Scientists have developed new tests to detect nut allergens in
processed foods that could help food makers adhere to the tough new
European rules on food allergens to be enforced later this year.
Syngenta, the last biotech company to retain a significant
genetically modified (GM) presence in the UK, has announced that it
is closing its laboratories due to the poor business outlook for
the technology, reports CORDIS.
In a bid to flag up food quality to wary European consumers knocked
by food safety crises, Brussels will pour millions of euros into a
new labelling project for food products.
The unofficial ban on GM foodstuffs has ended but sceptical
European ministers yesterday failed to give the green light on a
biotech sweetcorn from Monsanto, reports Lindsey Partos.
Food makers likely to continue to reject GMO ingredients...
A new project funded under the EU food quality programme will, for
the first time, unite medical and veterinary expertise in the fight
against zoonoses, report CORDIS. Findings from the research could
lead to savings for the food...
In 2003 Denmark banned trans fatty acids from food products over
fears that these hydrogenated fats could contribute to heart
disease. The rest of the EU as yet has no equivalent plans to
follow suit, but in the US the labelling of...
Food makers in Europe today work under strict guidelines on the
labelling and traceability of genetically modified foodstuffs.
Their rules reflect the deep suspicions in consumer minds today
over the safety of biotech food. But in...
Food safety concerns rise in the UK as the Food Standards Agency
launches an investigation into the apparent failure by the meat
hygiene arm of the food watchdog to test some casualty cattle aged
between 24 and 30 months for BSE before...
In a bid to gauge the popularity and concerns of new European rules
on food allergens the UK's food watchdog has launched a public
consultation on the regulations that will mean food labels will
have to list certain potentially...
The European Commission used an international food conference last
week to announce its readiness to award €192 million to new
food-related research projects and networks.
A new Europe-wide project will devote a £12 million budget to
investigating the added-value that organic farming could bring to
food products. The qualitative approach will give a boost to an
industry starting to slow down in pace.
As food makers in the developed world face ongoing collisions with
consumer groups over their choice of certain food ingredients and
additives - notably salt and potentially GM ingredients - a new
study from the US finds that undernutrition...
A study from the University of Southampton reveals that candles and
ion wind delivery systems containing certain essential oils can
reduce a range of commonly found bacteria in foodstuffs - a system
that could provide a cheap and...
Europe rejects the entry of a GM food crop supplied by biotech
giant Monsanto into the food chain with officials from the 25
member states failing to reach a qualified majority at the vote
yesterday.
In a matter of months food manufacturers operating in Europe face
tough new rules on food allergens that put an end to the 20 year
old '25 per cent' rule, aiming to provide the consumer,
increasingly stricken by food allergies,...
New laws on genetically modified foodstuffs ushered into Europe
earlier this year may be tough, but Australia and New Zealand's
joint food watchdog claims that their own rules are among the
toughest, following an extensive review...
A slice of nut and nut products on sale in the UK today, including
peanut butter and marzipan, were found to contain harmful toxins,
said the UK's food watchdog this week, following an annual survey.
Retailers rush to amend the...
Food manufacturers must continue to be on the alert for a red devil
as the list of products containing the potentially carcinogenic,
and illegal, red dye Sudan I is far from tailing off. Now the UK
Food Standards Agency is alerting...
In response to the Codex Alimentarius committee on deep frozen
foods that has come up with a revised code of practice for the
processing and handling of quick frozen foods the European
community this week issued a raft of comments.
A novel technique for analysing food samples to detect the presence
of Salmonella, Listeria and E. coli pathogens has been developed.
Whereas most conventional rapid techniques only analyse a fraction
of the standard 25 g sample,...
German chemicals company BASF is to participate in a new project
designed to trace Norwegian farmed salmon throughout the entire
production chain as part of a qualitative move to boost sales
through improving consumer confidence.
Concerns that uncooked meats and meat products on sale in the UK
could contain high levels of the potentially harmful chemical
1,3-dichloropropanol (1,3-DCP) have proven unfounded following an
investigation by the government-funded...
Vaccines to combat a number of foodborne pathogens such as Listeria
could be commercially available in the near future, a breakthrough
which would "greatly enhance human health and wellbeing
worldwide," according to US researchers.
A new study conducted by the FDA says that acrylamide found in
fried and baked goods is unlikely to cause reproduction problems if
the general public consume it as part of the average daily diet -
but research is ongoing for its carcinogenic...
A new process to kill bacteria spores in the manufacture of formula
milk and milk concentrates has been launched. Developer Invensys
claims that the process destroys a substantially greater number of
bacteria spores than traditional...
The alleged link between the advertising of junk food and rising
levels of childhood obesity in the UK has never been completely
proven, but the growing body of evidence to support claims of a
direct correlation appears to have been...
Fall out from the BSE crisis that hit the UK meat industry in the
1990s could be nearly over as the EU's food safety body paves the
way for British beef to move down from its 'high risk'
classification.
After months of political wranglings GM sweetcorn could be on the
supermarket shelves by the end of the year with the European
Commission poised to end the five year unofficial ban on
genetically modified foods, writes Lindsey Partos.
Last year Denmark became the first country in the world to ban
trans fats from food products over fears these hydrogenated fats
could contribute to heart disease. While the EU has yet to reach a
position on the labelling of these...
Tapping into the €83 million market for cellulose gum use in food
applications, UK-based ingredient firm Fiske has signed a new
agreement with CMC leader Noviant to distribute the firm's range of
cellulose gums.
Sending a ripple of fear through the food industry, in 2002 the
Swedish Food Administration found high levels of the cancer-causing
compound acrylamide in carbohydrate-rich foods heated to high
temperatures. As global efforts in food...
On 1 May an historic moment marked the entry of ten countries and
75 million consumers into the European Union. Churchill's 'Iron
Curtain' has been consigned to the history books, heralding
democracy, stability and...
A new system to detect salmonella within 24 hours is being
developed by scientists in Spain. The breakthrough is significant
as the bacteria is one of the most common causes of food poisoning,
and the new process could help food manufacturers...
Public concern over BSE outbreaks is set to boost sales of organic
meat products in North America, according to a new report. But
North Americans have not historically been as influenced by food
scares as their European counterparts.
Delving into the mechanism behind the potentially fatal foodborne
disease Listeria monocytogenes (L. monocytogenes), French
scientists report their findings this week on how two mammalian
proteins are 'hijacked' by the disease.
An electronic nose could sniff out considerable savings for food
manufacturers as researchers use the latest technology for the
early detection of 'undesirable off-odours and microbial
contaminants' in dairy and bakery products.
Green members of parliament in Europe have laid out a ten point
plan to tackle the causes of food scares such as BSE, salmonella
and toxic residues in farmed salmon to 'restore consumer confidence
in the way food is produced,'...
Scientists from the Institute of Food Research (IFR), UK, have
found that specific probiotics - beneficial bacteria - can destroy
pathogenic bacteria living in the gut of poultry. The discovery
could help remove the threat of bacterial...
The safety of chicken eggs has been challenged by a UK
environmental pressure group, just weeks after figures showing the
lowest levels of Salmonella in years were published. The Soil
Association claims that as many as one in eight...
New data from the US suggests that carcinogens such as heterocyclic
amines (HCAs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), formed
when meat is cooked may be responsible for the risk of rectal
cancer and not the consumption of...
Growth for food and beverage manufacturers will continue to lie in
health-driven foods with a new survey direct from Brussels
confirming that consumers have faith in fruit and vegetables, while
the majority remain extremely sceptical...
Despite repeated pledges to tackle the problem, many of the big
brand breakfast cereals on supermarket shelves in the UK still
contain excessive levels of sugar, salt and fat, according to new
research from the Consumers' Association...
In the same week that the US food watchdog releases new findings on
the presence of acrylamide, the probable human carcinogen, in
processed food products, the American Chemical society will
dedicate an entire symposium to this sensitive...
As food manufacturers and ingredients suppliers work towards tough
new rules on the labelling of food allergens, Europe's risk
assessment body concludes that current scientific evidence is
'insufficient to establish an intake...
End-to-end traceability is like the table stakes in a poker game -
if you don't have it, you won't stay in the game, argues an
industry expert. This new way of thinking could have a significant
impact on food production,...
A lack of integration at a European level is 'severely hampering'
efforts to co-ordinate stakeholder efforts - food industry and
independent scientists - in the area of chemical contaminants in
food, warn Swedish scientists....
Asian countries that declare victory over avian influenza should
base such statements on in-depth investigations, FAO and the World
Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) urged in a joint statement
today. There have been fears that...
An FSA survey of UK-produced eggs has found that the level of
salmonella contamination is now one third of what it was in 1996.
But one industry expert says that food manufacturers should still
exercise caution, writes Anthony Fletcher.
Mitigating residual moisture is an ever-present food safety and quality goal in any food processing environment. Yet there’s a Catch-22: Most conventional...
Food and Beverage companies need better food labeling solutions. Beyond that, most in the industry understand that “labeling” starts at the beginning,...
Scaling to meet the need of the rapidly growing global population while providing functional, nutritious, and diverse cuisine requires process optimization...
