Breaking News on Food Safety & Quality Control

State House approves food safety bill

11-Mar-2010 - A bill providing tougher punishments for those who knowingly distribute or fail to report tainted food ingredients has been approved by the Georgia state House.

News in brief

Monsanto patent not valid for soybean meal, ECJ

09-Mar-2010 - The European Court of Justice has indicated that Monsanto’s patent on Roundup Ready soybean seeds does not also cover processed soybean meal in the EU, say reports.

Weekly comment

EFSA’s antioxidant rejections could be blessing in disguise

08-Mar-2010 - Timber! The latest axe blow from EFSA has fallen, and this time it has taken one of the biggest trees in the nutrition forest: Antioxidants. But let’s not mourn the loss of the tree; let’s look forward to the new opportunities a clear view of the sky can give.

FDA should improve GRAS oversight, says GAO

08-Mar-2010 - The FDA needs to improve its oversight of GRAS (generally recognized as safe) food ingredients, claims a new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

Acrylamide could get prop 65 for reproductive harm

01-Mar-2010 - California health officials have proposed that acrylamide, the suspected carcinogen produced during the cooking of certain foods, should be listed as a known reproductive toxicant.

Industry backs EFSA review of non-plastic food contact materials

26-Feb-2010 - Leading industry bodies have endorsed a proposal by European safety chiefs to evaluate the safety of non-plastic food contact materials such as inks, coatings and adhesives.

EFSA to examine safety of non-plastic food contact materials

23-Feb-2010 - The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has set up an expert panel to evaluate the safety of non-plastic food contact materials such as inks and adhesives.

Study warns of future threats to food safety

19-Feb-2010 - Experts from Unilever, the Food Standards Authority (FSA), National Center for Food Safety and Technology (NCFST) have mapped out future threats to food safety and strategies to tackle them in a new study.

Manufacturers lack sufficient product recall cover

04-Feb-2010 - Typically less than 10 per cent of food manufacturers have product recall insurance, with the majority relying on traditional product liability cover, according to insurance broker Jardine Lloyd Thompson (JLT).

FDA requests $4bn budget to ‘transform’ food safety

02-Feb-2010 - The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has requested $4.03bn for food safety and public health promotion as part of President Obama’s fiscal 2011 budget – a 23 percent increase on 2010’s $3.3bn budget.

EU steps up border controls to boost food safety

26-Jan-2010 - The European Union said measures to step up border controls on a range of imported foods of non-animal origin in a bid to boost food safety came into effect yesterday.

Industry views sought on baby milk ingredients

12-Jan-2010 - Feedback from manufacturers is being sought on new standards being proposed for inclusion in the Food Chemcials Codex (FCC) which aim to ensure the quality and enhance the safety of key ingredients widely used in infant formulas.

US trade group 'cautiously optimistic’ over Russia poultry ban

12-Jan-2010 - As the Russian ban on US poultry imports enters its second week, a leading trade body has expressed guarded optimism that up-coming governmental talks between the countries would resolve the issue.

EU updates recycled plastic process register for packaging

17-Dec-2009 - The European Union has updated its register of applications of processes to produce recycled plastic for use in food contact materials.

EFSA approval for two food contact substances

16-Dec-2009 - The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has delivered positive opinions on two substances for use in polyvinyl chloride (PVC) food contact materials.

UK flags new rules to strengthen meat traceability

10-Dec-2009 - New supply chain regulations designed to beef up the ‘farm to fork’ traceability of cattle, sheep and goats sent to slaughter will come into force in the UK from the beginning of next year.

Tyson clashes with FDA over 'serious violations'

04-Dec-2009 - Tyson Foods has challenged an FDA-assessment that one of its Texas food processing plants had committed “serious violations” of the seafood Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) regulation.

News in brief

China lifts Canadian pork ban

02-Dec-2009 - China has reopened its borders to imports of Canadian pork, although its ban on live swine is still in place, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said on Tuesday.

EFSA evaluates previous cargoes of food transport ships

02-Dec-2009 - The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has issued its opinion on the acceptability of a number of substances as previous cargoes for the transport by sea of edible fats and oils.

UK poultry industry struggles to comprehend EU judgement

02-Dec-2009 - UK poultry processors have been plunged into confusion after EU rules were passed banning the sale of defrosted ‘poultrymeat’ and ‘poultrymeat preparations’ sold as chilled product, reports sister title Food Manufacture.

New cleanliness guidelines for herbal products

30-Nov-2009 - Promoting the responsible trade in herbal products and improving the service to consumers are the twin goals behind new guidance policies on microorganisms and mycotoxins and heavy metals from the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA).

US food safety bill enters final lap

19-Nov-2009 - A US Senate committee unanimously approved the food safety bill yesterday in a move that will send the landmark legislation to the full floor for a final vote.

Plastic additive firms face €173m price fixing fine

12-Nov-2009 - Dozens of companies that produce plastic additives for food, beverage and cosmetic packaging have been fined more than €173m for their part in price fixing and market sharing cartels over a 13-year period.

Improved monitoring of two zoonotic diseases, EFSA

12-Nov-2009 - Two new reports aimed at harmonising the scrutiny and reporting of a pair of bacteria responsible for zoonotic diseases have been published by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).