For its 31st annual report on pesticide residues in food, the Agricultural Marketing Service of the USDA has good news.
“In 2021, over 99 percent of the samples tested had residues below the tolerances established by the EPA with 24.0 percent having no detectable residue,” according to the report released
Continue Reading USDA reports 99 percent of foods tested are below pesticide residue limits
The rule with the title: “Strengthening Organic Enforcement” is still hanging fire at USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS).
It’s said to be the single largest piece of organic food rule-making since the National Organic Program (NOP) was birthed by the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990. The NOP is the
Continue Reading Rule to reform and update enforcement of organic industry remains aliveThe USDA’s National Organic Program completed more complaint reviews and investigations that it received in 2017. It finished work on 462 reviews and investigations while receiving 379 incoming complaints during the fiscal year 2017 ending last Sept. 30.
Under the jurisdiction of USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service, the organic program recently
Continue Reading USDA’s organic enforcement efforts find fraudulent certificates
The USDA’s National Organic Program will have new leadership as of October when Miles McEvoy steps down after eight years at the helm.
McEvoy, who has been deputy administrator of the National Organic Program within USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service, announced his departure in a Sept. 10 letter he said he
Continue Reading Head of USDA’s organic program steps down after 8 years
Farmers who want to sell their produce in certain markets, such as big-box stores, have to get certain food safety certifications, but not everyone can afford to scale up. USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is trying to help. An increasing number of retailers require their suppliers to have Good Agricultural
Continue Reading USDA to Expand Group Food Safety Certification for Small Growers
If you eat undercooked beef, it’s not just E. coli you have to worry about. Salmonella may be predominately associated with poultry, but beef can also be contaminated with the pathogen. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 23 percent of the outbreaks attributed to beef between 2009
Continue Reading Scientists Studying Salmonella in Cattle Lymph Nodes
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) released its latest summary of the Pesticide Data Program (PDP) last month. In its 21st annual summary of the program, the AMS stated that for the calendar year 2011 overall pesticide residues found on foods tested were below the maximum
Continue Reading Pesticide Data Program Shows Little Contamination in 2011
The United States currently leads the world in food production; but in order for this to remain true, the government must invest more in agricultural research, says a committee of the nation’s leading scientists and technology experts in a new report to the president. The document, issued Friday by the
Continue Reading Ag Research Needs More Funding, Say Experts
It’s a green light for food safety from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s 2012 specialty crop grants, with 8.4 percent of the total number of grants going to food safety projects – among them research, education, training and initiatives. The focus of many of these grants is directed toward
Continue Reading Food Safety Wins Thumbs-Up in 2012 Specialty Crop Grants
In May, I wrote a column in this space suggesting that through its successful lobbying to “zero out” funding for the Microbiological Data Program in the fiscal year 2013 budget, that big fruit and vegetable lobby had blood on its hands. At the time, friends thought it was a little
Continue Reading Letter From The Editor: Produce Testing Saving Lives
