In the wake of the tornadoes that devastated many Oklahoma communities this week, state health officials are reminding residents and rescue workers that food is more likely to be contaminated after a natural disaster, and should be handled safely. The Oklahoma State Health Department praised the recent outpouring of support for victims in the storms’… Continue Reading
During a nationwide teleconference on Monday Chinese Premier Li Keqiang urged “strict market supervision and harsh penalties” to improve food safety and assure costumers that something like the melamine milk scandal will never happen again. “Perpetrators must pay such a high price that they can not afford,” said Keqiang, according to official news outlet Xinhua…. Continue Reading
Opinion
My passion for public health stems from my career as an infectious disease doctor, watching families cope with the heartbreak caused by preventable diseases, including foodborne illness. I know what it feels like to explain to a husband in shock that the reason his wife is on life support is because of something she ate… Continue Reading
The release of a new study by Consumer Reports, which found that antibiotic-free turkey products have lower levels of drug resistance than conventional products, sparked a wide variety of reactions yesterday. Depending on who you ask, the study is either alarming or offers evidence that turkey has an amazing food safety record. The National Turkey… Continue Reading
More than 13,000 dead pigs have been fished out of rivers in and near Shanghai, renewing concerns about animal disease and water safety in China, according to the South China Morning Post. The paper reported that among those carcasses found, 9,500 of them were retrieved from the Huangpu River, which is a major source of… Continue Reading
Two leading Democrat members of Congress, Henry Waxman (CA) and Louise Slaughter (NY), introduced legislation this week aimed at providing more detail on the amount and use of antimicrobial drugs given to animals raised for food. The legislation, dubbed the Delivering Antimicrobial Transparency in Animals (DATA) Act, says it will help public health officials and scientists… Continue Reading
Opinion
This week, food labor advocate Saru Jayaraman is releasing her new book, Behind the Kitchen Door, which relates heartbreaking stories of just some of the 10 million restaurant workers in the U.S. In a chapter called “Serving While Sick,” she tells the disturbing tale of a fast-food worker who had no choice but to come to… Continue Reading
Opinion
This was originally published on barfblog. “The Internet is there to provide data for what you already believe.” That’s what Doug emailed me in a conversation we were having about the endless coverage of the supposed maim and chaos that reusable shopping bags have on public health.. The reusable-shopping-bags-are-killing-us discourse took a turn into the… Continue Reading
After the White House and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack suggested that the automatic budget cuts, known as the sequester, could force the government to furlough all federal meat inspectors, the food industry is arguing that such a move would violate the government’s legal obligation to keep inspectors at work. Furloughing more than 6,000 meat safety… Continue Reading
Chinese authorities have taken 350 people suspected of food safety crimes into custody since the end of January, according to the Ministry of Public Security. The arrests come as part of a government crackdown on food violations that began last month in anticipation of the Chinese Lunar New Year, which will take place this year… Continue Reading
Opinion
Wouldn’t you think that a one-third decline in reported foodborne illnesses would be a cause of celebration at the agency responsible for educating us about unsafe food? Well, if not a celebration, at least a slight smile, a teeny bit of self congratulation, maybe a soft exhale? The U.S. Centers for Disease Control just reported… Continue Reading