An ongoing outbreak of pneumonia in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China has been linked to a newly-discovered coronavirus. This outbreak has been linked to possible exposure to infection at the South China Seafood City market in Wuhan. The market is now closed.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) report that as of 26 January 2020, a total of 2,026 laboratory-confirmed 2019-nCoV cases have been reported, 1,988 in China and 38 imported cases from other countries around the world. Fifty six deaths have been reported among the cases. Chinese health authorities have confirmed human-to-human transmission outside Hubei province and 16 healthcare workers are reported to have been infected. Confirmed cases have been reported in Australia, Nepal, Malaysia, Taiwan, Thailand, Japan, South Korea, the US, Canada, Singapore, Vietnam and France.

This is a new and rapidly evolving situation where information on cases and the virus is being gathered and assessed daily.

As of 27 January 2020 the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) advise against all travel to Hubei province. Travellers should check the FCO website for updates on a regular basis as travel advisories may change.

All travellers to China are advised to take simple precautions such as practicing good hand, personal and respiratory hygiene, and avoid contact with birds and animals in markets.
If travellers returning become unwell, particularly with respiratory symptoms, within 14 days of their return, they should call their GP or NHS 111 or NHS24 and report their recent travel.

A new TRAVAX web page gives further information on the novel coronavirus for health professionals delivering pre-travel advice. Information and advice on the outbreak can also be found on fitfortravel (for members of the general public).

Information on travel to China can be found on the TRAVAX (for health professionals) and fitfortravel (for the general public) websites.

Health Protection Scotland (HPS) has created a new webpage covering the coronavirus outbreak which covers clinical and laboratory guidance, advice for travellers and links to relevant organisations.

Sources: TRAVAX, 26 January 2020, ECDC, 26 January 2020 and HPS, 2020

A new study by Public Health England (PHE) shows that infant vaccination against group B meningococcal disease (MenB) has resulted in a significant decline in cases of the disease among young children in England, since the programme was introduced in September 2015.

The vaccine is offered to babies at eight and 16 weeks of age, followed by a booster on their first birthday. Infants in the first year of life have the highest incidence of MenB disease, so vaccinating at these times helps protect them when they are most at risk.

The PHE study shows that by the third year of the programme, cases of MenB disease were 62% lower in children who were eligible for at least two doses of the vaccine. Between 2015 and 2018, an estimated 277 out of an expected 446 cases were prevented because of the programme.

Source: PHE, 23 January 2020

New data from Public Health England (PHE) confirms that cancer causing human papillomavirus (HPV), HPV16 and 18 infections, are now at a very low level in young sexually active women in England following the introduction of the HPV vaccination in 2008.

The infections were found in less than 2% of 16 to 18 year old women between 2014 and 2018. In a sample of 584 young women tested in 2018, no HPV16 or 18 infections were detected. This is a reduction from 2008, when over 15% of young sexually active women were found to have these infections.

The current vaccine protects against HPV16, 18, 6 and 11 infections. The prevalence of HPV6 and 11, which cause 90% of genital warts, also fell for the first time in 16 to 18 year old women, from fluctuating around 7% to 10% between 2010 and 2017, to 4% in 2018. The prevalence of three other cancer-causing types, HPV31, 33 and 45, has also declined, suggesting the vaccine provides substantial cross-protection.
The first dose of the HPV vaccine is offered to 12 and 13 year-olds and the second dose is given routinely anytime between six to 12 months after. Two doses are needed to be fully protected. Eleven million doses of the vaccine have been given to young women in England, meaning over 80% of women aged 15 to 24 are protected.

Source: PHE, 22 January 2020

Five Scottish local authorities have joined together to deliver improved recycling and residual waste treatment. East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, North Lanarkshire, North Ayrshire, and Renfrewshire will work with the waste management company Viridor to process 190,000 tonnes of residual waste annually which would otherwise be sent to landfill.

The waste will be treated at a materials recovery facility in Bargeddie, North Lanarkshire, removing plastics and metals to produce a refuse derived fuel. This will then be transported to Dunbar in East Lothian, where it will be burned at high temperatures to produce 258GWh of low carbon electricity - enough to power 70,656 homes.
It is believed this initiative will help the partner councils comply with the Scottish Government Zero Waste Plan and Waste (Scotland) Regulations 2012.

Source: Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland (REHIS), 22 January 2020

Food Standards Scotland (FSS) has announced that, to date, seventeen Scottish food and drink industry organisations have pledged to support its Scottish Food Crime and Incidents Unit (SFCIU) in raising awareness of food crime and how to report it.

Food crime is a risk to public health and to the reputation of the Scottish food and drink industry. The term food crime covers a range of different fraudulent actions including:

• food fraud - swapping or adding cheaper, lower quality or dangerous ingredients
• document fraud - fraudulently using the identity of a genuine food business or using falsified documents to assure the quality of a product
• illicit goods – selling a product as something it isn’t, such as counterfeit alcohol
• illegal slaughter – slaughtering farmed and wild animals under conditions which don't meet animal welfare or hygiene        standards
• mislabelling - deliberately falsifying information on food labels, for example, saying goods are Scottish produce, free range or organic when they are not
• unfit food - allowing food to be sold that could be a risk to consumers, from putting animal by-products back into the food chain, to changing use-by-dates.
  
  

It is estimated that food crime costs the UK economy around £1.2 billion each year.

Sources: FSS, 21 January 2020 and FSS (SCIFU), 2020

On 23 January 2020, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) published a consultation on updates to its existing technical guidance in order to reflect changes to food allergen labelling legislation in England. This follows the introduction of legislation introduced by the UK Government in September 2019 after a UK-wide consultation following the death of teenager Natasha Ednan-Laperouse.

Natasha died as a result of an allergic reaction to sesame in a baguette that she had eaten.
The changes are supported by the Welsh, Scottish and Northern Ireland governments, and these nations are also working towards introducing similar requirements.

From 1 October 2021, food which is packaged on-site before being ordered by a customer will be required to have an ingredients list with the allergens emphasised on it. This change means that allergen information will be found on more packaged foods, in line with the wishes of those who responded to the consultation.

The FSA is now consulting on updates to its existing technical guidance to reflect the legislative changes, in order to help businesses and enforcement authorities understand the new requirements.

Stakeholders in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are being asked to respond to the consultation as the guidance is expected to cover all three nations. In Scotland, relevant guidance will be produced by Food Standards Scotland (FSS).

The consultation opened on 23 January and will remain open for comments until 6 March 2020.

Source: FSA, 23 January 2020