Meat, Poultry & Seafood
Photo of the Day: Hot Chicken
March 27, 2013 9:19 am | News | CommentsIn this Friday, March 23, 2013 photo, a diner reaches for a piece of hot chicken at Prince's Hot Chicken Shack in Nashville, Tenn. Hot chicken — fried chicken with varied amounts of seasoning that make the heat level run from mild to extra hot — is a signature dish of Nashville.
Daily Sound Bite: Canadian Mining Killing U.S. Fish
March 26, 2013 12:27 pm | News | CommentsA new study by researchers at the University of Montana found that the pollutants from the Canadian mining industry, including a metal-like element called selenium, are finding their way downstream into Montana and threatening fish populations there.
Pollution from Canada Threatens Fish Downstream
March 26, 2013 9:28 am | by TRISTAN SCOTT,MISSOULIAN | News | CommentsA study by University of Montana researchers shows that pollutants leeching into the heavily mined Elk River drainage in southeastern British Columbia have reached alarming levels, particularly as a metal-like element called selenium threatens critical fish habitat in Canada, as well as downstream in Montana.
Photo of the Day: Safety in an Eggshell
March 26, 2013 9:21 am | News | CommentsThe egg has been associated with festivals celebrating spring for many centuries. However, eating eggs that are not handled with proper care can cause food poisoning, also called foodborne illness. Salmonella, an organism that causes nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, and fever, can be found on both the outside and the inside of eggs that look perfectly normal.
U.S. Sen. Warren Files Fishery Assistance Amendment
March 25, 2013 12:20 pm | News | CommentsU.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren is proposing to provide disaster relief funds to Northeast fishermen in the first amendment she's filed since taking office. The amendment introduced by Warren, a first-term Massachusetts Democrat, would allow funds in the 2014 budget to be set aside to aid fishermen around the region. No amounts are specified.
Salmon Recalled amid Listeria Scare
March 25, 2013 9:36 am | News | CommentsCentral-Epicure brand Smoked Atlantic Salmon has been recalled because it may be contaminated with Listeria bacteria. The affected product was sold in Ontario and Quebec in 100 gram packages with a best before date of Mar. 26 (UPC 0 61279 21200 6).
Horse Shooting Highlights Slaughter Debate
March 25, 2013 9:28 am | by JERI CLAUSING,Associated Press | News | CommentsAn Internet video that shows a meat company employee swearing at animal activists before shooting a horse in the head highlights the increasing emotional intensity of the national debate over whether a New Mexico plant should be allowed to resume domestic horse slaughter.
Daily Sound Bite: Filmed Horse Slaying Has Some Outraged
March 22, 2013 12:28 pm | News | CommentsAn employee of a New Mexico slaughterhouse has posted a video of himself shooting a horse in the head, which has sparked nationwide outrage. Rick De Los Santos, co-owner of the plant where the incident occurred, has been fielding calls and even death threats, but he denies involvement in the incident.
16K Pigs Pulled from Rivers Feeding Shanghai
March 22, 2013 9:41 am | News | CommentsThe number of dead pigs recovered in the last two weeks from rivers that supply water to Shanghai has risen to more than 16,000. The government in China's financial hub said Thursday that 10,570 carcasses have been pulled from its Huangpu river. That is in addition to 5,528 pigs plucked from upstream tributaries in the Jiaxing area of Zhejiang province.
NM Slaughterhouse Worker Films Himself Fatally Shooting a Horse
March 22, 2013 9:31 am | News | CommentsAn employee of a southeastern New Mexico slaughterhouse has posted a video online showing him fatally shooting a horse in the head. That has sparked outrage among animal activists and led to death-threat calls to the Roswell meat company, which is working with the U.S. Department of Agriculture to get a horse slaughter plant in the area.
Daily Sound Bite: Meat Inspection Spared in Budget Cuts
March 21, 2013 12:33 pm | News | CommentsUSDA meat inspectors were saved from furloughs as after across-the-board budget cuts are being set in motion in the wake of the sequester debacle. Continued meat inspection was one of a few adjustments made before the cuts go into full effect.
Activists Seek Charges Against Japanese Whalers
March 21, 2013 12:23 pm | by MIKE CORDER,Associated Press | News | CommentsSea Shepherd wants Dutch authorities to prosecute Japanese whalers for piracy for allegedly attacking the radical conservationist group's ships in Antarctic waters, a lawyer said Thursday. Lawyer Liesbeth Zegveld filed a criminal complaint with Dutch environmental prosecutors accusing the crew of the Nisshin Maru whaling ship of deliberately ramming Sea Shepherd's ships in February.
Montana Considers Allowing Roadkill for Dinner
March 21, 2013 12:17 pm | by KATHRYN HAAKE,Associated Press | News | CommentsElk, deer, antelope and moose: If Montana residents can scrape it up, they can eat it. State lawmakers are poised to say just that after the Senate gave its initial backing Wednesday to a bill that would allow people to salvage roadkill for food. The measure is now a final vote from heading to Gov. Steve Bullock.
McDonald’s Adds Chicken McWrap to Core Menu
March 21, 2013 9:41 am | by CANDICE CHOI,AP Food Industry Writer | News | CommentsMcDonald's is adding a permanent new offering to its menu: chicken McWraps. The world's biggest hamburger chain says the new sandwich wrap will come in three varieties — Chicken & Bacon, Sweet Chili Chicken and Chicken & Ranch. The company already offers similar wraps in other parts of the world, including Europe.
Photo of the Day: That's a Wrap
March 21, 2013 9:32 am | News | CommentsThe world's biggest hamburger chain says the new sandwich wrap will come in three varieties — Chicken & Bacon, Sweet Chili Chicken and Chicken & Ranch. The company already offers similar wraps in other parts of the world, including Europe.
What Can HPP Do for Seafood Processors?
March 21, 2013 9:00 am | by Errol Raghubeer, Ph.D., Vice President, Microbiology & Technology, Avure Technologies, Inc. | Articles | CommentsA heightened regulatory climate, the relentless quest for processing efficiencies, and enhancing revenue through new product development are top-of-mind issues in the seafood industry. Controlling pathogenic Vibrio, coliform bacteria, and viruses in oysters and other shellfish will always be paramount to public health.
Asian Carp Spawning Areas Wider Than Expected
March 20, 2013 12:37 pm | by JOHN FLESHER,AP Environmental Writer | News | CommentsAsian carp are reproducing in more places and under more varied conditions than experts had believed they could, yet another reason to worry about the greedy invader's potential to infest waterways and crowd out native species, scientists said Tuesday.
Daily Sound Bite: China's Pig Problem
March 20, 2013 11:54 am | News | CommentsAfter two weeks of pig carcasses floating into Shanghai, the Chinese government has responded to the ongoing incident with little more than silence. As of today, about 14,000 pig corpses have been found floating in rivers, and Chinese citizens are demanding answers.
Gulf Seafood Update: An Industry Regains Its Sea Legs
March 20, 2013 10:30 am | by Lindsey Jahn, Associate Editor | Articles | CommentsWhen the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded in April 2010, 4.9 million barrels of oil spilled into the Gulf of Mexico, bringing the area’s seafood industry to a halt. Nearly three years later, Gulf seafood players stand united with plans to make the industry stronger than ever.
Indonesia Beef Prices Skyrocket
March 20, 2013 9:43 am | by NINIEK KARMINI,Associated Press | News | CommentsBeef now costs more than $10 a kilogram (2.2 pounds), up from around $6 a kilogram nine months ago. Meanwhile in the past month alone, sellers at a traditional market in Jakarta report garlic has leaped three and half times to $7.20 a kilogram, while shallots increased more than fourfold to $4.60 and chilies more than tripled to $5.15.
Flood of Dead Pigs in China, Few Answers
March 20, 2013 9:37 am | by DIDI TANG,Associated Press | News | CommentsThe pig carcasses — about 14,000 of them — have been floating down rivers that feed into Shanghai for nearly two weeks. The city's residents have been told not to worry, and not much else. Where the pigs came from, how they died and why they suddenly showed up in the river system that supplies drinking water to a city of 23 million has not been explained.
Photo of the Day: Indonesia Beef Prices Soar
March 20, 2013 9:33 am | News | CommentsIn this Thursday, March, 14, 2013 photo, a vendor slices meat as he serves customers at his stall in a market in the outskirts of Jakarta, Indonesia. The price of beef, the main ingredient in the Indonesian delicacy bakso, has hit a record high while other essential ingredients — garlic, shallots and chillies — have also recently skyrocketed.
Daily Sound Bite: Meat Companies Push Back Against Abuse Videos
March 19, 2013 12:21 pm | News | CommentsAfter the release of a spate of horrific videos showing egregious cases of animal abuse at slaughterhouses, meat processors are lobbying for legislation making it harder for animal welfare advocates to film abuse. Such bills are making their way through legislatures in California, Nebraska and Tennessee.
Farm Bureaus Fight to Keep Chicken Grower’s Lawsuit Alive
March 19, 2013 12:12 pm | News | CommentsThe U.S. Environmental Protection Agency wants a judge to dismiss a West Virginia chicken grower's lawsuit over water-pollution orders the agency issued against her then withdrew in December, arguing the case is now moot. But court filings show Eight is Enough farm operator Lois Alt plans to join the West Virginia and American Farm Bureaus in trying to keep the case alive.
Amid Horsemeat Scandal, Detection Tests Sell Well
March 19, 2013 12:09 pm | by ANGELA WITTROCK,MLive.com | News | CommentsNeogen Corp., a Lansing-based developer and manufacturer of animal and food safety products, has seen sales of its rapid meat speciation test kits spike amid a global horse meat scandal. Neogen Corp. is the maker of F.A.S.T. Species Identification Kits, screening tests that can detect the presence — at concentrations as small as 1 percent — of different species in uncooked meats and meat products.
