If you are looking for a Second Cycle Degree Course at the forefront of the modern food sciences, and you want to acquire the ability to face the challenges posed by the modern food systems and learn deep skills in managing the safety of what we eat, we propose to you to become a Food Safety expert. 

It’s possible through a regional course, fully taught in English, offered by a network formed by Universities of Parma, Bologna, Catholic of the Sacred Heart of Piacenza, Modena and Reggio Emilia, Ferrara. Emilia-Romagna region and, in particular, the Parma District represents an integrated ecosystem of food industries, research centers and public institutions fully dedicated to food (for this reason it’s called “food valley”) and is the headquarter of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). 

Foods have a direct impact on human health and wellbeing. They are the main way in which our body comes into contact with the external environment and with millions of different compounds. It becomes therefore essential for companies, control bodies and research centers to form specific figures dedicated to risk assessment and management of food risks. 

The Food Safety expert has a knowledge of European legislation in the sector and is linked to the global market, which poses logistical challenges and makes the guarantees on ingredients of the food chain less robust, leading to new safety risks.

Graduates in Food Safety and Food Risk Management will play roles of responsibility in food companies for the safety aspects related to primary production, procurement and handling of raw materials (especially at transnational level), process control, development of new products, and marketing and distribution at European and extra-European level.

In addition, they will be able to integrate current regulations and new scientific knowledge in terms of emerging risks, by performing direct research and development of new products both in companies, universities and other research institutions. Graduates will be able to develop and monitor risk management strategies for the prevention and management of current and emerging risks or outbreaks as well as effectively define and manage food safety plans. In other words, graduates will be able to manage the system of risk governance, which is intimately responsible for the efficiency of the detection, prevention, mitigation, and reduction of threats/risks and their consequences.

The graduate will also cover responsible positions in control bodies and in national and international organizations operating in the sector of Food Safety (including EFSA). The graduate will also be able to have an active role in the field of training and scientific dissemination at all levels. A professional practice exam called “esame di stato”, in Italy, must be passed to enroll in the professional register of Food Technologists.