food safety

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Farmers Fret as USDA Shuts Hundreds of Offices

Critics worry move will compromise public safety

(Newser) - The US Department of Agriculture announced plans to close 259 offices, labs, and other facilities yesterday, in a move that will save the agency $150 million per year. But the announcement has some farmers and food safety experts worried, the AP reports. "They wiped out the entire Midwest,"...

FDA to Rule on BPA Ban by March

Agency agrees to deadline as part of lawsuit settlement

(Newser) - The FDA will finally make a firm decision about whether to ban BPA by March 31, thanks to a lawsuit settlement. The Natural Resources Defense Council called on the agency to ban the controversial chemical in 2008, but the FDA didn't take action within the time required by law;...

Listeria Death Toll Hits 18
 Listeria Death Toll Hits 18 
Oct 5, 2011 5:00 AM CDT

Listeria Death Toll Hits 18

More cases still expected, says FDA official

(Newser) - The death toll from the listeriosis outbreak linked to cantaloupes rose to 18 as government officials confirmed three more deaths yesterday. The total number of illnesses is now 100, according to the CDC. An FDA official says more victims are expected, since listeria symptoms can take up to two months...

Colo. Cantaloupes Blamed for 4 Deaths

Rocky Ford melons believed to be source of Listeria

(Newser) - Colorado's famous Rocky Ford cantaloupes are being blamed for an outbreak of Listeria that has killed four people and sickened dozens of others in six states. No formal recall has been issued, but health officials are advising people at high risk of contracting the bacterial infection—the elderly, pregnant...

Ground Turkey Linked to Salmonella Death, Illnesses

But feds don't have enough information yet for a recall

(Newser) - Ground turkey joins the salmonella scare parade. The CDC says one person has died and nearly 80 others have gotten sick across the country since March, apparently from eating contaminated batches of the meat, reports ABC News . The feds don't have enough information yet to issue an official recall...

USDA: Cilantro Loaded With Unapproved Pesticides

USDA finds 34 chemicals not approved for herb in sample batch

(Newser) - Your salsa might have an extra kick for a different reason: The USDA tested a batch of cilantro and found traces of 34 pesticides unapproved for the herb, reports the Chicago Tribune . Nearly half of the cilantro samples tested, about 80% of which were grown in the US, came up...

Scotland to US: C'mon, Take Our Haggis

Scots push end to ban on delicacy made from sheep's lungs, liver, heart

(Newser) - The Scottish government wants you to be able to enjoy a delightful mixture of sheep organs in the comforts of your American home: It's urging the US to lift a 40-year-old ban on haggis imports. The sale of sheep's lungs, a vital part of the national dish, has been banned...

Senate Passes Food Safety Bill in Surprise Vote

Revised measure passes by unanimous consent

(Newser) - The Senate surprised the political world by passing a revision to its food safety bill last night by unanimous consent. The Senate originally passed the bill 73-25 , but it had been in limbo thanks to a technical snafu that stepped on the House’s constitutional tax-writing powers. Democrats scrambled to...

Senate Screw Up Derails Food Safety Bill

House set to send the bill back

(Newser) - House Democrats plan to spike the food safety bill their Senate counterparts trumpeted about passing yesterday , arguing that the upper chamber has stepped on its constitutional authority to create new taxes. The Senate bill includes a set of fees that are classified as revenue raisers, which are technically considered taxes,...

Senate Passes Huge Food Safety Bill

New law would bolster FDA's ability to regulate unsafe foods

(Newser) - The Senate passed a sweeping overhaul of the nation’s food safety rules today, with 15 Republicans joining Democrats in a 73-25 vote. The bill, which is in part a reaction to the tainted egg, peanut butter, and spinach scandals of the recent past, gives the FDA a lot more...

Locavores Say Food Safety Bill Could Hurt Small Farms

Michael Pollen, Eric Schlosser want protections

(Newser) - A major food safety bill cleared a Senate hurdle today, but it's getting friction from a group you might not expect: locavores. They want small family farms to be exempt from the sweeping new regulations and are pushing for an amendment to that effect from Montana Democrat Jon Tester. Two...

Those Gloves Aren't Keeping Your Food Safe
 Those Gloves Aren't 
 Keeping Your Food Safe 
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Oct 17, 2010 1:08 PM CDT

Those Gloves Aren't Keeping Your Food Safe

Unless the chef is changing or disinfecting them, bare hands are better

(Newser) - You probably cringe when you see the guy behind the deli counter putting your sandwich together without wearing gloves. But a new study says that when it comes to food safety, gloves can actually do more harm than good, partially because they provide a (possibly) false sense of security. The...

Five-Second Rule? Better Think Twice

Kitchen floors are germ-infested zones

(Newser) - The 5-second rule may or may not protect your stomach from nasty germs (here's a no , here's a yes ), but it probably depends more on location than duration, writes Julie Deardorff, who rounds up recent studies and talks to scientists for her Health Club column in the Chicago Tribune...

Gulf Seafood Isn't Tested for Oil Dispersants

Current tests detect only the oil itself, and research is thin

(Newser) - Seafood lovers may want to keep this in mind: Anything coming from the Gulf of Mexico is being tested for contamination by oil, but not for contamination by chemical oil dispersants. BP has so far used 1.7 million gallons of one in particular, notes ProPublica . "There’s no...

Beware Salsa, Guacamole: Food Safety Experts

Made in big batches and left sitting out, dips can cause trouble

(Newser) - As guacamole and salsa become more popular, they also account for a rising number of cases of food poisoning, new statistics show. The dips once represented 1.5% of foodborne illness outbreaks in restaurants and delis, but between 1998 and 2008, that fraction climbed to nearly 4%. Part of the...

Campbell's Recalls 15M Pounds of SpaghettiOs

Marie Callender dinners also flagged

(Newser) - Two popular grocery items are being pulled off the shelves—SpaghettiOs that weren't adequately heated during processing, and Marie Callender frozen dinners that pose a salmonella risk. In kid food news, Campbell Soup is recalling 15 million pounds of SpaghettiOs with meatballs after a cooker malfunctioned at one of the...

Pesticide Patrol: The Dozen Worst Fruits and Veggies
 Pesticide Patrol: 
 The Dozen Worst  
 Fruits and Veggies 


in case you missed it
Jun 5, 2010 2:51 PM CDT

Pesticide Patrol: The Dozen Worst Fruits and Veggies

Soft, thin skin more susceptible to chemicals

(Newser) - Fruits and vegetables with soft skin are more likely to absorb pesticides than others, a new food safety investigation finds. Dubbing them America's "dirty dozen," the Environmental Working Group says they contain as many as 47 to 67 pesticides per serving even after being washed with a USDA-approved...

Study: Most Herbal Supplements Contaminated

Crackdown unlikely to make it into food safety bill

(Newser) - Herbal supplements are often contaminated with pesticides and heavy metals, and sellers are prone to making illegal claims about their health benefits, a congressional study has found. Almost all 40 dietary supplements tested had trace amounts of contaminants like lead and mercury, and 16 of the samples contained pesticide residues...

Lettuce Recalled in 23 States After E. Coli Outbreak

Firm pulls Freshway and Imperial Sysco brands

(Newser) - An E. coli outbreak linked to tainted lettuce has sickened at least 19 people in Ohio, New York and Michigan, prompting a massive recall of the vegetable. Ohio's Freshway Foods pulled romaine lettuce sold in 23 states under the Freshway and Imperial Sysco brands. Twelve of those sickened were hospitalized,...

Relax, Expiration Dates Are Nearly Meaningless
Relax, Expiration Dates Are Nearly Meaningless
OPINION
Feb 17, 2010 1:18 PM CST

Relax, Expiration Dates Are Nearly Meaningless

Food dating is utterly unregulated, and unreliable

(Newser) - Forget that date on the meat you bought last week; if it looks good and smells good, you can probably just eat it. Expiration dates are just about meaningless, argues Nadia Arumugam on Slate , because food’s deterioration has a lot more to do with how it’s stored than...

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