Political ramifications are coming in from two events in the past week involving the meat industry.
The first event was a July 12 forum sponsored by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on issues surrounding
Continue Reading
Public overwhelmingly favors term ‘lab-grown’ over ‘clean’ meat
Consumer Reports, published by the 7 million-member nonprofit Consumers Union, last week reported on survey results showing the public expects laboratory-produced meat from cultured animal cells to be clearly labeled. The results show the public
Continue Reading
Make leafy greens “high risk” and chase them down quickly, say consumer groups
There’s no indication yet that anyone is the least bit embarrassed about the failure to yet identify the precise source of an E. coli O157: H7 outbreak involving at least 32 states and four Canadian
Continue Reading
USDA delays Obama’s organic livestock standards for review
The USDA is today publishing a notice in the Federal Register to further delay and reconsider new mandates for handling and transporting livestock and providing avian “living conditions” for poultry raised as organic food.
Without
Continue Reading
Food safety insecurity used as a hook against regulatory reform
Each side has just the congressional recess left to practice its hyperbole for the coming Senate fight over how regulations will be used across government. It’s going to get nasty. And confusing. The practice of
Continue Reading
Third-party auditor certification: Not the only tool in the toolkit
Enough went into the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) to make the food industry queasy, but the new law’s limited reliance on third-party auditors is still enough to make consumer advocates feel about the same
Continue Reading
Safe Food Coalition says safe handling labels need a rewrite
Seven well-known consumer groups acting together as the Safe Food Coalition are petitioning USDA’s Food Safety and inspection Service for a revised safe handling instruction label for meat, poultry and catfish. The petition calls upon
Continue Reading
Report Ranks Antibiotics Policies at Fast Food Chains
Only Chipotle and Panera get an A grade on antibiotics policies and sourcing practices, and most other fast food chains fail, according to a report by the Friends of the Earth, Natural Resources Defense Council,
Continue Reading
Managing for Salmonella in 2015 Continues to Present Challenges
Despite decades of efforts to control contamination rates, Salmonella has long been the most common illness-causing bacteria in food, and it remains the leading cause of death and hospitalization from foodborne illness in the U.S.
Continue Reading
Coming USDA Catfish Inspections Raise Question: Could Shrimp Be Next?
If food safety put catfish under USDA inspection, can shrimp be far behind? That question is coming into focus this week after one of USDA’s top two food safety officials told a gathering of food
Continue Reading
Coalition of Consumer Groups Suggests Ways to Fix GRAS
Last year, the Food and Drug Administration agreed to finalized its rule for the process of determining food substances as “generally recognized as safe” (GRAS). Now, a coalition of consumer advocacy groups has submitted an
Continue Reading