancing science-based solutions to global food safety challenges. Click here to read the full article and find out more about the research ➡️ https://lnkd.in/guy9tBsj We thank our collaborators and funding partners for supporting this important work. Let’s continue to innovate for a safer and more sustainable future. How do you feel about the potential of insects as a solution to global food challenges? #Science #Innovation #Sustainability #FoodSafety #FoodSecurity #Agriculture #BlackSoldierFly #FoodWaste #Aflatoxins #Mycotoxin #SustainableAgriculture #SafeFoodForAll #MarsGFSC #MarsGlobalFoodSafetyCenter #TomorrowStartsToday #ProudlyMars

👍 Excited to see our journey in inspiring young minds and empowering the next generation of innovators through our scholarship program at China Agricultural University (CAU)! By investing in these bright minds, we can continue to drive transformative change. CAU consistently ranks as the top university for agricultural education in China and has provided the largest number of talents to Mars China. We are proud to partner with CAU in developing early talents to tackle real-world challenges in food safety, health, and product development. Thrilled to witness this impactful collaboration and we look forward to working alongside these exceptional talents in the future! ⏩

Reflecting on a Year of Milestones of the Mars Global Food Safety Science Team and the Global Food Safety Center 🌏 ⏩ Highlight #4: Promoting Awareness about Food Safety Challenges 📢 To mark the World Food Safety Day and World Food Day, in 2024 Mars joined the FAO,World Health Organization and World Food Programme to raise global awareness on food safety. Through the #SafeFoodForAll and #WorldFoodDay Campaigns, the Mars Global Food Safety Center team were excited to join Mars Associates Abigail Stevenson, Silvia Sant'Ana Pereira, Darren Logan, Alan Littlechild, Gilbert Lamothe, Carl Jones, Claudia Cavaleiro, Patrick Kuang, Yu Li, Guoqian Zhang, Zheng Jianwen, Wang Yueyue, Carrie Lin, and many others, to reinforce the importance of food safety in our day-to-day work, shared our best practice and encourages everyone to be a #FoodHero and help drive meaningful actions.  #SafeFoodForAll #FoodSafety #Sustainability #ProudlyMars #TomorrowStartsToday #WorldFoodSafetyDay #WorldFoodDay

Reflecting on a Year of Milestones of the Mars Global Food Safety Science Team and the Global Food Safety Center 🌏 ⏩ Highlight #3: Knowledge Sharing to Raise the Bar 💡 Globally, in 2024 we championed the adoption of transformative technologies like genomics, AI and digitalization to strengthen food safety resilience and revolutionize supply chains. In April, we proudly co-presented at the The Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) conference alongside Silvia Sant'Ana Pereira, Donna Cook and Michael McDonald. This event united food industry leaders to drive continuous improvement in food safety management systems, highlighting Mars' commitment to food safety, science, technology and collaboration. At the International Association for Food Protection (IAFP)'s Annual Conference, our scientists showcased advancements in microbial risk management. We also partnered with the Chinese Institute of Food Science and Technology (CIFST) and the China International Food Safety and Quality Conference (CIFSQ) to share recent research findings and best practices. This year, we contributed to three food safety standards, including allergen management, and co-authored a guidebook on foreign body management - key milestones in raising the bar for global food safety. We look forward to continuing to share expertise and collaborate in the future. #SafeFoodForAll #FoodSafety #Sustainability #ProudlyMars #TomorrowStartsToday

Reflecting on a Year of Milestones of the Mars Global Food Safety Science Team and the Global Food Safety Center 🌏 ⏩ Highlight #2: Leading Applied Science Research for the Food Industry 🔬 Scientific research remains a cornerstone of technological progress and industry advancement. In 2024, we continued to lead applied science research for the food industry. One key breakthrough was in rapid pathogen identification using nanopore-based whole genome sequencing (WGS) together with our partners including Mars Global Service R&D Solutions, Mars Quality & Food Safety, The University of Georgia, and Cornell University, which enables precise identification of Listeria spp. under 24 hours - far faster than traditional methods. This innovation enhances our ability to address foodborne threats swiftly, strengthening both food safety and public health. We also tackled the global issue of aflatoxin contamination in peanuts, a serious food safety and health concern. Our study explored fluorescence-based sorting technology to remove contaminated peanuts on an industrial scale. Results showed over 80% sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy in reducing aflatoxin, demonstrating the effectiveness of this approach in mitigating aflatoxin risks. Both studies highlight how scientific innovation can translate into actionable solutions, empowering industry and regulatory bodies to make informed, impactful decisions. #SafeFoodForAll #FoodSafety #Sustainability #ProudlyMars #TomorrowStartsToday TOMRA, Bühler Group, Foodlink, @Wimar

Reflecting on a Year of Milestones of the Mars Global Food Safety Science Team and the Global Food Safety Center 🌏 ⏩ Highlight #1: Building Supply Chain Resilience Through Strategic Partnerships 💪 Building food safety capability across the supply chain is critical to achieving our goal of ensuring safe food for all. Collaboration remains at the core of our approach. In 2024, the Mars Global Food Safety Center partnered with Mars Supplier Quality Assurance teams - Claudia Cavaleiro, Gesa Scheffel, Carlier Christophe, Richard Taylor, and Yu Li - to help global suppliers strengthen supply chain resilience. Together, we launched a series of tailored learning programs across China, Southeast Asia, India and Europe, providing both online and in-person opportunities designed to meet supplier needs. In China, we continued our collaboration with Danone in our offline training. Globally, we also established a strategic partnership with Cargill, led by Fabian Smith, MBA, LSSGB, to further enhance supply chain capabilities. To date, these efforts have reached over 600 global suppliers, resulting in more than 75,000 completed learning sessions. This progress underscores our commitment to collaboration, raising industry standards, and advancing global food safety. #SafeFoodForAll #FoodSafety #Sustainability #ProudlyMars #TomorrowStartsToday

Reflecting on a Year of Milestones of the Mars Global Food Safety Science Team and the Global Food Safety Center 🌏 ⏩ As 2024 comes to a close, we’re proud to celebrate the meaningful strides we’ve made in food safety alongside our partners and Mars cross-segment teams. Together, we’ve advanced practical science, strengthened supply chain capabilities, deepened collaborations, and raised awareness of global challenges. We warmly invite you to take a moment to explore our four highlight stories in the upcoming posts, showcasing the progress we’ve made together. A heartfelt thank you to all Associates in the Mars Global Food Safety Science Team and the Global Food Safety Center, our Mars partners, and especially our external collaborators, whose invaluable expertise, dedication, and partnership have been instrumental in driving our shared milestones this year. Looking ahead to 2025 - the 10th anniversary of the Mars Global Food Safety Center - we are excited to drive even greater collaboration, innovation, and impact. Here’s to building a safer, more resilient food future, together! 🤝 #SafeFoodForAll #FoodSafety #Sustainability #ProudlyMars #TomorrowStartsToday

Nestlé and Mars 🌍 #FoodSafety Powerhouses: Continuing the Dialogue to enable #SafeFoodForAll 🍎 At Mars, we believe that no single entity can address food safety challenges alone, and collaborative, pre-competitive approaches are the key. Last Friday, we were delighted to welcome Alexandre Panchaud PhD MSc and his colleagues from the Nestlé Institute of Food Safety and Analytical Sciences (NIFSAS) to the Mars Global Food Safety Center site in Beijing. It’s no surprise that two organizations dedicated to advancing food safety share so much in common. This visit was an incredible opportunity to exchange ideas, showcase our state-of-the-art research facilities, partnerships, and discuss the critical role of collaboration in tackling global food safety challenges. Our conversations highlighted the shared vision of both Mars GFSC and NIFSAS: advancing science, science-based knowledge transfer, building resilience in the supply chains, and embracing innovative approaches to create safer food systems. This meeting also reinforced a legacy of impactful collaborations, from capability-building initiatives to developing and standardizing cutting-edge detection methods, including #genomics. As we explored new opportunities for pre-competitive collaboration, one message was clear: ensuring safe food for all requires joined efforts. By leveraging our complementary strengths and global networks, we can continue to #raisethebar and drive progress in the industry. This visit marks another step in building bridges between organizations committed to food safety, where collective action and shared knowledge pave the way for a safer future—from farm to fork. #FoodSafety #Collaboration #SafeFoodForAll #Innovation #SupplyChainResilience p.s.: Thank you, Jane Wang, and @Cindy Sun, for upholding this legacy of collaboration and connection on behalf of the GFSC!

Congratulations🎉! We’re thrilled to see the exciting progress at the R&D Solutions Center of Expertise (CoE) lab!