The Leading Source for Food Manufacturing News
Dairy Industry Advisory Committee Has First Meeting
April 20, 2010 6:46 am | News | CommentsWASHINGTON (USDA) — The 17-member Dairy Industry Advisory Committee appointed by Secretary Tom Vilsack has completed its first meeting, held here April 13 - 15. Secretary Vilsack charged the members with working together quickly to create recommendations to address critical dairy industry issues, including price volatility and dairy farmer profitability and their impact on the entire dairy industry.
Japan Suspends Beef Exports Over Foot-And-Mouth
April 20, 2010 5:31 am | News | CommentsTOKYO (AP) — Japan suspended beef exports Tuesday after detecting suspected cases of foot-and-mouth disease in several cows in the south of the country, officials said. Three of 16 beef cows raised at a farm in Miyazaki developed mouth ulcers — a typical early symptom of the disease — earlier this month, prompting authorities to impose a ban that will last at least three months, said Agriculture Minister Hirotaka Akamatsu.
Teamsters Charge Coca-Cola With 'Mismanagement'
April 20, 2010 5:29 am | News | CommentsWASHINGTON (International Brotherhood of Teamsters) — A delegation of Teamster workers and representatives will attend the Coca-Cola Company and Coca-Cola Enterprises Annual Meetings of Shareowners in Georgia this week to raise concerns about mismanagement throughout the Coca-Cola system that threatens to destroy good jobs, undermine workers' rights, and create large-scale inefficiencies in its product distribution system.
On The Line
April 20, 2010 4:27 am | by John Stauffer, PMP, Senior Project Manager, SSOE Group | Articles | CommentsWith increasing pressure from retailers, competition from low-cost manufacturers, and global market expansion, consumer product manufacturers are carefully examining their production processes. They seek to help their operations become leaner, reduce cost and time to market, and ultimately impact the top and bottom line.
Cheese Producer Puts Metal Detection To The Test
April 20, 2010 4:25 am | Articles | CommentsAnthony Rowcliffe, a 42 year-old company that has its roots in Peckham, London, has grown over the years and is now operating out of two purpose-built BRC accredited sites at Paddock Wood in Kent, supplying over 1,000 different lines, including its own branded Clemency Hall product. The sites operate five day weeks with a same day delivery policy to a variety of major supermarkets.
Ground Beef Recall Expanded Due To E. Coli Contamination
April 19, 2010 4:36 am | News | CommentsBOISE, Idaho (PRNewswire) — WinCo Foods announced Saturday that it is issuing an expansion of the Class 1 recall on all fresh ground beef products sold at all WinCo Foods stores: The original recall issued on April 10, 2010 was for ground beef sold from it's Modesto store only. Originally an independent lab had tested two samples of ground beef purchased at the Modesto, California store to be positive for E.
Spinach & Artichoke Dip Recalled Due To Listeria Concerns
April 19, 2010 4:35 am | News | CommentsLANDOVER, Md. (PRNewswire) — Following notification from its supplier, Giant Food of Landover, MD announced a voluntary recall of Giant Food Frozen Spinach & Artichoke Dip. The product was removed from sale due to possible contamination with listeria monocytogenes. The following product was removed from sale: Giant Food Frozen Dip Spinach & Artichoke UPC‥ 6 8826702988 2, 8oz.
Maine Law To Allow For More Lobster Processing
April 19, 2010 4:34 am | News | CommentsPORTLAND, Maine (AP) — As popular as Maine lobster is, fans of the delicacy might be surprised at how limited their options are. That's going to change come July 1. Tens of millions of pounds of Maine-caught lobster are shipped each year to Canada, where they are turned into value-added products that can be processed there — but not in Maine.
Salmon Decision Reinvigorates Fishermen
April 19, 2010 4:32 am | News | CommentsNEWPORT, Ore. (AP) — Dean Fleck put in an urgent phone call to his purchasing agent on Thursday. The manager of the Newport branch of Englund Marine Supply was fresh out of two different sizes of troll wire, a critical piece of gear for the Chinook salmon fleet, which is back in business for the first time in three years.
Congressional Bill To Create Dairy Growth Plan
April 19, 2010 4:30 am | News | CommentsFAIRFAX, Vt. (AP) — U.S. Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vt., plans to unveil a bill he's introducing that would create a growth management program for the U.S. dairy industry. In an appearance Friday at a Fairfax dairy farm, the Democratic representative heard dairy farmers on the topic of price volatility.
FDA Helps Producers Comply With Rules For Shell Eggs
April 19, 2010 4:28 am | News | CommentsWASHINGTON (FDA) — On April 13, 2010, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration published guidance for small egg producers to help them comply with a 2009 federal egg safety regulation designed to prevent Salmonella Enteritidis in shell eggs during production, transportation, and storage. Entitled “Guidance for Industry: Prevention of Salmonella Enteritidis in Shell Eggs During Production, Transportation, and Storage - Small Entity Compliance Guide (SECG),” the new guidance is intended to set forth, in plain language, the requirements of the 2009 egg safety regulation in order to help small businesses comply with that regulation.
Six Ways Outsourced Maintenance Saves
April 19, 2010 3:49 am | by Ron Hoffman, VP/General Manager, MAG Maintenance Technologies | Articles | CommentsWith today's limited internal resources, it's tough to transform machine maintenance from reactionary to preventive, and ultimately proactive, despite the obvious upsides in higher overall equipment efficiency (OEE), better process control, and lower total cost. Outsourcing this requirement to a third-party specialist, however, is a cost-effective alternative.
County Lending $100K To NY-Based Meat Company
April 16, 2010 6:15 am | News | CommentsGIBBON, Neb. (AP) — A Buffalo County loan will help a New York-based meat company hire some employees to get the former Turkey Growers Cooperative plant back in operation. The county Economic Development Council will lend Midwest Meat Packing $100,000. The six-month, no-interest loan was approved Tuesday by county supervisors.
Illegal Whale Meat Surfacing At Sushi Bars
April 16, 2010 6:13 am | News | CommentsGRANTS PASS, Oregon (AP) — A study released Wednesday offers evidence that whale meat from Japan is illegally being served at sushi restaurants elsewhere, including one in South Korea last year. Scientists from Oregon State University's Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport performed DNA tests on whale as part of a project monitoring sources of whale meat offered for sale since 1993.
What's That Smell? Hog Manure Becomes Asphalt
April 16, 2010 6:11 am | News | CommentsEUREKA, Mo. (AP) — The outer road along Interstate 44 near Six Flags St. Louis is freshly paved — with asphalt made from recycled swine manure. It is believed to be the first time asphalt has been created from swine manure. Two St. Louis County companies, road contractor Pace Construction Co.
CDC Confirms New Strain Of Norovirus
April 16, 2010 6:01 am | News | CommentsBATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has found that recently tested samples submitted by state health officials contain a new strain of norovirus. The CDC reports the new strain, like other norovirus strains, is transmitted person to person, and has been confirmed nationwide for about 50 percent of recent outbreaks.
U.S.'s Biggest Brews
April 16, 2010 6:00 am | News | CommentsBoulder, CO (Brewers Association) —The Brewers Association, the not-for-profit trade group that tabulates production statistics for U.S. breweries, released its annual lists reporting the top 50 brewing companies in the country, based on 2009 beer sales volume. The Top 50 Overall Brewing Companies list contains 76 percent craft brewing companies.
Bayer Ordered To Pay U.S. Rice Farmers $48M
April 16, 2010 5:59 am | News | CommentsLITTLE ROCK, Arkansas (AP) — German conglomerate Bayer CropScience should pay a dozen Arkansas farmers nearly $50 million for allowing a genetically altered strain of rice to escape into the commercial market, damaging rice prices in 2006, a jury ruled Thursday. An attorney for the farmers, Scott Powell, said the jury decided on the judgment after less than two hours of deliberations Thursday afternoon.
Time For Action: When Windows Can't Protect You
April 16, 2010 4:40 am | by Torsten Rössel | Articles | CommentsAll things come to an end. And so it is with Microsoft Extended Support and Security Updates for Windows 2000, which will cease in July of this year. Any manufacturer with industrial applications based on Windows 2000 may wisely be considering a newer operating system right now, in order to remain in production with the needed security support.
Building A Green Coffee Empire
April 15, 2010 5:32 am | Videos | CommentsAn inside look at how Starbucks is working to achieve LEED certification for all new company-owned stores worldwide beginning in late 2010.
