Crisis preparedness training programmes are substantial for the effective management of contingency plans. Rift Valley Fever (RVF) was chosen as the vector transmitted zoonosis for a crisis preparedness exercise co-organised in 2021 by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise “G. Caporale” (IZS-Teramo). The online table-top simulation exercise was planned to strengthen the network of Mediterranean countries on rapid risk assessment, risk/crisis management and risk communication during a human/animal health crisis, adopting the ‘One Health’ approach. Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, Greece, Albania, Croatia, Montenegro and Turkey were the beneficiary countries, while European Commission (EC), European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), World Health Organisation (WHO), World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) and Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) were the designated observers who were actively involved along the entire capacity building process. The simulation exercise was based on a fictional case study in which the zoonotic mosquito-borne disease, not currently present in Europe, was accidentally introduced into the European Union via the accidental transfer of infected vectors from a RVF-endemic country. The training activity was positively assessed by the participants and useful suggestions were given to address further future similar initiatives.

In September 2020, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) facilitated an online workshop on crisis preparedness and procedures with Members and Observers of EFSA's Focal Point Network. The overall aims of the event were, in the context of a food or feed safety incident, (i) to establish the most appropriate ways to improve collaboration-and exchange data & information-between EFSA and Focal Points, in EU Member States and Pre-Accession Countries; (ii) identify gaps and frustrations in the current system and look for ways to improve; and (iii) share best practice and knowledge to improve ways of working. Content for the workshop was jointly developed between EFSA and Instinctif Partners. Sixty-three (63) participants attended plenary and/or working group activity sessions configured within an agenda extending across two days. During Day One, four plenary activities (including presentations and structured discussions) aimed to clarify the role played by Focal Point Network members during incident response, plus the frustrations and challenges arising from fulfilling that role. A working group activity focused on finding solutions and workarounds to the problems and challenges identified. The Day One afternoon session was a two-hour discussion exercise designed to elaborate the real-world incident response activities potentially undertaken by Focal Points in the case of a fast-evolving, largescale foodborne disease outbreak. The fictional scenario for the exercise was based on a hypothetical situation where a novel pathogenic virus (similar to SARS-CoV-2) turned out to be transmissible in certain food products. Day Two of the event included a 1.5-hour facilitated plenary debrief of the Day One discussion exercise. The objectives of the event were achieved, based on the recorded outcomes and feedback provided by participants in an online evaluation survey. In addition, discussions during the event generated eighteen (18) practical recommendations for future enhancements and improvements.

The main objectives of EFSA's activities on emerging risks are: (i) to carry out activities to identify emerging risks; (ii) to develop and improve emerging risk identification (ERI) methodologies and approaches; and (iii) communicate the issues and risks identified. The outcome of these activities also allows EFSA to prepare for future risk assessment challenges. The current technical report summarises the activities of all groups involved in the ERI procedure, the issues identified in the course of 2020, a description of the methodologies that have been considered, and collaborative activities. EFSA networks of knowledge contributing to the ERI activity include the Emerging Risks Exchange Network (EREN), the Stakeholder Discussion Group on Emerging Risks, EFSA's scientific units, scientific panels and the Scientific Committee. In total, 13 potential emerging issues were discussed in 2020. Six were concluded to be emerging issues. The potential issues were organised according to the hazard or driver identified. In addition, in 2020, EREN network members presented and discussed a total of 35 signals/potential emerging issues that had been identified by their own horizon‐scanning activities. Member State representatives shared their work on signal identification with the objective of collecting additional information that could be used for better characterisation. It is crucial to introduce more dynamic and interactive approaches to gather and disseminate knowledge, while also taking into consideration the potential risks that may arise in new areas.