Recalls & Food Safety
FSMA and IPM – A Match Made in Common Values
February 11, 2013 9:22 am | by Zia Siddiqi, Ph.D., B.C.E., Director of Quality Systems, Orkin, LLC | Articles | CommentsWith the new rule under the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) going into effect in less than 60 days, it has become obvious that the FDA is seeking to revamp food safety in the United States, as well as regulate imported food from around the globe.
Hantavirus: Are Your Employees at Risk?
February 8, 2013 11:00 am | by Lindsey Jahn, Associate Editor | Articles | CommentsA recent outbreak of hantavirus at Yosemite National Park has raised concern about potential rodent infestation and hantavirus outbreaks in manufacturing plants, including food facilities. Patricia Hottel of McCloud Services discusses the risks of hantavirus and how food companies can keep their employees safe from the disease.
Food Safety Update: Meat, Poultry and Seafood Processing
February 6, 2013 11:00 am | by Krystal Gabert, Editor | Articles | CommentsThe Food Safety Update section of Food Manufacturing is designed to offer our readers insight into the state of food safety concerns across the industry. We received hundreds of responses to this month’s survey on meat, poultry and seafood processing.
FDA’s New Rules: What We Know
February 4, 2013 12:36 pm | by Krystal Gabert, Editor | Blogs | CommentsIn January, the FDA released two proposals for new rules under 2011’s Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). The rules are being touted as a significant overhaul of the nation’s food safety system and are largely supported by industry.
FDA's Standards for Produce Safety
February 4, 2013 9:52 am | Videos | CommentsFDAImports' CEO Ben England discusses regulatory oversight of produce processing by the FDA and how the agency's powers have expanded in this area since the passage of the Food Safety Modernization Act. How will the agency's new rules impact the produce industry?
Daily Sound Bite: Poland Denies Horsemeat Link
February 1, 2013 1:08 pm | News | CommentsPolish Scientists are testing the country's meat supply in an attempt to find the source of the beef burgers containing horsemeat, found in Ireland last month. Officials from Poland are hoping to put to rest claims that the country is the source of the contamination.
Farmers Get a Lesson in Produce Safety
January 31, 2013 11:00 am | Videos | CommentsIndiana farmers look to make a comeback after Chamberlain Farms, located in Owensville, Ind., was linked to a deadly salmonella outbreak last year. Food safety officials are hoping that new rules proposed this month requiring stricter sanitation standards for produce growers will help put farmers on the right track.
Wyoming Students Sent to Hospital After Eating Veggies
January 31, 2013 9:43 am | News | CommentsAbout a dozen Wyoming preschoolers at Linford Elementary School in Laramie were taken to the hospital Tuesday after eating sample-sized portions of either yucca, the cactus, or yuca, with one c, the root vegetable. It was part of a push to get students to eat new types of fruits and vegetable.
Food Safety Lapses: The Human Toll
January 31, 2013 9:00 am | Videos | CommentsArlene, a food poisoning victim, shares the story of her illness and recovery from salmonella poisoning. After eating undercooked eggs at a restaurant, Arlene became ill and was rushed to the hospital, where she was held for seven days.
FDA Finds Violations, Unsanitary Conditions At Juice Plant
January 30, 2013 9:29 am | News | CommentsThe U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced today that Jonlly Fruits, Inc. (Jonlly), and its President, Bartolo Pérez Román (Defendants), have signed a consent decree of permanent injunction prohibiting distribution of their fruit and juice products sold under Jonlly’s own label, as well as “Natural Tropic,” “Selectos,” and several other private-label brands.
Photo of the Day: What's Lurking in Your Salad?
January 30, 2013 9:23 am | News | CommentsLeafy green vegetables were the leading source of food poisoning over an 11-year period, federal health officials say, Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013. However, the most food-related deaths were from contaminated chicken and other poultry.
Dirty Conditions Caused Massive Peanut Butter Recall
January 30, 2013 9:00 am | Videos | CommentsFDA officials say the conditions inside the Georgia plant responsible for last year's massive peanut butter recall were an accident waiting to happen. The company allegedly retested samples positive for salmonella until getting a negative result — and then shipped the product to retailers.
Whole Foods Recalls Smoked Salmon
January 29, 2013 12:37 pm | News | CommentsWhole Foods Market says it is voluntarily recalling some 4-ounce Whole Catch Wild Alaskan Sockeye Salmon, cold-smoked and sliced, after a sample tested positive for listeria. The lot code for the recalled smoked salmon is 7425A2298B. The UPC code is 0 99482 40880 0.
Leafy Greens Top Source of Food Poisoning
January 29, 2013 12:26 pm | by MIKE STOBBE,AP Medical Writer | News | CommentsA big government study has fingered leafy greens like lettuce and spinach as the leading source of food poisoning, a perhaps uncomfortable conclusion for health officials who want us to eat our vegetables. "Most meals are safe," said Dr. Patricia Griffin, a government researcher and one of the study's authors who said the finding shouldn't discourage people from eating produce.
Sprouts Recalled over Listeria Fears
January 29, 2013 9:36 am | News | CommentsCertain sprouts being sold at Canada Safeway stores in British Columbia are being recalled because of concerns over possible Listeria contamination. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency the LifeForce Foods brand product includes Brocco Sprouts, Spicy Sprouts and Alfalfa Sprouts sold in 85-gram plastic containers.
Tainted Beef Sickens 16 in 5 States
January 29, 2013 9:31 am | by MIKE STOBBE,AP Medical Writer | News | CommentsFederal health officials say at least 16 people in five states have been sickened by salmonella food poisoning linked to ground beef. No one has died, but half were hospitalized. Most of the illnesses have been in Michigan, but a few cases were scattered in Arizona, Illinois, Iowa and Wisconsin.
Beef Linked to Salmonella Cases in 2 States
January 28, 2013 9:44 am | News | CommentsMore than 1,000 pounds of ground beef are being recalled in suburban Detroit after federal officials linked it to salmonella in Michigan and Arizona. The U.S. Department of Agriculture says the beef is being recalled from Troy-based Gab Halal Foods and Sterling Heights-based Jouni Meats.
Photo of the Day: Peanut Butter Safety
January 28, 2013 9:36 am | News | CommentsThanks to the Food Safety Modernization Act implemented in 2011, consumers won’t have to worry about choosing peanut butter contaminated with salmonella. Sparta Systems takes a closer look into the peanut butter manufacturing industry, outlining how peanut butter gets contaminated and what the Food Safety Modernization Act does to improve food quality.
Texas Company Recalls Hog Head Cheese for Salmonella
January 25, 2013 12:35 pm | News | CommentsA Houston head cheese maker is recalling almost 2½ tons of hog head cheese it says may be tainted with salmonella. A Thursday statement from the U.S. Department of Agriculture says Stallings Head Cheese Co. is recalling 4,700 pounds of the cold cuts shipped to a distribution center for retail distribution in Louisiana and Southeast Texas.
Maine Bans BPA in Baby Food, Formula
January 25, 2013 12:32 pm | News | CommentsThe Maine Board of Environmental Protection has voted to ban the toxic chemical bisphenol-A from baby food and infant formula packaging. The board voted on Thursday, agreeing with Department of Environmental Protection staff recommendations pertaining to infant formula but also went further by applying it to baby food.
Tenn. Wins Federal Grant for Food Safety Center
January 24, 2013 12:38 pm | News | CommentsTennessee is one of five states to receive a federal grant to establish an Integrated Food Safety Center of Excellence. The center will be located at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and operated in cooperation with the state Health Department.
Recall: Pizza May Have Metal Fragments in Dough
January 23, 2013 12:37 pm | News | CommentsAnnie's Inc. is voluntarily recalling seven kinds of frozen pizza sold nationwide over the possible risk that metal fragments made their way into the dough. The organic and natural food company said it issued the recall after finding out that a metal mesh screen at a third-party flour mill had failed. As a result fragments of the mesh were found in the flour and pizza dough.
Idaho Company Recalls 33.5K Pounds of Meat Products
January 21, 2013 12:27 pm | News | CommentsA southwestern Idaho company is recalling 33,500 pounds of fully cooked meat and poultry products because of possible bacterial contamination. The United States Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service announced Saturday that Boise-based B and D Foods is recalling a variety of meat products that could be contaminated with listeria monocytogenes.
Bovine TB Suspected in Wash. Cow Sent to Slaughter
January 18, 2013 12:35 pm | News | CommentsA Grant County dairy cow sent to slaughter earlier this month is suspected of having had bovine tuberculosis, Washington state agriculture officials said Thursday. That ailment has not been seen in Washington cattle since 1988. There is no immediate human health concern, state health officials said.
Horsemeat: Pulling It from the Shelves
January 18, 2013 10:03 am | Videos | CommentsThe Irish government recently uncovered the ongoing sale of burgers labeled as beef but containing as much as 29 percent horsemeat. The technical director of one of the grocery chains found to be selling the mislabeled burgers discusses how the store was alerted to the problem and what happened next.
