Dr Gary Acuff is Professor of Food Microbiology and Director of the Center for Food Safety at Texas A&M University, USA and Fellow of the International Association for Food Protection and the American Academy of Microbiology.Dr James Dickson is Professor in the Department of Animal Science at Iowa State University, USA and Fellow of the International Association for Food Protection and the American Academy of Microbiology. Dr. William James served as the Chief Veterinarian and a Senior Executive upon retirement from the United States Department of Agriculture - Food Safety and Inspection Service. During his 28 year career he worked in the offices of Field Operations, Policy, Science, and International Affairs. Dr. James is now the Chief Consultant at William James & Associates, LLC. Drawing from his extensive experience, he provides assistance on international and domestic issues of regulatory compliance, foreign equivalence requirements, humane handling, supply chain security, and other areas of food safety and international trade.

"Overall, Drs Acuff and Dickson have produced a truly international and model reference here; it reflects robust research-based knowledge and best practices across the entire supply chain of the beef industry. Authors reflect international expertise, and the topics are well-organized and germane to beef’s role in public health. Each author has compiled a very comprehensive discussion of their respective topics; but each chapter is ultimately comprehensible on food safety issues for even the less-knowledgeable reader. The text reflects the thoughts and knowledge of some of the best food safety minds in the business… all-in-all, a great read!"Meat Science

• Part 1 Ensuring safety on the farm1.Pathogens affecting beef: James E. Wells and Elaine D. Berry, US Meat Animal Research Center, USDA-ARS, USA; 2.Methods for detecting pathogens in the beef food chain: an overview: Pina M. Fratamico, Joseph M. Bosilevac and John W. Schmidt, USDA-ARS, USA; 3.Methods for detecting pathogens in the beef food chain: detecting particular pathogens: Pina M. Fratamico, Joseph M. Bosilevac and John W. Schmidt, USDA-ARS, USA; 4.Food safety management on farms producing beef: Peter Paulsen, Frans J. M. Smulders and Friederike Hilbert, University of Veterinary Medicine, Austria; 5.Ensuring the safety of feed for beef cattle: Grant Dewell, Iowa State University, USA; 6.Detecting antibiotic residues in animal feed: the case of distiller’s grains: Lynn Post, Food and Drug Administration, USA;Part 2 Ensuring safety at slaughter7.Beef carcass inspection systems: William James, formerly Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS)-USDA, USA; 8.Maintaining the safety and quality of beef carcass meat: James S. Dickson, Iowa State University, USA and Gary R. Acuff, Texas A&M University, USA; 9.Optimizing the microbial shelf-life of fresh beef: Declan J. Bolton, Teagasc Food Research Centre (Ashtown), Ireland; 10.Ensuring beef safety through consumer education: Janet M. Riley, North American Meat Institute, USA; 11.Traceability in the beef supply chain Daniel D. Buskirk and Tristan P. Foster, Michigan State University, USA;