Government agencies have partnered with UC Davis and Agilent Technologies to create a new database of 100,000 foodborne pathogen genomes to help speed identification of bacteria responsible for illness outbreaks.
Grow Green Industries and PL Thomas showcased their new natural antimicrobial ingredient at IFT, intended to enhance food safety and increase shelf life across a wide range of applications.
Unilever has already reduced salt in many of its products by 25% but is looking for potential partners to help it reduce sodium by a further 15-20% ”without compromising the taste of our products”.
The American Medical Association (AMA) House of Delegates has called for mandatory pre-market safety testing of genetically engineered (GE) foods – but said there is currently no reason to label them.
More than half of senior supply chain executives say their company could not conduct a product recall within hours, and would expect the process to take days or weeks instead, according to a new study from RedPrairie Corporation.
The Snack Food Association and other industry bodies have urged the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to communicate in writing the deadlines for enforcement of new provisions in the Food Safety Modernization Act.
The success of PulseNet for tracing the source of foodborne illness outbreaks has become the industry’s own worst enemy as more news coverage has eroded consumer trust, according to an ex-USDA food safety expert.
DuPont Qualicon has received a letter of no objection from the USDA for a device used to detect non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing E.coli, in the same month that the regulatory authority began enforcing testing on imported beef manufacturing trimmings for...
Lawsuits filed against Colorado-based Listeria-tainted cantaloupe producer Jensen Farms are close to settlement, a lawyer for the company has announced.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) looks set to receive a budget cut of $16.3m for the fiscal year (FY) 2013, despite requesting an additional $253m in funding to boost its Transforming Food Safety Initiative.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has introduced a ‘questionnaire’ to its Reportable Food Registry (RFR) in an effort to improve the programme’s information gathering capabilities.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has outlined plans to standardise its inspection practices in an effort to keep up-to-speed with the changing food safety “landscape.”
Sampling of raw beef manufacturing trimmings for six non-O157 strains of Shiga toxin-producing E.coli (STEC) is set to begin from 4 June 2012, the US Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has confirmed.
Current US regulations governing the manufacture of cheese made using unpasteurised milk “appear adequate” for producing microbiologically safe products, a study has claimed.
Jensen Farms - the cantaloupe grower pinpointed as the source of last year’s deadly Listeria monocytogenes outbreak – has filed for bankruptcy in the US.
Organic infant formula manufacturer Nature’s One will step-up its efforts to minimise and eliminate the presence of environmental contaminants such as arsenic in its products.
The US beef industry and the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) have been showered with praise after showing “strong initiative” in their efforts to prevent E.coli contamination during processing.
PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has warned the US food industry that 2012 will be “all hands on deck” to implement the provisions of the Food Safety Modernisation Act (FSMA).
US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) draft guidance on the use of nanotechnology in food and food contact substances represents only “marginal progress” towards regulation of the technology, a petition group has claimed.
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has outlined a series of measures to conduct future meat product trace backs in a “pre-emptive” manner to catch E.coli O157:H7 contamination at an earlier stage.
The Canadian government has taken steps to streamline its food safety laws – reducing the ‘red tape’ that currently delays safe products entering the market.
Workers at Beef Products Inc. (BPI) have launched a Facebook campaign countering attacks on lean finely textured beef (LFTB), saying they hope information about the safety of the ingredient will go viral – as misinformation did last month.
A rare case of mad cow disease in the US is unlikely to have a significant impact on the processing sector, according to the American Meat Institute (AMI).
Most Canadians have not heard of food irradiation but after being provided with a definition, two-thirds say they would support its use, according to an opinion poll conducted for the Consumers’ Association of Canada.
Four individuals who allegedly conspired to scrape mould off returned imported cheese before resale have been indicted in the US on charges that could see them jailed for up to 20 years.
US and Canadian food safety authorities have laid out plans to ensure the quality and safety of imported foods – publishing mirror-image campaigns within days of each other.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued new draft guidance on the use of nanotechnology in food and cosmetic products, encouraging manufacturers to consult with the agency before taking products using the technology to market.
The Reportable Food Registry has helped the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) target its food safety strategy and increase the speed with which it has been able to take action, according to a new FDA report reviewing activity during the online reporting...
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will “user fee the industry to death” through the proposed implementation of further food firm fees, food safety law specialist FDAImports.com has claimed.
FDA commissioner Margaret Hamburg has reiterated the agency’s decision not to adopt a definition for nanotechnology, although she said its approach “may become more nuanced in light of experience”.
A US fish processor is recalling nearly 60,000 pounds of frozen ‘tuna scrape’ after the product was linked to an outbreak of Salmonella Bareilly that has sickened 116 people across 20 states.
A California-based seafood processor has agreed to halt the production and distribution of its fish and fish products over Listeria monocytogenes contamination fears, under an agreement with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
A ruling that will see the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) gain extended access to food industry records will “weed out” those companies that have not been cooperative during food safety incidents in the past.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is attempting to halt production and distribution at a California fish product company over botulism and listeria contamination fears.
US federal authorities said they dismissed a call from the Natural Resource Defense Council (NRDC) Friday to ban bisphenol A (BPA) in food packaging because the petition failed to provide concrete scientific evidence the chemical posed a health risk.
With lean finely textured beef (LFTB) now off the menu at some of the nation’s biggest retailers and fast food chains, recriminations are flying thick and fast over who is to blame for the whole sorry, pink, slimy mess currently engulfing the food industry.
An overwhelming chorus of “eww, that sounds gross!” alongside some scary junk science about ammonium hydroxide, has led to a safe, nutritious product being pulled from stores – but there is an important lesson here for industry.
US import law specialist FDAImports.com has played down an apparent increase in import-implicated foodborne disease outbreaks - describing the situation as a “non-event.”
A voluntary ban would be the 'best solution' to eliminate concerns regarding brominated vegetable oil (BVO) in US soft drinks, a leading academic has told BeverageDaily.com, and said he planned further research into the patented flame retardant...
A prominent US researcher says that government pressure to cut sodium in cheese could have serious food safety, taste and labeling consequences, and questions the necessity of such a move given minimal evidence of positive health effects and muted consumer...
Lack of federal funding has stalled the CDC’s establishment of five dedicated Food Safety Centers of Excellence, as required under the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), according to the University of Minnesota’s Center for Infectious Disease Research...
The consumption of coffee does not increase the risk of heart disease and may reduce the risk of developing diabetes by up to 30%, says results of the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study.
US organic baby formula manufacturer Nature’s One has attacked recent research suggesting that arsenic levels in its toddler formulas were a cause for concern, but the study’s lead author defended the work, even stating that new data published by the...
Effective media communication can be crucial to prevent the spread of foodborne illness outbreaks and to avoid misinformation, global government officials said at a meeting to discuss lessons learned from recent outbreaks.
Caramel color suppliers have been working on low-4-MEI versions ever since California first started considering the compound’s inclusion on its Proposition 65 list four years ago – well before PepsiCo and Coca-Cola asked them to reduce 4-MEI levels late...
Consumption of high amounts of red meat could be linked with an increased risk of all-cause death, including death from heart disease and cancer, warn researchers.
US food safety authorities have urged food manufacturers, processors, packager and distributors to “be aware” of the potential for false results when testing for Salmonella species (Salmonella spp.).
The perception that a food company has high ethical standards may be more important to consumer trust even than its ability to demonstrate competence, according to a presentation from CEO of the Center for Food Integrity Charlie Arnot.
