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Egg recall highlights need for better traceability, says IFT

02-Sep-2010 - The recall of more than half a billion eggs linked to a nationwide salmonella outbreak highlights a need for better traceability in the food system, according to the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT).

News in brief

Number of eggs recalled exceeds half a billion

23-Aug-2010 - The number of eggs recalled nationwide due to contamination with salmonella enteriditis has exceeded half a billion, as the recall expanded to a second farm on Friday.

Egg recall renews calls for movement on food safety legislation

20-Aug-2010 - A massive multi-state recall of salmonella-tainted shell eggs has led to renewed calls for food safety legislation to move forward in the Senate, as the number of related illnesses looks likely to grow, according to officials.

Synutra defends products in light of hormone scare

13-Aug-2010 - Chinese dairy Synutra International has affirmed its belief that its products are safe and in no way linked to recent allegations of premature breast development in infant girls.

Fonterra gets embroiled in Chinese dairy scare

11-Aug-2010 - Fonterra has insisted that the New Zealand-based dairy is 100 per cent confident in its products as one of its Chinese customers faces an investigation into tainted milk claims.

Kellogg packaging problem resolved – says FDA

06-Aug-2010 - The problem with Kellogg’s tainted packaging has been solved, US federal authorities said yesterday – as the company confirmed the chemical responsible for the huge recall is not used in its European operations.

Congress demands answers from Kellogg after tainted-packaging recall

04-Aug-2010 - Kellogg Company has come under pressure from the US Congress to disclose more information about the “hazardous” packaging chemical that led to the recall of million of boxes of cereal in June.

Blue mozzarella bacteria not harmful to humans, said Germany

03-Aug-2010 - The bacteria strain responsible for turning thousands mozzarella cheese blue blue earlier this summer does not pose a human health hazard, said German authorities.

Czech Republic raises alarm over dioxin-contaminated codfish livers

30-Jul-2010 - Tins of codfish liver contaminated with higher than permitted levels of dioxins and PCBs are being cleared from supermarket shelves by food safety authorities in the Czech Republic.

FDA hails Reportable Food Registry success

29-Jul-2010 - The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has collected 125 food safety reports through its Reportable Food Registry in its first nine months of operation, the agency has said.

Liquid mercury found in Hong Kong canned meat

26-Jul-2010 - Food authorities in Hong Kong have raised the alarm that up to 48,000 cans of pork luncheon meat contaminated with liquid mercury could be on the market in the territory.

HPP can boost consistency of poor quality gum arabic, study

02-Jul-2010 - Treatment by high pressure processing (HPP) was seen to enhance the consistency of both ‘poor’ and ‘good’ quality gum arabic, finds new research from two UK universities.

FDA urges phasing out of antibiotics in meat

30-Jun-2010 - The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has produced draft guidelines for reducing the use of growth-promoting antibiotic drugs for meat-producing animals, saying it contributes to drug resistance in humans.

Kellogg issues massive recall as tainted packaging sparks health fears

28-Jun-2010 - Kellogg Company has recalled 28 million boxes of breakfast cereal in the United States over fears an unknown chemical that has tainted its packaging could cause diarrhoea and vomitting.

News in brief

ConAgra, Campbell issue large-scale recalls

18-Jun-2010 - ConAgra Foods and Campbell Soup Supply Co both issued large-scale recalls yesterday across the United States.

News in brief

CDC issues final update on salmonella in pepper and salami

07-May-2010 - The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued its final update on the salmonella outbreak linked to salami products and red and black pepper.

HVP recall continues – but far smaller than feared

03-May-2010 - Two more products have been recalled due to the possibility that they may contain salmonella-tainted hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP) from Basic Food Flavors – but fears of a large-scale recall have proved unfounded.

CDC reports little change in foodborne illness

16-Apr-2010 - Little or no progress has been made in reducing the incidence of foodborne illness in the United States in recent years, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

News in brief

Salmonella detection kit validated by AOAC

15-Apr-2010 - Life Technologies Corp’s salmonella detection kit has been validated by the AOAC Research Institute.

Chinese flour adulterated with pulverised lime - reports

09-Apr-2010 - Pulverised lime is being added to bleaching agents used in Chinese flour in a bid to cut production costs and boost profits, China state media has reported this week.

News in brief

FDA warns on raw milk

29-Mar-2010 - The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a warning on the potential danger of consuming raw milk, following a campylobacteriosis outbreak that has been linked to at least 12 illnesses in Michigan.

News in brief

Chicken processor facing fines for safety violations

16-Mar-2010 - Allen Family Foods is facing fines of $182,200 after being cited with dozens of serious health and safety violations at its Harbeson poultry processing plant in the United States.

No link between Siena meats and Canadian listeria deaths

16-Mar-2010 - Consumers in Canada have been warned not to eat Siena Foods cooked ham on fears of Listeria monocytogenes contamination - but five recent deaths in Ontario are not thought to be linked to the produce.

Weekly comment

The HVP recall: Damage control déjà vu

15-Mar-2010 - Not again! It emerged last week that Basic Food Flavors, the company behind the ongoing HVP recall, knew its products were tainted with salmonella but carried on shipping them anyway. Déjà vu anyone?

Basic Food Flavors knew HVP contained salmonella, says FDA

11-Mar-2010 - Basic Food Flavors knew its hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP) was contaminated with salmonella but continued to ship the product for a month before recalling it, according to an FDA report.

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