The New York Times says that China’s state-controlled media has admitted that “one of China’s biggest dairy producers received consumer complaints about its baby milk formula as early as December 2007 — much earlier than previously thought and nine months before the producer ordered a nationwide recall because of concerns that the formula had been adulterated with a toxic industrial chemical.”
food safety
Wegmans' New Metal Spring-Flavored Bagels Recalled
By 9.10.08
Wegman’s is recalling all in-store made bagels and bialys (flattened bagels) sold between August 24th and September 9th “because the bagels may contain pieces of a metal spring from a mixer that entered the dough.” If you have some, return them to your store’s customer service desk for a refund. Wegmans says this doesn’t affect their frozen bagels.
Discover The Wacky Side Of Food Poisoning
By 9.9.08
Did you know Jesse Jackson was hospitalized with food poisoning last week? Or that a recipe typo in a Swedish food magazine left four readers poisoned? These are two of the many interesting facts we just learned after a few minutes browsing the BarfBlog, a food safety blog with categories like “Celebrity Barf” and “listeria”.
E. Coli: FDA Will Allow Spinach, Lettuce To Be Irradiated
By 8.22.08
For the first time ever, the FDA is going to allow manufacturers to irradiate produce at levels that can kill bacteria that causes food-borne illness, says the New York Times. The produce in question, spinach and iceberg lettuce, have, in recent years, been linked to widespread outbreaks of serious illnesses.
Police Officer Awarded $40,000 Over KFC's Urine-Tainted Food
By 7.15.08
A police officer and his family from Sydney, Nebraska have been awarded $40,000 from their lawsuit which alleged that a KFC/Taco Bell store had served them food contaminated with an employee’s spit and urine in 2005. The lawsuit stated that fellow workers actually saw the employee taint the food and told management who failed to alert the family, according to the AP. Consequently, the officer’s two sons became violently ill. His 4-year-old was hospitalized and treated for gastroenteritis and dehydration. Details, inside…
6 Common Food-Safety Misconceptions
By 7.14.08
Since health officials seem to have very little idea about the source of the recent salmonella outbreak, perhaps it’s wise to educate ourselves a little more on the basics of food safety. Test your knowledge with Forbes’ list of some common food-safety misconceptions. The list, inside…
Heath Inspections: The Taste Of Chicago Is Apparently The Foulest Thing Ever
By 7.3.08
The always excellent Chicago Reporter informs us that the annual mass tourist migration known as the Taste of Chicago is basically the foulest thing ever. If you’ll recall, last year the Taste was struck by an outbreak of salmonella— so this year the Reporter has gathered some disgusting statistics and anecdotes guaranteed to make you think twice before buying those tickets.
BW3 Has A Nuanced Understanding Of Food Safety
By 6.10.08
Reader Dennis took this photo at a BW3 in Cincinnati, Ohio. He says:
Do You Know What Grade Of Beef Taco Bell Uses? Do They? Does Anyone?
By 5.8.08
A reader sent us the contents of a Better Business Bureau complaint filed against Taco Bell. It describes how a customer tried repeatedly to find out what grade beef Taco Bell uses in its food, and how nobody at the company was able or willing to provide an answer. Not surprisingly, the BBB complaint also went unanswered. Let’s just hope they’re not sourcing their beef from forklift cattle, which is like downer cattle but has odd prong-shaped bruises on the side.
Food Companies Threaten Higher Prices If FDA Increases Safety Oversight
By 4.28.08
Last week, the Grocery Manufacturers Association told lawmakers that if the FDA doubled its safety oversight budget by increasing fees from food companies, they’d have to raise prices to make up the cost. That’s right: affordable food or safe food. Choose one!
USDA Accused Of Bullying Inspectors Who Reported Safety Violations
By 4.18.08
First the FAA makes their own inspectors cry in front of Congress and now the Associated Press says that the head of the federal inspectors’ union is alleging that the USDA told him to “drop the matter” when he reported food safety violations at slaughterhouses. When he refused, he was placed on “disciplinary investigative status.”
Spinach Facilities Are Unsafe, Disgusting And The FDA Doesn't Care
By 3.27.08
If you like spinach you might not want to read a new report from the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform called “FDA and Fresh Spinach Safety.”
Pokemon Valentine's Day Lollipops Should Not Contain Razor Blades
By 2.17.08
A 10-year-old elementary school student found a razor blade in the Pokemon lollipop he was about to hand to his sister. Dollar General, which sold the lollipop for $1, immediately recalled the remaining Pokemon Valentine Cards and Pops from its 8,300 stores, but they are concerned that “most of this candy has already been purchased.”
USDA Stops Production At Meatpacking Facility After Undercover Video Showed Sick Cows Being Abused
By 2.7.08
So-called “downer” cows that are too ill to walk are not allowed into the food supply due to a higher instance of bovine spongiform encephalopathy ( mad cow disease)—which is why an undercover video taken by animal rights activists is causing a stir at the USDA.
FDA Wants To Open A Field Office In China
By 2.6.08
The FDA tells Reuters that it wants permission to open a field office on China so it has some “boots on the ground.” Rather than inspecting food, this proposed FDA expansion team’s main function would be to lobby the Chinese government for more stringent regulations. Be still our beating heart.
Dairy Queen Owner Exclaims "Good God Almighty, Where's My Manager?" After Workers Moon Drive-Thru Window
By 1.19.08
Hey St. John’s Dairy Queen workers, you forgot to make your Facebook group private. Now your hilarious little videos of each other mooning the drive-thru and waging indoor snowball fights are all over Canadian television. They just don’t understand your jokes about “using meat the next day that wasn’t kept overnight in the cooler.” Neither do the health inspectors.
Chinese Exporters Use Kosher Certification To Quell Food Safety Concerns
By 1.19.08
Kosher certification is the new darling of health-conscious consumers who misguidedly believe that biblically blessed health standards can reign in the excesses of commercial food production. Even Chinese exporters are betting that kosher certification can convince foreign consumers that their wares are safe. To companies, certification is just a marketing tool: it lends the aura of safety without offering any actual food safety benefits.
Many Chinese companies were unfamiliar with the concept: One furniture maker asked for kosher certification, drawing a polite rebuff. Another facility asked to get certified as kosher even though it was smoking eel on site, a kosher no-no. The company was turned down; it is now building a separate, kosher-only facility.
