News
ConAgra 2Q Income Falls 16 Percent
December 21, 2010 3:25 am | CommentsDecember 21, 2010 OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Poor shopper response to promotions helped cause ConAgra Foods Inc.'s fiscal second-quarter net income to fall 16 percent. ConAgra initially benefited from the economic downturn as people ate at home more. But increased competition led many food makers and retailers to rely heavily on discounts and other promotions to drive sales.
Photo Of The Day: Feeding The Bees
December 20, 2010 4:00 am | Comments(AP) — In this Dec. 11, 2010 photo, beekeeper Terry Klein, 70, of TM Klein and Sons Honey, is shown next to a bee hive packed in straw and sheltered for the winter in a barrel on his property in St. Charles, Mich. Klein is one of many Michigan beekeepers worried that efforts to combat an invasive plant that is crowding out native vegetation could leave them without a key source of nectar and pollen that helps keep their honeybees productive and healthy.
Raw Milk Cheese Recalled
December 20, 2010 3:48 am | by What Do Consumers Need To Do?</SPAN> </SPAN></SPAN> </DIV> | CommentsThe FDA, in cooperation with other state and local public health agencies, is warning consumers not to eat any Sally Jackson cheeses. The products were processed under conditions that create a significant risk of contamination of the unpasteurized raw milk and finished cheese, and Sally Jackson cheeses have been identified as one possible source of eight cases of E.
Green Mountain Coffee Completes $905M Acquisition
December 20, 2010 3:40 am | CommentsWATERBURY, Vt. (AP) — Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. said Friday it completed the $905 million acquisition of competitor Van Houtte. The deal allows Green Mountain to cement a stronger foothold in the Canadian market. Green Mountain expects the acquisition to slightly weigh on earnings per share in the next 12 months.
25,600 Pounds Of Ground Beef Recalled
December 20, 2010 3:37 am | CommentsALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture says a company is recalling thousands of pounds of meat sent to businesses in New Mexico. The agency's Food Safety and Inspection Service said Friday that Dallas-based Winn Meat Co. was recalling 25,600 pounds of ground beef products that were improperly labeled and potentially adulterated.
Sara Lee May Sell To World's Largest Beef Company
December 20, 2010 3:34 am | CommentsNEW YORK (AP) — Sara Lee Corp.'s shares surged after a report that it is considering a sale to JBS SA, the world's largest beef company. The Wall Street Journal reported that people familiar with the matter said JBS approached Sara Lee with an offer, and the talks have been off and on for several months.
Senate Passes Food Safety Bill, Again
December 20, 2010 3:28 am | CommentsWASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate on Sunday passed a sweeping bill to make food safer, sending it to the House in the waning days of Congress. It was the second time the Senate passed the bill, which would give the government broad new powers to increase inspections of food processing facilities and force companies to recall tainted food.
Humane Society Claims Pigs Abused At Smithfield Farm
December 17, 2010 3:31 am | CommentsRICHMOND, Va. (AP) — The Humane Society of the United States said Wednesday that an undercover worker at a farm owned by the world's largest pork producer saw breeding pigs abused and crammed into small gestation crates. The animal welfare organization released the results of a monthlong undercover investigation at a Waverly, Va.
$90M Beef Plant Planned In North Dakota
December 17, 2010 3:28 am | CommentsBISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Korean investors and North Dakota cattle ranchers plan a $90 million beef plant in the state that could process about 1,200 animals each day for overseas and domestic markets. The Kim and Price Corp. plant would export about 60 percent of its beef to South Korea and sell the rest in the U.
Meat Processor Gets Pollution Penalty
December 17, 2010 3:26 am | CommentsST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — A western Minnesota meat processing plant has been given a $20,000 civil penalty for discharges of blood- and manure-contaminated water. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency said Wednesday it has reached an agreement with Noah's Ark Processors. The agreement resolves alleged violations of water quality laws and rules at the company's meat processing plant and animal hide storage building in Dawson.
Dannon To Pay $21M For Unapproved Health Claims
December 17, 2010 3:22 am | CommentsPORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Dannon Co. Inc. has agreed pay $21 million over health claims made for its Activia yogurt and DanActive dairy drink in settlements with state and federal regulators. The food company has claimed that beneficial bacteria in its Activia yogurt helps relieve irregularity and that its DanActive drink boosts immunity.
CDC Lowers Foodborne Illness Estimates
December 17, 2010 3:18 am | CommentsAbout 48 million people (1 in 6 Americans) get sick, 128,000 are hospitalized, and 3,000 die each year from foodborne diseases, according new estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The figures are the most accurate to date due to better data and methods used. The data are published Wednesday in two articles in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases .
Photo Of The Day: What Goes On Down On The Farm?
December 16, 2010 9:39 am | Comments(AP) — Humane Society of the United States spokesperson, Paul Shapiro, speaks during a press conference in Richmond, Va., Wednesday, Dec. 15, 2010. The Humane Society says it has found what it called " unacceptable and systemic abuses " of female breeding pigs at a Virginia factory farm owned by a subsidiary of Smithfield Foods.
Photo Of The Day: Lower Sales = Lower Temperatures
December 15, 2010 4:04 am | Comments(AP) — Employees of the Just Born candy company — which makes Peeps, Mike and Ike’s and other popular candies — are enjoying chilly Fargo, N.D., instead of balmy Hawaii after corporate sales goals weren’t met. Two dozen workers, who are in town for meetings, received fleece jackets and bomber hats.
CEOs Plan To Add Workers
December 15, 2010 3:53 am | CommentsNEW YORK (AP) -- More top corporate executives expect to hire workers and boost spending on their companies over the next six months. A survey released Tuesday by Business Roundtable, an association of CEOs of big U.S. companies, shows 45 percent of executives say they expect their companies to add more workers.
Dairy Snacks Market Driven By Health, Convenience
December 15, 2010 3:49 am | CommentsThe international market for dairy snacks, such as cheese strings and yogurt tubes, grew by 7% in 2009 and is heading for a 6% rise this year. The first major study on this sector, by leading food and drink consultancy Zenith International, estimates total volume at 217,000 tonnes in 2010 across 26 countries in North America, Latin America, West Europe, East Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Asia Pacific.
Helicopters Used To Rescue Crop From Rare Freeze
December 15, 2010 3:45 am | CommentsST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Dozens of helicopters whir above Florida's valuable and sensitive veggie crops, sent up by farmers worried that an uncommon freeze could wipe out their harvests. The choppers hover low over green bean and sweet corn fields, moving back and forth in the early morning hours to push warmer air closer to the plants — and, the farmers hope, save the plants from a deadly frost.
Iowa Warns Against Online Bootlegging
December 15, 2010 3:40 am | CommentsDES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Templeton Rye whiskey, which can be hard to find in some Iowa shops, has been showing up on Internet sales sites in violation of Iowa laws against bootlegging. The Des Moines Register reported that on Monday, a half-dozen or more people had listed the booze on eBay and Craigslist, asking up to $100 a bottle for whiskey that typically sells for $36 a bottle.
Winemakers To Introduce Artificial Ice Wines
December 15, 2010 3:34 am | CommentsPRAIRIE DU SAC, Wis. (AP) — Ice wine, made from grapes that were allowed to freeze on the vine, has long been one of the most expensive dessert drinks because of the risk involved in its production. Winemakers must harvest the grapes under precisely the right weather conditions and extract the high-sugar juice before they thaw.
U.S. Marshals Seize Chili Products In Infested Warehouse
December 14, 2010 3:54 am | Comments(FDA)--U.S. Marshals, acting under a court order sought by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, today seized chili pods, ground chili, crushed chili, and other chili products located in the rodent-infested food warehouse owned by Duran and Sons LLC in Derry, New Mexico. The New Mexico Environment Department had previously placed an embargo on all products in the company’s food warehouse on Nov.
