Introduction

a) Rationale for establishing the study programme

Today, when the consumer's awareness is on a much higher level, when the food products market competition is greater, when Croatia is in the process of integration onto the world market, when the production of safe food products has become an imperative in the economic development, the need for the implementation of such a study is unquestionable. The application of new technologies and larger number of food additives in food production with the aim of adding to its shelf-life and variety, seek for well-founded estimation of food safety risk analysis as well as risk management. Besides a good knowledge about the raw as well as finished products, the production processes, food storage processes and conditions of food marketing,a good knowledge on detecting potential hazards and mastering the methods of their detection and management, with the aim of preventing their presence in the production chain,is needed, as well.

b) Previous experience in implementation of equivalent or similar programmes

During its 50 years of existence Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, University of Zagreb, Croatia, has shown great experience in the organization of all kinds of curricula concerning the fields of food technology, biotechnology and nutrition. One of the programmes in these fields was, “Analytics and microbiology of food”, established in 1991 as a specialist study, and it was replaced, in 2005, by a new, more attractive on the market study, “Quality and food safety”, which followed all the global trends related to food safety.