| |||
|
Food Irradiation Update is published by the Minnesota Beef Council | |||
Quotable Quotes: In This Update: Important Food Safety Links: | |||
| The $152 Billion Wake-Up Call for Food Safety; Reuters (March 4, 2010): | |||
| "Past official government estimates of health-related costs of foodborne illness have ranged from $7 billion to as much as $35 billion, but they considered only limited costs and pathogens, according to the report. The new study, an initiative of the Pew Charitable Trusts and Georgetown University, considered a total of 27 known pathogens --such as salmonella and listeria -- and looked at more health-related costs, pushing the price tag to $152 billion." Read more here...... |
|||
| Recalls due to Salmonella risk in flavoring approach 100 (March 8, 2010): | |||
(CIDRAP News) – The number of product recalls linked to a food ingredient that may be contaminated with Salmonella Tennessee has grown to 94, according to the most recent update from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The list of items containing potentially contaminated hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP) from Basic Food Flavors, a Las Vegas company, has expanded beyond the initial 56 products described by the FDA on Mar 4 to include certain bouillon, prepared salad, gravy, and pretzel products. HVP is a flavor booster made from legumes that is an ingredient in an array of different food products. Basic Food Flavors recalled all of the HVP it had made since Sep 17, 2009, after one of its customers found Salmonella in an HVP batch, which prompted an FDA inspection that found the contaminant on the company's processing equipment. No illnesses have been linked to the product, but federal officials said at a Mar 4 press briefing that the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) was reviewing reports entering its Salmonella surveillance system for any signal of increased illness. Federal officials have said they believe the risk of contamination is low, because of the small amounts of HVP used in the products and because many of them underwent a "kill step" such as heating that would have killed the bacteria. Federal officials said the ingredient-driven recall shows the complexity of the nation's food production and distribution system, and they said they expected the number of recalled products containing HVP to grow quickly. Read more here...... |
|||
| Cargill admits liability in E. coli lawsuit (February 23, 2010): | |||
| Cargill Meat Solutions Inc. admits it sold ground beef contaminated with E. coli O157:H7 that led to 23-year-old former dance teacher Stephanie Smith's illness in recently filed court documents. Cargill filed its seven-page response Feb. 5 to a $100 million lawsuit filed by William Sieben, acting as a guardian for Smith, in the U.S. District Court of Minnesota, admitting that it manufactured and sold ground beef that was the cause of Smith's illness. The company says it "does not contest strict liability in this case." "Never in my 23 years have I seen a food company admit liability out of the box in their answer to a complaint," Bill Marler, Smith's Seattle-based attorney, reportedly told the St. Cloud Times. Marler provides a copy of the Cargill response on his Web site. However, in its response, Cargill appears to be preparing for a defense that blames Smith and her mother, who purchased and prepared the E. coli-laced hamburger that Smith ate. In the court document, Cargill "denies that it failed to exercise reasonable care," as charged by the complaint. The company says it is "governed exclusively by the Federal Meat Inspection Act and, therefore, denies any additional or different requirements from those imposed by the FMIA." It observes that its meats are inspected and passed by the USDA and distributed with "safe-handling labels warning that, although inspected and passed by the USDA, such products may nevertheless contain bacteria that could cause illness if improperly handled, prepared or cooked." In 2007, Smith developed hemolytic uremic syndrome complications from E. coli after eating a hamburger produced by Cargill. "She suffered kidney failure, seizures and was in a medically-induced coma for three months. She was hospitalized for nine months," Marler notes. "Smith today remains in a wheelchair and in rehabilitation." In his blog, Marler notes that Cargill has thus far refused to pay any of Smith's past medical bills, which are close to $2 million and ultimately could climb into the tens of millions of dollars. "Cargill did purchase a wheelchair van for Stephanie's mother to drive, and after multiple requests, is paying for Smith's rehabilitation medical bills," Marler says (see FCN Oct. 12, Page 1). Read more here..... | |||
| If pepper's the culprit, who's to blame? The Oregonian (February 23, 2010): | |||
| It's been a while since we blamed Vietnam for something. With the 230th illness from salmonella reported last week, nine of them in Oregon and 17 in Washington state, health investigators point to imported black pepper that found its way onto salami manufactured in Rhode Island and shipped just about everywhere. That's a doozy of an epidemiologic trail, if it proves true, and there's nothing yet certifying Vietnam as anything but a prime suspect. If it turns out to be so, however, it's no assurance the problem will go away. Even with someone to blame, the pepper trail only leads to the gate of a broken food safety system. Read more here.... |
|||
| North Carolina firm recalls beef products due to possible E. coli O157:H7 contamination (March 2, 2010): | |||
Randolph Packing Co. Inc., of Asheboro, N.C. recalled approximately 96,000 pounds of beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced March 3rd. | |||
| Pakistan: Four-year project to boost mango exports; Fresh Plaza.com )March 2, 2010: | |||
| The export of Pakistani mangoes is likely to receive a great boost following the launch of a four year project, aimed at helping farms and groups to set-up facilities that would make Pakistani mangoes more acceptable in international markets, and new research findings indicating that the chemicals found in mangoes help cure some forms of cancer. Pakistan earned over $61 million by exporting 130,000 tons mangoes last year. The quantity exported represented less than five per cent of the total production of mangoes, which stands at 1.7 million tons, in the country. The experts believe that there exists a huge potential to export some 35 to 40 per cent of the total production of mangoes, which was over and above the domestic demand. The project will enable mango farmers to meet standards and phytosanitary requirements, as imposed by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) of the US department of agriculture regarding operational protocols, pre-clearance inspections and irradiation. Read more here..... |
|||
| Congratulations to Technological Laboratory of Uruguay (LATU): from a Press Release (February 23, 2010): | |||
| Technological Laboratory of Uruguay (LATU) on 23 February 2010 celebrated the grand opening of the first gamma irradiator in Uruguay. Attending the ceremony was Dr. Tabaré Vázquez, the President of the Republic of Uruguay, along with many other dignitaries and invited guests. Located near Montevideo, this facility will provide services on a semi-commercial scale to various sectors of industry. A multidisciplinary team of professionals and technicians use the latest technologies to provide their services to public and private organizations. LATUs aim is to introduce irradiation technology in Uruguay as an important alternative process to improve the quality of many products, including food. Its mission is to foster innovation, encourage sustainable development and to open new markets for Uruguayan products. You can visit LATU's website here.... | |||
| Food Irradiation Processing Alliance (FIPA) Website: http://www.fipa.us/ | |||
| Food Irradiation Principles and Applications is an excellent source of information about food irradiation. For information go to: http://www.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0471356344,descCd-tableOfContents.html | |||
| Irradiated Foods Booklet Provides Science-based Information on Food Irradiation: The American Council on Science & Health booklet on irradiated foods can be downloaded from: http://www.acsh.org/publications/booklets/irradiated2003.html | |||
| Food Irradiation Research and Technology published by Institute of Food Technologies Press and Blackwell Publishing is now available. To order your copy phone (515) 292-0140 or 1-(800) 862-6657. You may order online from Blackwell Publishing at: http://www.blackwellprofessional.com/ | |||
|
