News
Germany Ups Controls In Wake Of Dioxin-Tainted Livestock
January 14, 2011 4:05 am | CommentsBERLIN (AP) — Germany will tighten quality controls for the production of livestock feed after illegal levels of a cancer-causing chemical were found in poultry and pork products, officials said Friday, as the country struggled to restore confidence in its products. New regulations are aimed at preventing toxic chemicals from entering the food chain, said Ilse Aigner, the consumer protection and agriculture minister.
Photo Of The Day: No Weeding The Farm Bill
January 14, 2011 4:02 am | Comments(AP) — In this April 28, 2010, file photo President Barack Obama, and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, left, tour the Lowell Schachtsiek Farm with owner Lowell Schachtsiek in Palmyra, Mo. Despite warnings about belt-tightening and record federal deficits, delegates to the American Farm Bureau Federation left their annual convention this week without making major suggestions on where Congress should trim spending in the next Farm Bill, which sets federal funding for agriculture.
Cargill Buying German Chocolate Company
January 14, 2011 4:01 am | CommentsNEW YORK (AP) — Cargill Inc. is buying German chocolate company Schwartauer Werke GmbH & Co. KG Kakao Verarbeitung Berlin as it looks to expand its European cocoa and chocolate business. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Schwartauer has two chocolate production plants in Berlin and a total of approximately 180 employees.
USDA: School Lunches Need To Cut The Salt, Fat
January 14, 2011 3:55 am | CommentsWASHINGTON (AP) — School cafeterias would have to hold the fries — and serve kids more whole grains, fruits and vegetables — under the government's plans for the first major nutritional overhaul of students' meals in 15 years. The Agriculture Department proposal announced Thursday applies to lunches subsidized by the federal government.
Baboons Discover New Tangerine
January 14, 2011 3:49 am | CommentsJOHANNESBURG (AP) — When it comes to grabbing fruit off trees, baboons don't monkey around. Now their speed at gobbling up quickly ripening fruit has led to a discovery of what is believed to be a new type of tangerine. South African farmer Alwyn van der Merwe said workers noticed several years ago that one of his tangerine trees was already stripped of fruit when the other trees were ready for picking.
DuPont And Dow Settle Seed Dispute
January 12, 2011 3:56 am | CommentsWILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — Genetically engineered seed developers Dow AgroSciences and DuPont said Tuesday they resolved a legal dispute over the licensing rights for a strain of corn seeds. The deal will allow DuPont's Pioneer Hi-Bred division sell the strain of corn seeds, which contain Dow's technology.
Pa. Offers $1M Loan To Troubled Tastykake Maker
January 12, 2011 3:55 am | CommentsHARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Gov. Ed Rendell says Pennsylvania is prepared to offer the financially troubled manufacturer of snack foods line Tastykakes a $1 million loan. Rendell said at a news conference Tuesday that Philadelphia-based Tasty Baking Co. hasn't yet taken him up on the offer because it's a portion of what they will need.
Fire Kills 17,000 Chickens
January 12, 2011 3:54 am | CommentsHARRISONBURG, Va. (AP) — Fire officials in northern Virginia say an electrical short caused a blaze at a poultry house that killed 17,000 young chickens. Media outlets report that the fire occurred outside Harrisonburg Monday night at a poultry house. Rockingham County Fire and Rescue assistant fire marshal Mike Armstrong says most of the 4-week-old chickens died from smoke inhalation.
Farm Lobbying Group Cautions States On Immigration
January 12, 2011 3:53 am | CommentsATLANTA (AP) — States that crack down on illegal immigrants should also help farmers who need seasonal labor, the nation's largest farm lobbying group said Tuesday. And if Congress doesn't overhaul immigration, farmers will assist the federal government in helping states create programs that give growers access to enough legal labor, under a policy that won preliminary approval at the annual convention of the American Farm Bureau Federation.
NJ Company Recalls 200,000 Pounds Of Ground Beef
January 12, 2011 3:52 am | CommentsELIZABETH, N.J. (AP) — More than 200,000 pounds of ground beef products sent to prisons in Oregon and California are being recalled after an inspection found they may be spoiled. The U.S. Department of Agriculture says products from One Great Burger in Elizabeth, N.J., were discolored and smelled wrong.
Germany Kills Hundreds Of Dioxin-Contaminated Pigs
January 11, 2011 3:16 am | CommentsBERLIN (AP) — German authorities ordered hundreds of pigs slaughtered Tuesday after tests showed high levels of a cancer-causing chemical for the first time in swine, as the nation's dioxin scandal widened beyond poultry and eggs. The top agriculture official in northern Germany's Lower Saxony state demanded the cull after tests found illegal levels of dioxin in swine at a farm near Verden that purchased tainted feed from the company believed to be responsible for the scandal.
Earliest Known Winery Found In Armenian Cave
January 11, 2011 3:14 am | CommentsWASHINGTON (AP) — The earliest known winery has been uncovered in a cave in the mountains of Armenia. A vat to press the grapes, fermentation jars and even a cup and drinking bowl dating to about 6,000 years ago were discovered in the cave complex by an international team of researchers.
LA Company Recalls String Cheese
January 11, 2011 3:12 am | CommentsLOS ANGELES (AP) — Surtex Foods Co. says it is recalling its Oaxaca (wah-HAH'-kah) string cheese because it may be contaminated with a pair of bacteriums. The Los Angeles-based company said Monday that its "La Original" brand, which comes in a 17.63-ounce clear package could be susceptible to Listeria monocytogenes and Staphylococcus aureus.
Photo Of The Day: Kraft's Fight Hunger Bowl
January 10, 2011 10:18 am | Comments(AP) — In this photograph taken by AP Images for Kraft, Football legend Joe Montana joins Kraft Foods’ President Tony Vernon and players from Boston College and University of Nevada for the coin toss of the inaugural Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl on January 9, 2011 in San Francisco.
Pallet Debate Heats Up
January 10, 2011 10:16 am | by iGPS: | CommentsWASHINGTON, DC (PRNewswire-USNewswire) — The following was issued today by the National Wooden Pallet and Container Association: With less than a month left to his 30-year career in the U.S. Senate, Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.) took the time to fire off a letter to Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Margaret Hamburg urging the agency to notify "food manufacturers, transporters and retailers inspected by the FDA that plastic pallets containing decaBDE are inappropriate for use in scenarios that may bring decabromine into contact with food.
What Matters Most To Food Consumers
January 10, 2011 10:15 am | CommentsKANSAS CITY, Mo. (CFI) — A document providing insight into what influences the segment of society most capable of changing consumer attitudes toward today’s food system is being made available by the Center for Food Integrity (CFI). Messages that Matter is based on CFI’s 2010 Consumer Trust in the Food System research.
New Tests Detect Salmonella, E. Coli Faster
January 10, 2011 3:11 am | CommentsDENVER (AP) — Food safety scientists are looking for faster ways to detect salmonella, E. coli, listeria and other pathogens within hours or minutes instead of days. The goal is to catch contaminated food before it leaves a processing facility, thereby averting costly recalls. It also could mean a longer shelf life for products, if companies don't have to wait as long for tests to show that food is safe before shipping it.
DuPont To Purchase Danisco For $5.8B
January 10, 2011 3:10 am | CommentsWILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — DuPont is buying Danish food ingredients maker Danisco A/S for $5.8 billion as it looks to broaden its food and biofuels operations. The acquisition also includes the assumption of $500 million in debt. Danisco, which is already a joint venture partner with DuPont in the development of cellulosic ethanol technology, said Monday that it will recommend shareholders accept the deal.
Professional Tasters Get Paid To Sniff Out Food
January 10, 2011 3:09 am | CommentsST. LOUIS (AP) — Their environment is totally controlled. No windows face the outside world. The air is pressurized to keep smells out, and the lights cast an even, featureless glow. The room suffers no art or motivational posters, no music, no television chatter. The only thing that matters here is the food.
