food safety
Health group expands its food-fraud database
The U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention, a global health organization, has expanded its food-fraud database to give food manufacturers a more holistic picture of fraud and help them detect patterns of abuse over time, according to Feedstuffs.
Deadline looms for FDA’s new food-safety rule, but inspections will lag
Even though the deadline for large facilities to comply with the FDA's rigorous new "preventive controls rule for human food" is Sept. 16, the need for additional training means the agency's inspectors likely won't start enforcing it until January, according to Food Safety News.
Organic food ‘best choice’ against antibiotic resistance, says report
A report written by a non-profit research center aligned with the organic industry said, “The best choice that consumers can make to combat antibiotic resistance and protect themselves from antibiotic-resistant bacteria is to choose organic.”
Brazil, U.S. say they will import beef from each other
Brazil will remove barriers to U.S. beef and beef products that were imposed in 2003 in the name of preventing mad cow disease, said the Agriculture Department, pointing to “excellent long-term potential for U.S. beef exporters.”
Obama signs GMOs-in-food disclosure law; rules in two years
Reversing a two-decade federal policy on labeling, President Obama has signed a law that mandates disclosure of GMO ingredients in food via a symbol, a digital code or wording on food packages.
FDA needs “healthy, new plan” for faster food recalls, says Schumer
One of the top-ranking Democrats in the Senate, Chuck Schumer of New York, called on the FDA to overhaul its food recall process, saying dangerous food now may remain on sale for months before the agency acts.
New illnesses prompt General Mills to expand flour recall for fourth time
For the fourth time since May 31, General Mills expanded its recall of flour because of illnesses linked to handling or eating uncooked flour dough and batter. The company said E. coli bacteria, which can cause food-borne illness, "has been detected in a small number of ... flour samples and some have been linked to new patient illnesses that fall outside of the previously recalled dates."
This milk won’t go bad for nine weeks
Researchers have discovered a way to push the shelf life of milk from two or three weeks to nine, says Gizmodo. By putting tiny drops of already-pasteurized milk into a high-pressure chamber and quickly raising the temperature of the milk by 10 degrees, scientists at Purdue University and the University of Tennessee killed 99 percent of the bacteria that normally remain after pasteurization.
Pre-washed bagged salad mix as safe as whole heads
Edible-insect industry gets its own lobbying group
Insects have long been a source of protein in China, Japan, Mexico and tropical regions, but in the U.S. eating bugs has been easy to dismiss as little more than a fad. Not anymore. Over the last five years the edible-insect business has surged, and is now big enough that it has it’s own lobbying firm, reports Quartz.
Consumers say milk exposed to LED lighting doesn’t taste as good
Grocers "might unwittingly sabotage the product they are trying to sell" by installing energy-saving LEDs in the dairy case, says Cornell. In taste tests, consumers—who prefer fresh and high-quality milk—gave lower scores to milk exposed to LED light for four hours than to milk that was days or even weeks older.
FDA has been slow to announce food recalls, says OIG
In two recent cases, the FDA waited months before forcing the recall of contaminated food, said Inspector General Daniel Levinson, calling for "immediate attention" to the shortcoming. "Consumers remained at risk of illness or death for several weeks after FDA knew of potentially hazardous food," Levinson wrote to FDA Commissioner Robert Califf in a rare "early alert" warning.
Climate-change risk: toxic agents in crops
A report by the United Nations Environment Program says drought and higher temperatures, forecast as part of climate change, can trigger a build-up in crops of chemical compounds that are toxic to animals and humans. Nitrates can accumulate to dangerous levels in grain during drought, while carcinogenic fungal aflatoixins are expected to become an increasing risk in higher latitudes as average temperatures rise.
U.S. should broaden its safety review of new plant strains, says NAS panel
The National Academy of Sciences, pointing to the emergence of new technology such as gene editing and the sometimes startling effects of conventional plant breeding, said the government should conduct safety reviews of all new plant varieties that pose potential hazards, not only the results of genetic engineering.
Study: Oregon oysters laced with pharmaceuticals and heavy metals
Native Olympia oysters in Oregon's Netarts and Coos bays are loaded with pharmaceuticals and chemicals, including pain relievers, antibiotics, mercury and pesticides, says a study by Portland State University researchers, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Geological Survey and Oregon Department of Environmental Quality.
Very low levels of glyphosate found in breakfast foods
The Alliance for Natural Health said it found low levels of glyphosate, the most widely used herbicide in the world, in 10 of 24 samples of popular breakfast foods, ranging from oatmeal and eggs to bagels and non-GMO soy creamer.
Strawberries top EWG’s ‘Dirty Dozen’
If there’s one fruit to be wary of its conventional strawberries, says the Environmental Working Group (EWG), which put the fruit at the top of its annual "Dirty Dozen" ranking.
FDA wants limit for inorganic arsenic in rice cereal
Rice cereal is a common "starter" food for infants, but rice has higher levels of inorganic arsenic, a potential health risk, than other grains.
Trump picks Kennedy, vaccine skeptic, for health secretary
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will head the Department of Health and Human Services in the new administration, said President-elect Donald Trump on Thursday. “For too long, Americans have been crushed by the industrial food complex and drug companies who have engaged in deception, misinformation, and disinformation when it comes to public health,” said Trump in announcing the nomination.