‘Industry’ recalls more mystery meat because of risk of E. coli
Posting recall No. 23 for beef because of the risk of E. coli infections, Canadian officials continue to repeat vague information about the situation that now includes 875 individual products. The...
View ArticleRomaine confusion and clarity from the produce industry perspective
Contributed Editor’s note: Trevor Suslow, currently vice president for Produce Safety at the Produce Marketing Association and formerly with the University of California-Davis where he did extensive...
View ArticleFeds again withhold information about E. coli outbreak; restaurant chain...
Federal officials today confirmed another E. coli outbreak that they had previously not revealed to the public. Specific details were not available from the CDC or the FDA, but at least four states...
View ArticleWalmart, Aldi, others fail recall litmus test; Kroger, Target earn higher marks
Independent researchers say 22 out of the country’s top 26 grocery chains fail when it comes to warning the public about food recalls. Among those on the fail list are Walmart and Aldi. Consumers have...
View ArticleTransparency key in quest for consumer confidence in food
Opinion Home-delivered fresh meal kits, locally grown foods, a move toward minimal processing, and restaurant hydroponic gardens are among the emerging industry trends that present food safety...
View ArticleSurvey finds food safety primary concern for consumers
Food safety is the main area of concern for consumers, according to a survey by DNV GL. A total of 4,500 people were asked about food purchasing habits and results indicated the primary focus was on...
View ArticleTransparency is (redacted)
Opinion Every week I pore over the warning letters the Food and Drug Administration has sent to food firms. These letters are sent to food companies in the U.S. and companies importing into the U.S....
View ArticleSurvey identifies main food safety concerns for consumers
Six in 10 people said they would never go to a restaurant again if they contracted a foodborne illness while eating there, according to a survey. Surveyed consumers said their top food safety concerns...
View ArticleEU rules on risk assessment come into force; reviews continue
New rules on the transparency of Europe’s risk assessment process in the food chain have come into force. When a company wants to market a new food additive, pesticide or GMO, it submits studies to the...
View ArticleFDA hindered food program review before it began
– OPINION – After facing months of criticism about its slow response to the infant formula crisis, and the overall troubles facing the food program at the Food and Drug Administration, Commissioner...
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Alexa, order my online grocery list
As Amazon turned its key in the doors of nearly 500 Whole Foods stores across the U.S. and U.K. on Aug. 28, the online sales giant opened the gate to one of the biggest omnichannel vessels in the...
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Before crisis strikes: Earn consumer trust through transparency
No one is immune from a food safety crisis and its ripple effects on consumers, stakeholders and hard-earned reputations. Maybe you’re fortunate and it’s been smooth sailing so far. But be prepared. A...
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FDA, CDC won’t release details on tuna Salmonella outbreak
Although a county epidemiologist reported extensive details this week on a multi-state outbreak of Salmonella linked to tuna, federal agencies won’t release information on the investigation, which...
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FDA chasing after voluntary recalls, but doesn’t often take mandatory route
Timely and efficient food recalls would cut down on foodborne illnesses, but the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has yet to figure out to do it. That’s the bottom line of another report on FDA food...
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Romaine source(s) remain elusive as E. coli outbreak grows
The number of victims in an E. coli outbreak linked to romaine lettuce jumped almost 60 percent in the past week as public health officials struggled to determine the source or sources of the...
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Publisher’s Platform: Why I love Doc Raymond – and Transparency
Tomorrow the CDC will update the Romaine E. coli outbreak and probably say that it is “over” (last time it updated was May 16th). The numbers will also likely jump from 172 to 200 and the death toll...
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Publisher’s Platform: Change of heart on Trade Secrets, or a Random Act of...
Two weeks ago, the FDA published the “FDA Update on Traceback Related to the E. coli O157:H7 Outbreak Linked to Romaine Lettuce.” The diagram entitled “Redacted draft traceback diagram for FDA...
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Now that you’ve got the data, what are you going to do with it?
Editor’s note: This is the third installment of a four-part series on how companies can use electronic record keeping to enhance food safety efforts. The series is sponsored by PAR Technologies. As...
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Feds get a little queasy over new Seattle policy to disclose active...
SALT LAKE CITY — Public Health – Seattle & King County currently report under “active investigations” a “bacterial toxin” associated with Lahori Kabab-n-Grill in Kent, WA and a Shiga...
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FDA should choose public safety over corporate confidentiality
The FDA has an opportunity now to update its recall disclosure policy to provide consumers critical information they need and want to protect themselves during an outbreak. The agency can, and should,...
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Federal officials post public alert about Hungry Man dinners
Federal officials on Friday posted a public health alert regarding certain Hungry Man frozen dinners because of concerns about Salmonella contamination of whey powder used to make them. One day...
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Publisher’s Platform: Why are these fish still on store shelves? I was wrong.
Although the brand was recalled, the Best Buy Date was not part of the recall. My apologies to my friends at Safeway. On July 23rd Pepperidge Farms recalled Goldfish crackers because they might be...
View ArticleConsumer groups back EU transparency vote
Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) have backed plans to ensure data used in decisions on food safety is made publicly available. The plenary vote on amendments to the General Food Law saw...
View ArticleTrust gap between consumers and industry impacting confidence
Greater trust needs to be built between consumers and the food sector to ensure public confidence, according to a study. Researchers at Flinders University in Australia spent five years working with...
View ArticleExemptions added to state public disclosure act to get FDA to resume sharing...
The Washington State Department of Agriculture is about to find out if appeasement works with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. In 2018 the FDA stopped sharing nonpublic information with the state...
View ArticleFDA begins posting additional information about antibiotics for animals
Citing efforts to improve transparency and public access to information about approved antibiotics for animas, the Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM) has published...
View ArticleFDA hid romaine-related outbreak from public view for more than 6 weeks
A not so public public outbreak of E. coli infections linked to romaine lettuce sickened people in a dozen states from July through early September, but U.S. officials did not release any information...
View ArticlePublisher’s Platform: It is not like I have not been preaching transparency...
Opinion There has been yet another romaine lettuce E. coli outbreak. This time with 23 people infected from July 12 to Sept. 8 in a dozen states. Eleven people were hospitalized. However, the outbreak...
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Publisher’s Platform: My last ode for Transparency – at least for this weekend
Opinion At the risk of beating this issue to death, I found yet another blog post I did several years ago on the issue of transparency in how public health deals with the public’s right to know. Is...
View ArticleSpeakers say the FDA has access to tools to improve recalls; it just needs to...
Dozens of speakers addressed FDA officials in a listening session on Sept. 30, and almost all of them said it is time for the agency to come out of the dark ages regarding its recall operations. The...
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