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Singapore’s Getting a New Govt Body – And Its Priority Is To Make Sure The Country Has Enough Food
The Singapore Food Agency will be responsible for developing Singapore’s food supply, improving food safety regulations, and handling food-borne disease outbreaks.
February 13, 2019
Come April 1, Singapore’s new food-related statutory board, the Singapore Food Agency (SFA), will come into existence – and its most important job is to ensure the country has enough food supplies.
The new stat board was created to consolidate and handle food-related matters currently scattered under divisions in the Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA), Health Sciences Authority and National Environment Agency.
SFA’s priority is to develop national strategies to obtain food, Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Masagos Zulkifli said in Parliament on Tuesday (Feb 12).
According to Masagos, imports account for most of Singapore’s food supply, and the republic currently imports items from 180 countries – up from 140 countries in 2004.
The minister said the SFA would continue to look for more import sources to ensure Singapore is not overreliant on any country for food items. This would also reduce the republic’s “vulnerability to external volatility and price hikes,” he added.
In addition, it will also help local food companies based overseas to expand, thus reducing the price of imports.
Another way the stat board plans to develop food security is by increasing the supply from local farms. It is looking at educating farmers at institutes of higher learning (such as universities and polytechnics), so as to incorporate more technology and R&D in the farming sector, Masagos said.
Examples of these technologies include indoor vertical farms and deep sea fish farming.
On top of food security, the SFA will also be responsible for improving food safety regulations and handling food-borne disease outbreaks, such as tracing and recalling food products, and testing food samples.
Its “regulatory oversight over all food-related matters from farm to fork” would allow the government to “address lapses (in food safety) more quickly and more holistically,” the AVA said in a statement.
In addition, a food laboratory, the National Centre for Food Science, will be set up under the SFA to research food safety.
The Founders of The Farm Project Announce Nationwide Launch of Lettuce Grow
Founded by Jacob Pechenik and Zooey Deschanel as an initiative of The Farm Project, Lettuce Grow is calling all front yards, backyards, patios and balconies to move fresh food production back into our communities
THE FOUNDERS OF THE FARM PROJECT ANNOUNCE NATIONWIDE LAUNCH OF LETTUCE GROW: A NEW MEMBERSHIP EXPERIENCE EMPOWERING AMERICANS TO GROW 20% OF THEIR FOOD AT HOME
Los Angeles, CA, and Austin, TX (March 13, 2019)
The Farm Project is proud to announce today the nationwide launch of Lettuce Grow, providing everyone the tools, encouragement and inspiration to grow 20% of their food at home while building an expanding community of passionate growers who connect deeply through food and sustainable living. Lettuce Grow is now available for pre-orders, with membership programs starting in April 2019.
Founded by Jacob Pechenik and Zooey Deschanel as an initiative of The Farm Project, Lettuce Grow is calling all front yards, backyards, patios and balconies to move fresh food production back into our communities. By building the world’s largest distributed farm, Lettuce Grow is on a mission to change our food system, closing the gap on food mileage and resource waste, all while re-establishing a deeper, lasting and experiential connection with the food we eat.
The company will donate one Farmstand and membership for every ten member sign-ups to a school or community-based organization via its Lettuce Give program, in order to advance fresh food access and help cultivate the next generation of sustainable farmers, chefs and consumers.
”We couldn’t be more excited to finally bring Lettuce Grow to homes across the country,” say Founders Jacob Pechenik and Zooey Deschanel. “It’s something we’re extremely passionate about – empowering people to grow a substantial portion of healthy, fresh food at home while also helping to reduce waste and create more sustainable communities. We hope to inspire people to develop a new, more healthy relationship with the food they eat.”
More and more people want to grow their own food, but the lack of space, time, dependability and expertise keeps many from making it a reality. With Lettuce Grow, members only need a power outlet and 9 square feet of sunny outdoor space – everything else required to become successful master growers is included with the membership.
Lettuce Grow Farmstands use self-watering hydroponic technology and are sustainably made from ocean plastic. They’re designed to save time and space, delivering about the same yield as 40 square feet farmed conventionally in raised beds, with only a few minutes needed for maintenance and harvesting each week.
Lettuce Grow sends members bi-weekly deliveries of living baby plants, so their Farmstands are always fully stocked. Growing plans are curated based on eating preferences and include over 75 varieties of leafy greens, vegetables, herbs and edible flowers – even watermelons! Lettuce Grow’s data-driven approach takes into account the member’s location, individual environment, weather data and seasonality to make sure members can successfully and reliably harvest meaningful quantities of fresh food at peak harvest.
Along the way, members have access to educational content and support from expert horticulturists as well as their own interactive farming dashboard, which always shows them what’s growing and what’s ready in their Farmstands. And because the goal is to help members meet their personal healthy eating goals, Lettuce Grow provides them a steady stream of exclusive recipes and how-to’s to accompany their harvests.
Lettuce Grow Farmstands start at $399, with a monthly membership at $49 per month. For more information about how to sign up for Lettuce Grow and to start growing at home, visit
lettucegrow.com. Follow Lettuce Grow on Instagram at @lettucegrow and Facebook at @LettuceGrow.
A Guide To Aquaponics Food Safety
Aquaponics, producing fish and vegetables in a closed-loop water system, reduces fertilizer use and water discharge, and is therefore promoted as a sustainable venture. But how about the food safety?
Aquaponics, producing fish and vegetables in a closed-loop water system, reduces fertilizer use and water discharge, and is therefore promoted as a sustainable venture. But how about the food safety?
Widely understood as one of the major challenges of the horticultural industry, there is not an univocal way to tackle this issue. Because of this, Green Aquaponics LLC has shared a thorough and exhaustive explanation of how to develop a food safety plan for aquaponics cultures.
Click here to read the document
Publication date : 2/22/2019
Vertical Farming Conference Takes Place on June 26, 2019 in Venlo, The Netherlands.
Vertical Farming Conference
Focus topics:
Available technologies
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CO2, Nutrients, Irrigation, Climate, Lighting | Food safety / HACCP | Robotics | Improved resource-use efficiency | Sustainable Buildings (design, green roof, energy) | Smart Cities / Architecture / Urban Design | From traditional farmer to vertical farmer
The conference is part of the two-day global Agri Food Innovation Event that includes a two-day expo, four conferences - 3D Food Printing Conference, Healthy Nutrition Conference, Vertical Farming Conference and Smart Farming Conference and more activities such as lab tours, demo corners.
Register Here
Glyphosate Found in 19 of 20 Beers and Wines Tested
March 2, 2019
Glyphosate—the active ingredient in Monsanto's Roundup weedkiller that some studies have linked to cancer—is also a secret ingredient in nearly 20 popular beers and wines.
That's the finding of a new study from the education group U.S. PIRG, which found glyphosate in 19 of 20 wine and beer brands tested, including organic labels and brews.
The release of the study coincides with the beginning of the first federal trial against Monsanto and its new parent company Bayer over whether Roundup use caused a plaintiff's cancer, USA Today reported Monday.
"With a federal court looking at the connection between Roundup and cancer today, we believe this is the perfect time to shine a spotlight on glyphosate," study author and U.S. PIRG Toxic's Director Kara Cook-Schultz told USA Today. "This chemical could prove a true risk to so many Americans' health, and they should know that it is everywhere – including in many of their favorite drinks."
The drink with the highest glyphosate concentration was Sutter Home Merlot, at 51.4 parts per billion (ppb). Popular beer brands like Coors Light, Miller Lite and Budweiser all had concentrations above 25 ppb. The full results of the study, from highest to lowest glyphosate concentration in ppb, are listed below.
Wines
Sutter Home Merlot: 51.4 ppb
Beringer Founders Estates Moscato: 42.6 ppb
Barefoot Cabernet Sauvignon: 36.3 ppb
Inkarri Malbec, Certified Organic: 5.3 ppb
Frey Organic Natural White: 4.8 ppb
Beers
Tsingtao Beer: 49.7 ppb
Coors Light: 31.1 ppb
Miller Lite: 29.8 ppb
Budweiser: 27.0 ppb
Corona Extra: 25.1 ppb
Heineken: 20.9 ppb
Guinness Draught: 20.3 ppb
Stella Artois: 18.7 ppb
Ace Perry Hard Cider: 14.5 ppb
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale: 11.8 ppb
New Belgium Fat Tire Amber Ale: 11.2 ppb
Sam Adams New England IPA: 11.0 ppb
Stella Artois Cidre: 9.1 ppb
Samuel Smith's Organic Lager: 5.7 ppb.
The only beverage tested that contained no glyphosate was Peak Beer Organic IPA
The amounts found were far below the safety limits for glyphosate set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as Bayer toxicologist William Reeves told CBS News via a spokesperson.
"The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sets daily exposure limits at least 100 times below levels shown to have no negative effect in safety studies," Reeves said. "Assuming the greatest value reported, 51.4 ppb, is correct, a 125-pound adult would have to consume 308 gallons of wine per day, every day for life to reach the US Environmental Protection Agency's glyphosate exposure limit for humans. To put 308 gallons into context, that would be more than a bottle of wine every minute, for life, without sleeping."
However, the study noted that chemicals aren't necessarily safe just because regulatory bodies say they are.
"While these levels of glyphosate are below EPA risk tolerances for beverages, it is possible that even low levels of glyphosate can be problematic. For example, in one study, scientists found that 1 part per trillion of glyphosate has the potential to stimulate the growth of breast cancer cells and disrupt the endocrine system," the study said.
The EPA has found that glyphosate is not carcinogenic to humans, but the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer ruled it was a probable human carcinogen in 2015. More recently, a study released February found that those exposed to glyphosate were 41 percent more likely to develop non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
In the first case to go to trial against Monsanto over Roundup last year, a jury ruled that exposure to glyphosate had caused the non-Hodgkin lymphoma of California groundskeeper Dewayne Johnson. Plaintiff Edwin Hardeman is making a similar claim in the first federal glyphosate trial that started Monday.
"Due to glyphosate's many health risks and its ubiquitous nature in our food, water and alcohol, the use of glyphosate in the U.S. should be banned unless and until it can be proven safe," the U.S. PIRG study advised.
Source: ecowatch.com beer wine Glyphosate monsanto roundup
Tell Kellogg’s To Stop Hiding GMOs!
Big News:
The USDA responded to our lawsuit and has issued the final GMO labeling rules. Unfortunately, the final rules allow for companies like Kellogg’s to label GMOs using QR codes. These codes require consumers to use their smartphones on every coded product to try and find out if they contain GMOs. And even if the Wi-Fi is working in the store, they then often just get a website where they have to search further for this information. Labeling through QR codes adds countless hours to weekly shopping trips and the companies using GMOs are counting on customers not to be able to afford that time, and stay in the dark about their products.
Even worse 1/3rd of Americans do not have smart phones or access to reliable broadband connection. They cannot even use these QR codes to find out if a product is genetically engineered. The population that wouldn’t have access to this information would be disproportionately low-income, rural, minority, and elderly. That’s not transparency that’s discrimination against more than 100 million Americans. Everyone should have access to the truth about their food. Not just those of us who have smart phones. All GMO labeling should be on the package!
We’ll be taking USDA to court about these QR codes and other problems with the GMO labeling regulations that show these rules have been designed to hide and confuse rather than inform. Stay tuned for updates!
In the meantime, you can help recruit companies to stand up for transparency and commit to on package, text or symbol labeling of GMOs. We’ve already gotten commitments for this on package labeling from companies like Campbell’s and Mars. However, the Kellogg Company is still planning to use QR codes for its GMO labeling.
Let’s all take to Twitter to demand that Kellogg’s stop being anti-consumer and discriminatory and label GMOs on package with text or symbol!
It's Not Easy Being Green: Romaine Lettuce E. coli Outbreak Rattles Food, Grocery Industries
The FDA's decision to request that the popular green gets pulled from shelves sent "a strong message" to the produce sector while costing supermarkets millions of dollars.
AUTHOR
PUBLISHED
Dec. 10, 2018
When Scott Gottlieb asked retailers, restaurants and other commercial outlets to voluntarily pull from the market and destroy any romaine lettuce just two days before Thanksgiving, it marked an usual and poignant request from the head of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
"The quick and aggressive steps we’re taking today are aimed at making sure we get ahead of this emerging outbreak, to reduce risk to consumers, and to help people protect themselves and their families from this foodborne illness outbreak," Gottlieb said in a statement on Nov. 20. "This isn’t the first romaine outbreak we have seen in the recent past, and we will continue to take steps to identify the root causes of these events and take action to prevent future outbreaks."
The leafy green industry has struggled during the past year, with three outbreaks tied to E. coli.
Romaine from Arizona this spring sickened 210 people from 36 states, hospitalized 96 and was tied to five deaths. Contaminated water located near a cattle lot was most likely the source. Another hit the U.S. and Canada in 2017, and while investigators in the United States never identified which vegetable was responsible, Canadian officials said romaine was most often tied to illnesses.
The cause of the current romaine outbreak in California, responsible for sickening 52 people across 15 states, hasn't been identified.
David Acheson, the FDA's former food safety czar who now runs his own firm to help clients reduce the risk of an outbreak, said the agency's withdraw request — the first in produce since spinach in 2006 — was as much about protecting public health as it was "sending a strong message to the produce industry that they need to look at ways to make this better than it already is."
"It's very effective, but talk about taking a sledgehammer to crack a walnut," Acheson told Food Dive. "It's a big deal and that's why I think there is a bit more to this in terms of the political regulatory requirement, in that (these three outbreaks are) not acceptable."
In recent weeks, the FDA has participated in discussions with major producers and distributors of romaine lettuce, as well as trade groups representing the produce industry in an attempt to reduce the impact of future outbreaks.
Gottlieb said last month that major growers agreed to voluntarily label romaine with the growing region and the date of harvest to help with market recalls and traceability. The new labeling could be expanded to other leafy greens and produce going forward, he added.
United Fresh, whose members represent the entire produce industry supply chain, said in a statement the deal was negotiated by "a number of romaine grower-shipper-processors" who agreed to take part. Fresh Express, Taylor Farms, Dole Fresh Vegetables and Earthbound Farm are among the companies who said they would adopt the new labels.
Deverl Maserang, president and CEO of Earthbound Farm, said in an email to Food Dive that while none of the company's products were connected to the outbreak, the government's "broad advisory to avoid romaine is very disruptive."
He was hopeful that the growing region and harvested data could assist investigators in narrowing the scope of any potential future advisories, and that the government would be more specific on what kind of product could be excluded, such as conventional versus organic or exempting baby romaine — which is grown and harvested differently than hearts and heads of romaine tied to the recent outbreak, and on different farms.
Romaine consumption getting sliced and diced
Consumption of fresh lettuce, as part of a broader consumer push to eat healthier and better-for-you foods, has been gradually trending upward. It averaged around 11.5 pounds to 12 pounds per person annually since about 2006, before spiking to 12.7 pounds and 12.5 pounds in 2016 and 2017, respectively, according to Statista.
But the outbreaks have pummeled romaine lettuce sales, according to data from Nielsen. Sales of the vegetable, typically the most widely consumed salad green, slumped 13% during the year ending Nov. 24 to $631 million, the analytics firm estimated. With less romaine lettuce available, USDA said prices of other lettuce varieties have surged, including Boston and iceberg lettuce — which saw a nearly 170% jump.
The removal of romaine lettuce was particularly damaging to the grocery industry because of the timing just before Thanksgiving, the large quantity of the product pulled and the expense to stores — including labor costs, lost sales and time spent dealing with the crisis, according to Hilary Thesmar, senior vice president of food safety for the Food Marketing Institute.
Thesmar said while the group and its 33,000 retail store members supported the removal of romaine lettuce in the interest of public health, the decision by federal regulators to request the voluntary removal of the item created uncertainty, such as what happens to the product next or how stores work with their suppliers — questions that are clearer during a recall.
In addition, she said, grocers were faced with the decision of what to do with products in inventory and whether they should discard them or hold them in the hopes that the FDA and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would quickly narrow the scope of the outbreak so they could sell products that weren't affected. (Most complied with the government's request and proactively tossed it.) FMI also faced inquiries from retailers over what to do with romaine supplied from local greenhouses or grown using hydroponics; both were included in the initial advisory.
Produce remains a major contributor to foodborne illness, according to a report from the Interagency Food Safety Analytics Collaboration — a collaboration between the CDC, the FDA and the U.S. Agriculture Department.
Credit: Megan Poinski
The report, released last December, found that in 2013, produce accounted for 59% of listeria cases, 51% of E. coli O157 cases, 46% of salmonella cases, and 33% of campylobacter cases. A prominent source of the outbreaks for E. coli came from vegetable row crops, including leafy greens — more than any other food category, IFSAC found.
The Food Safety Modernization Act, signed into law in 2011, called for growers to test their irrigation water and take steps to prevent contaminated sources from being used on produce. But the FDA announced in September 2017 that implementation would be delayed until at least 2022, beginning with the largest farms, in order to allow the agency to “consider how we might further reduce the regulatory burden or increase flexibility.”
An economic analysis by the FDA estimated the delay would save the industry $12 million annually, but lower the annual benefit to consumers by $108 million each year. The Center for Science in the Public Interest and Center for Food Safety said the postponement could lead to more than 730,000 additional cases of foodborne illness and "countless deaths."
Food safety groups have pointed to the recent outbreaks as an impetus to fully implement the 2011 reforms rather than further reducing or delaying the regulatory requirements.
Scott Faber, vice president of governmental affairs at the Environmental Working Group, was hopeful that following the latest outbreak, FDA's Gottlieb would accelerate the implementation timeline for the water testing requirements or Congress would require more stringent testing by big growers — potentially as part of the upcoming spending bill on Capitol Hill.
"That's the tragedy of this. It was almost certain that in the absence of testing the irrigation water that people would get sick," Faber told Food Dive. "We've taken no steps to address the risk. It's not rocket science, it's food science."
Credit: Dan Gold
'We have to do better'
The produce industries in California and Arizona, where 95% of all lettuce is grown, have their own nearly identical food safety frameworks. Each state formed its own Leafy Green Marketing Agreement following a 2006 spinach outbreak that infected 200 people and cost growers millions of dollars. Earthbound Farm launched a test-and-hold program less than two weeks after the September recall, where it started checking all greens for pathogens when they are received and before they are shipped.
"We have to do everything in our power to keep pathogens, which exist in the environment, out of the food supply," Maserang said.
Today, leafy green growers and shippers who are members of the LGMA must have a traceback program showing where every product came from and where it went. They also are audited on average five times each year to make sure they are complying with all required food safety practices, including monthly water testing.
Scott Horsfall, CEO of the California Leafy Green Marketing Association, told Food Dive the water testing requirements in the Food Safety Modernization Act would test for contaminants using the same methodology and microbial standards as the LGMA standards, but conduct the tests less frequently. As a result, they likely wouldn't have made any difference in preventing the latest outbreaks. Still, he acknowledged that "there clearly is something there that we have to do better."
As FDA investigators and researchers look to uncover the cause of the latest outbreak, and determine whether there is something about the romaine plant or the way it grows that makes it more susceptible to contamination, Horsfall remains hopeful the industry will learn more about what happened — and whether there are any changes producers can make to their operations to avoid a future outbreak.
"Obviously, it hurts the reputation, the trust in the industry when you have episodes like this," Horsfall said. "I'm confident we'll rebound. It may take some time, but we'll get there."
Acheson said the food supply chain and the process used by regulators to investigate an outbreak, while generally effective on their own, are not properly linked. This creates problems and inefficiencies that can make it difficult for a foodborne illness outbreak to be stopped or minimized before it gets worse.
He cited the lack of communication between local and state officials and delays on involving CDC that can hinder the ability to quickly link outbreaks over a wider area.
In addition, he said, regulators should be more open with industry when they discover a possible lead during an investigation. This way, growers and shippers can check when and where the batch of lettuce in question was shipped. And growers, processors, distributors, retailers and restaurants generally are hesitant to spend more money beyond what they are required if it doesn't generate an immediate payoff, Acheson noted, even if doing so may prevent a bigger problem like the recent voluntary lettuce withdrawal.
Acheson said while a practice like testing water for contaminants is effective, it's going to take more from everyone with a stake in produce to reduce the likelihood of another outbreak.
"We will never get a leafy green that we can guarantee is 100% free of pathogens 100% of the time," Acheson said. "It will never happen because of the nature of the product, so we need to put in control systems that are as good as we can afford ... and to continue to push the likelihood down."
5 Lawsuits That Could Change The Food Industry
From unknown ingredients and debatable labels to the spreading of salmonella and E. coli, this year has not been short of litigation that can make a big impact.
Lillianna Byington@lil_byington
Dec. 11, 2018
From unwanted ingredients and debatable labels to the spreading of salmonella and E. coli, food companies have been in the crosshairs of litigation this year with cases that can both change recipes and the way manufacturers do business.
Lawyers told Food Dive they have kept busy with issues ranging from food that caused outbreaks to lawsuits challenging label claims, nonfunctional slack fill and contamination with glyphosate. When it comes to lawsuits associated with foodborne illnesses, attorney Bill Marler — a leader in that space — can attest to the recent increase.
"It's been a bad year for food safety and it's more than anecdotal," Marler told Food Dive. "I've had to hire three more lawyers and two more paralegals in the last six months. It's always a bad sign if Bill Marler is hiring more lawyers. That tells you that in the food system, there's something wrong."
But it hasn't just been foodborne illness lawsuits that have had an impact on the industry. There have also been many labeling lawsuits, challenging product claims including "natural," "healthy" and "nothing artificial."
Kevin Laukaitis, an attorney at Kohn, Swift and Graf who focuses on class action consumer litigation involving defective products, told Food Dive the healthy product trend has led to an increase in mislabeling cases. More companies have been advertising better-for-you claims to attract consumers, and that will likely lead to more lawsuits challenging the validity of those labels, he said.
This year alone, there have been many lawsuits filed and numerous resolved that could factor into future cases and help answer some of the big questions looming over the industry. What makes a valid label claim? Who is responsible for foodborne illness? How much empty space can be used in packaging? Here are five cases moving the industry toward answers.
1.) Is LaCroix "natural"?
Credit: Flickr user Tony Webster
What happened: LaCroix came under fire this year in a lawsuit that claimed it mislabels its water as "natural," though the actual ingredients are non-natural and synthetic compounds — not what its cult fan base wants to hear. The legal complaint, filed Oct. 1, says the product contains items including ethyl butanoate, limonene, linalool and linalool propionate. Linalool is used in cockroach insecticide.
The class-action suit was filed in Cook County, Illinois against National Beverage Corp., the parent company of LaCroix. National Beverage Corp. denies the claims, saying all essences in LaCroix sparkling waters are 100% natural. But this case has already brought the company into a negative light for consumers. The case is ongoing and hasn't reached trial yet, but LaCroix plans to fight, writing on Twitter days later, "please stand with us as we defend our beloved LaCroix."
What it means: LaCroix has advertised its product as a "natural" alternative to soda, but it may be up to a jury to decide whether the compounds found in the sparkling drink indeed come from natural substances, as well as what should be considered "natural." The National Beverage Corporation has said that the ingredients in LaCroix are "derived from the natural essence oils from the named fruit used in each of the flavors" and certified to be "100% natural." The decision could mean that the company may need to change its labeling.
"It is a huge trend now in business where consumers are interested in natural products, and they want to have healthy products, and they might pay a little more for a product that is natural over a product that is not," Laukaitis said. "But when they come to find out that the product ... has synthetic ingredients or is just like all the other products out there, then that is going to anger the consumer and they are going to feel cheated."
Why it matters: There have been reportedly about 300 lawsuits over the use of the word "natural" on food products in the last three years, according to an analysis cited by CBS News. These types of claims about synthetic ingredients are becoming more common. Natural label claims are such a big issue since there's no industry standard for what the word means.
"The 'natural' cases are going to be a continued trend because that is the new wave of marketing," Laukaitis said.
But any precedent this case sets could be overruled if the Food and Drug Administration comes out with a regulated definition. In 2015, the FDA opened public comments on the definition of "natural," and Commissioner Scott Gottlieb has said the agency will come out with one soon.
2.) Impact of JBS' massive meat recall
Credit: Jon Sullivan
What happened: In October, JBS Tolleson, Inc. in Arizona recalled about 7 million pounds of raw beef products because of potential salmonella contamination. Then the company expanded the recall this month to more than 12 million pounds of raw beef. The first lawsuit was filed in Arizona Superior Court on Oct. 5 against JBS Tolleson on behalf of Dana Raab, who contracted a salmonella infection after eating ground beef from the company, experiencing severe dehydration, diarrhea, vomiting and abdominal pain. The case was dismissed last week without prejudice, meaning it could be tried again at a later date or that the case could have been settled out of court. Marler's firm, which was one of the firms handling that case, released a statement last week that they would evaluate any cases related to the recall — which means there could be more filed in the near future.
What it means: When a massive outbreak like this occurs, manufacturers not only have to deal with the immediate clean up and recall of the products but also are open to further scrutiny when lawsuits are filed months later. The company's reputation will likely take a hit again because consumers are reminded of the incident — and the brand may also have to pay the affected consumers. A case like this also means similar manufacturers will closely watch how it unfolds, taking note of what happened and learning from it.
Why it matters: A recall on this scale can bring many lawsuits, especially since the recall was expanded to 12 million pounds. Marler said it's likely similar cases will be filed since many people could have consumed the product.
These cases could also impact what processors do to ensure food safety because the bad publicity and cost of a recall and lawsuit could force change. Contamination in meat seems to be occurring more this year than it has in the past, Marler said.
"I'm worried that because there have been so few outbreaks and recalls linked to hamburger in the last decade, you wonder if perhaps companies were getting a little complacent and not paying attention as they should have," Marler said.
3.) Fewer slack-fill cases
Credit: Windell Oskay
What happened: A man in Missouri filed a federal lawsuit claiming that Hershey intentionally sold semi-full packages of candy like Whoppers and Reese's Pieces that contained too much nonfunctional slack fill. The consumer claimed that Hershey was "misleading, deceptive and unlawful." The lawsuit accused Hershey of only filling a $1-sized box of Whoppers about 59% full. His $5 million class action lawsuit moved forward in May 2017. But on Feb. 16, the case was thrown out. The final ruling said the "unjust enrichment claims" were dismissed and could not be brought up in another court.
What it means: The U.S. district judge on this case ruled that the plaintiff wasn't harmed by partially full packages because he kept buying them. In fact, he purchased more than 600 packages of Hershey candy in a decade. Future rulings could follow this precedent — if consumers are able to see the package and continue to buy it regardless of how full it is, then the consumer can't claim harm.
Why it matters: More courts are shutting down slack-fill cases like this one,according to Laukaitis. Companies have become more transparent about what is in their packages with serving size, product weight, volume or piece count printed on the outside of the product, so the consumer has a better idea of what he is getting. This specific dismissal also shows that there may be a higher burden of proof for the consumer to show he was harmed and/or misled.
4.) A potential change in glyphosate litigation
Credit: Flikr
What happened: A California jury awarded a former school groundskeeper $289 million in August because glyphosate in Monsanto's Roundup weed killer likely caused his cancer. Just a few days later, a Florida woman sued General Mills for failing to reveal the presence of glyphosate in its Cheerios products. After the case was filed, a spokesman for General Mills told Food Navigator that the company's products are safe and meet regulatory safety levels. The suit was filed in the Southern District Court of Florida and most recently, General Mills filed a motion to stay the discovery period Monday in order to hear a resolution of its motion to dismiss.
What it means: This plaintiff may not have a great shot at success given the way previous glyphosate cases in food have concluded. Companies generally prevail by arguing the amount of glyphosate in their products is extremely small and would have no health impact on consumers. But if this case sees a different outcome, it could reverse the trend.
Why it matters: Regardless of how the ruling comes down, the negative publicity could have already done damage to the reputation of any products that contain residual glyphosate. If consumers don't trust products with ingredients that may have been exposed to glyphosate, then recipes and formulation might need to change no matter the legal decision.
"Companies should not wait for a mandate from the federal government to do what's right for their consumers," the Environmental Working Group said in a statement after the Monsanto ruling. "People don’t like to eat pesticides. They don't like to drink pesticides. Despite the benefits they often have, pesticides have no place in people."
This is also not the first time General Mills has faced a lawsuit over glyphosate in its products. In August 2016, consumer groups sued the company for labeling Nature Valley granola bars as "natural" when they contained residues of the chemical. In that case, General Mills settled. A settlement shows the manufacturer is interested in making the case go away, and perhaps other manufacturers will want to go that route. Companies usually don't benefit from a long legal challenge, which can be pricey for them and tends to harm a brand, even if the case ends up being ruled in their favor.
5. E. coli romaine outbreak litigation
Credit: Megan Poinski
What happened: An E. coli outbreak linked to romaine lettuce from Arizona sickened 149 people in 29 states earlier this year. The litigation phase has just begun for many victims who have filed suit from this outbreak. Marler has formally filed about a dozen lawsuits against various suppliers in the romaine supply chain, restaurants and retailers who sold the green. In total there are at least 31 cases tied to the romaine grown in Arizona, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control said. There are several different state and federal jurisdictions involved in these cases, which means there will likely be different rulings. In defense, some restaurants have revealed their suppliers' names to protect themselves and shift the blame and legal responsibility.
What it means: These cases could end up costing those in the romaine business a lot of money in damages depending on the rulings in the various cases and how sick the greens made the individuals.
What could help the plaintiffs even more is that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently warned consumers again to not eat romaine lettuce — the third time in recent years. With repeated outbreaks like this, consumers have claimed in lawsuits before that the product seems to be prone to contamination and nobody is protecting them. The Lange Law Firm already filed an E. coli lawsuit in federal court against a Florida restaurant in the the current outbreak after a patron got sick from eating a salad.
For the court cases, the repeated occurrence of these outbreaks only shows that this is a continuing issue with romaine and could put more fault on suppliers, grocery stores and restaurants for not finding a solution sooner.
Why it matters: The lettuce outbreaks have already sparked changes. Companies and retailers saw the need to implement better processes to limit food safety issues in the supply chain. Walmart asked lettuce suppliers to trace products using blockchain and an environmental assessment was released on how another outbreak like this could be prevented. Most recently, the FDA and the produce industry have introduced a new voluntary labeling plan for romaine lettuce to help clarify whether the product is contaminated. But even with this new plan, these court cases will continue to put a spotlight on the safety of romaine lettuce, and could bring more change, since the outcome could cost growers, shippers, retailers and restaurants big bucks.
Are Foodborne Illnesses On the Rise? (+ Answers To 5 Other Food Safety Questions)
The Food Safety and Modernization Act is a rude awakening for many farmers. But will it really address the root of the problem?
The food safety blog features such stomach-churning headlines nearly every day – their tagline is “breaking news for everyone’s consumption” – but stories about foodborne illness seem more and more of a staple in mainstream news outlets, as well (just ask Chiptole). But are we really having an increase in outbreaks? Or are we just talking about it more? Well, depends how you crunch the numbers.
I spent a lot of time this summer on foodsafetynews.com (which I don’t recommend before dinner, by the way) while researching a story on the Food Safety and Modernization Act for our fall issue (see: Navigating the FDA’s Food Safety Maze). Proponents of FSMA, which was first passed in 2011 and is only now being implemented, bill it as a once-in-century overhaul of our nation’s food safety system that will drastically reduce the incidence of foodborne illness over time – the FDA expects to avert 331,964 illnesses per year, to be exact. But it gives the FDA unprecedented power to police the food system, which is why its detractors see it as an example of egregious government overreach.
FSMA places particular emphasis on fresh produce, specifically, how a farmer’s cultivation practices affect its safety, an arena in which the FDA was rarely involved in the past, except in the case of an outbreak. In fact, a massive E. coli outbreak that was traced back to a small farm in San Benito County, California is often fingered as the event that set FSMA in motion, and created the political will to get it passed in Congress. But as I learned this summer, there is ample room for debate about whether FSMA will actually prevent outbreaks that originate on farms – and plenty of evidence that it will cause economic distress to small, diversified growers.
Since the article raises as many questions as it answers, here’s a helpful FAQ of sorts.
How common are foodborne illnesses?
While the number of food-related deaths and illnesses are much higher in less developed countries, such as India, most Americans are surprised to learn how common outbreaks are in our hygiene-obsessed society. According the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 48 million Americans, or about 1 in 6, get sick from foodborne pathogens each year. Of those, 128,000 are hospitalized and about 3,000 die.
What’s the difference between ordinary “food poisoning” and severe outbreaks that kill people?
Fifty-eight percent of foodborne illnesses are caused by norovirus – a pathogen responsible for the classic symptoms of food poisoning (debilitating, but short lived) – which often doesn’t spread beyond a single household. Extensive, multi-state outbreaks tend to be associated with more virulent pathogens, such as strains of E. coli, Salmonella, and Listeria. There are an average of two multi-state outbreaks each month, and while these are responsible for just 11 percent of all foodborne illnesses, they account for more the half of the deaths.
Which types of food are most associated with harmful pathogens?
Most people assume the answer is meat and dairy, which may be true when it comes to the 48 million total illnesses each year. But the CDC does not have the means to track every individual case of food poisoning and make a determination of whether it was the hamburger you ate or the salad. It does, however, try to determine the source for every major outbreak. When the agency analyzed data from the 4,600 outbreaks between 1998 and 2008, they found that 46 percent of illnesses were traced to produce, but that these rarely resulted in death. Meats are principal culprit in food-related deaths, with the largest number (19 percent) attributed to poultry.
Where do produce pathogens originate?
FSMA places an emphasis on policing produce at the farm level, but it’s unclear whether the bulk of blame lies with farmers or if we just need to make sure we wash our vegetables. The data is spotty, but there are a few clues. First, it must be noted that the CDC is able to determine exactly where in the food chain a pathogen originated only about 40 percent of the time. Between 1998 and 2008, the pathogen was found to originate on a farm about 5 percent of the time. Data from 2009 through 2012 show that number going down to around 1 percent. More detailed data is available for norovirus, which shows that 80 percent of outbreaks between 2001 and 2008 originated in places like restaurants and other commercial food facilities. Between 53 and 81 percent of norovirus outbreaks during this period were thought to stem from sick food service workers.
Are foodborne illnesses really on the rise?
Many headlines of late have suggested as much. The answer depends on exactly which types of illness you’re looking at; and the implications of the various datasets are often hard to parse. The CDC states that illnesses from six of the most common pathogens have declined by roughly one-quarter since the late nineties. But in terms of major outbreaks, the numbers seem to be on the rise. Lately they average about 24 per year, while in the early 2000s there were about 10 per year. When it comes to produce, the CDC claims that outbreaks have increased dramatically over the last several decades – 455 produce-related outbreaks were documented between 1998 and 2008, more than twice the total number for the preceding 25 years.
Why are they on the rise?
That’s the million-dollar question. No one really suggests that farmers have somehow become more negligent with their hygiene practices in recent years, even though the structure of FSMA would seem to imply that. A few theories have been proposed:
Imported food is to blame. Indeed, we import more food than ever before, especially fresh produce, often from countries with less rigorous food safety rules, or at least fewer resources to enforce them. The CDC reports that outbreaks related to imported food have roughly tripled since the late nineties.
Organic produce is unsanitary. It’s true that organic produce is typically grown with manure, a common vector of foodborne pathogens, as a fertilizer. But research has not revealed a correlation between organic produce and increased levels of foodborne illness.
Excessive antibiotic use. In April 2015, 192 people were sickened by pork contaminated with an antibiotic-resistant strain of Salmonella, raising concerns that the overuse of antibiotics in livestock could make meat-related outbreaks more deadly.
Centralized food systems. Critics of industrial-scale agriculture point to the consolidation of farms and food distribution networks as the cause. It’s certainly true that an outbreak on a small farm that supplies produce to 100 families poses a much smaller threat to public health than an outbreak at a distributor that supplies produce to grocery chains nationwide.
In other words, the answers are multi-faceted, and, at this point, unclear. You’d think advances in technology would be driving these numbers down over time, but, in some ways, technology may be what’s driving them up. The ability to collect data on foodborne illness, and to link outbreaks with specific causes, has improved drastically, which may have as much to do with the increase as anything else.
One concrete example is that in 1998, when the CDC switched to electronic reporting for its nationwide Foodborne Disease Outbreak Surveillance System, the total number of reported outbreaks nearly doubled in the following year. Before the switch, the numbers had remained relatively flat from year to year. Following the initial bump after electronic reporting was introduced, the numbers also remained fairly flat, albeit higher overall. Thus, the alleged increase in illnesses may only represent an increase in information.
New York Vertical Farm Aims To Instill Consumer Trust With Transparency
Starting today, consumers can just point their camera app at the QR code, or type in the lot number, found on all Square Roots food packaging to trace their food’s path from seed to sale.
By Laura Drotleff| December 19, 2018
Consumers can simply scan the QR code with the camera on their phones to get the full story on when, where, and how Square Roots’ herbs are produced in Brooklyn, NY.
In the wake of the romaine lettuce recall, Square Roots, a Brooklyn, NY-based vertical farm with famous co-founders, has launched new labeling that will allow consumers to access the full backstory for when, where, how, and by whom their food was grown with a simple scan.
Starting today, consumers can just point their camera app at the QR code, or type in the lot number, found on all Square Roots food packaging to trace their food’s path from seed to sale, with the aim of bringing a “whole new level of transparency” to the food chain.
Co-founded by Tobias Peggs and Kimbal Musk (yes, Elon’s brother), Square Roots is a seed-to-sale indoor urban farm that produces a variety of fresh, pesticide-free herbs that are hand-harvested, self-packaged, and same-day-delivered to retail stores in New York City. The company was built on the premise of reconnecting city dwellers with the “comfort, nourishment, and taste of food and the people who grow it.” In addition to growing and selling herbs, Square Roots has taken it upon itself to groom next-generation farmers and future leaders in urban farming through its training platform that requires a one-year commitment to the company.
The Why Behind Square Roots’ Transparency Timeline
Musk wrote in a blog-post revealing Square Roots’ reason for launching its new scan-able label is that the operation wants to provide consumers with the transparency they’re demanding about where and how their food is grown.
Following the E. coli outbreak that resulted in the recall of all romaine lettuce grown in the U.S., consumers were put at risk, and the complexities and lack of traceability in the agricultural supply chain resulted in it taking weeks for federal agencies to track down the source of the bacteria.
Meanwhile, by growing in controlled environments, indoor food producers can provide advantages to minimizing the occurrence of outbreaks. Musk says by promoting this, Square Roots’ customers can enjoy the operation’s locally grown products “with the comfort and confidence of being able to see exactly how and where your food was grown and who grew it.”
Grown hydroponically inside climate-controlled, refurbished shipping containers, Square Roots’ end-to-end system monitors and controls every aspect of the production process, Musk says. The operation’s technology stack surrounds its farmers with data, tools, and insights to make smart decisions in real time, allowing them to sustainably produce food year-round.
Musk says while there’s a lot of excitement around the possibilities that blockchain offers for food traceability that could improve the current supply chain, consumers are turning to locally grown produce because there are fewer steps and less time involved from farm to fork.
“We, like many local farmers, don’t need to utilize blockchain architecture to give the consumer what they want today – total transparency, without the buzzword BS.”
Read Musk’s full article on the Square Roots blog, and learn about the company on its website. Stay tuned for more stories on how indoor producers are promoting food safety and transparency on GreenhouseGrower.com.
Organic Consumers Association Wins on Motion to Dismiss in Case Against Unilever-Owned Ben & Jerry's for Deceptive Marketing Claims
Photo: benjerry.fr, CC BY-NC 2.0
January 10, 2019
Washington, DC –Organic Consumers Association (OCA) today announced that the District of Columbia Superior Court rejected Ben & Jerry’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit OCA brought against the Unilever-owned brand in July 2018 under the District of Columbia Consumer Protection Procedures Act (CPPA).
“We are pleased that the court agrees that Ben & Jerry’s can be held accountable for the claims it makes about its products, and how the production of those products impacts animal welfare and the environment,” said Ronnie Cummins, OCA’s international director. “This is a major victory for millions of consumers who have been deceived by Ben & Jerry’s marketing claims.”
OCA sued Ben & Jerry’s for the deceptive labeling, marketing and sale of its ice cream products as humanely sourced and environmentally responsible, despite the fact that ingredients are sourced from typical factory dairy farms and some of the products contain traces of glyphosate, an environmentally harmful biocide and the key active ingredient in Monsanto’s Roundup® weedkiller.
In its ruling, the court agreed that consumers may have been misled by Ben & Jerry’s environmental responsibility statements into believing that the company’s ice cream products would be free of glyphosate.
The court also agreed that Ben & Jerry’s general messages about humane treatment of cows in the “Caring Dairy” program and “values-led sourcing” may mislead customers into believing that Ben & Jerry’s uses ingredients only from dairy farms with higher-than-average animal welfare standards, when the evidence may suggest otherwise.
OCA is represented by Richman Law Group.
The Organic Consumers Association (OCA) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit grassroots organization advocating on behalf of millions of consumers for safe, healthful food and a clean environment. Visit: https://www.organicconsumers.org/.
Richman Law Group (RLG) is a collective of lawyers specializing in impact litigation to repair the world. RLG was founded on the idea that what cannot be achieved by way of legislation can sometimes be achieved by way of litigation. This tight-knit cadre of tenacious and diverse professionals is dedicated to fighting for the rights of its clients, and through them, the needs of the community at large. Visit: www.richmanlawgroup.com.
CONTACT: Katherine Paul, Organic Consumers Association, (207) 653-3090, katherine@organicconsumers.org
Fish Fraud 'Rampant' in New York, AG Report Finds
The 42-page report found that more than one in four samples wasn't sold under a federally recognized market name.
Dive Brief:
A recent study released by the New York Attorney General’s office reported high levels of seafood mislabeling and fraud at New York supermarkets. The 42-page report found that more than one in four samples wasn't sold under a federally recognized market name.
The office spent the last year conducting the nation's first major government investigation to address fraud in the seafood industry. The office bought seafood at 155 locations across 29 supermarket brands, with fish from nine categories including snapper, grouper, cod, wild salmon, halibut, sole, striped bass and white tuna.
The office sent the samples for testing to the Ocean Genome Legacy Center, a laboratory at Northeastern University. The DNA testing found widespread mislabeling of certain species, including 27.6% of samples sold as wild salmon, 67% of red snapper and 87.5% of lemon sole.
Dive Insight:
As the market for fish expands, so does the opportunity for fraud. The U.S. imported more seafood last year than any other year — more than 6 billion pounds — which makes up about 90% of the fish Americans eat annually. With that much fish being imported, the seafood industry is one of the most vulnerable to food fraud, according to a report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations this year.
On a more local level, this report found that two-thirds of the state's supermarket chains tested had at least one instance of fish mislabeling. There were five chains — Food Bazaar, Foodtown, Stew Leonard’s, Uncle Giuseppe’s and Western Beef — that had more than half of their fish mislabeled. That could mean grocery stores across the U.S. likely face the same issue, and this report could spark more states to conduct their own investigations.
The substitutes for the labeled fish were typically cheaper and lower quality species, the report found. Suppliers can make more money off of mislabeled fish, but reports like this cause consumers to lose trust in the industry and supermarkets.
"It’s clear that seafood fraud isn't just a fluke — it’s rampant across New York," Attorney General Barbara Underwood said in a statement. "Supermarkets are the last line of defense before a phony fish ends up as family dinner, and they have a duty to do more. Yet our report makes clear that New Yorkers may too often be the victim of mislabeling."
This is far from the first time the fish industry has faced accusations of fraud. In 2013, nonprofit ocean protection group Oceana took samples of fish nationwide and found that 59% of what was labeled tuna sold at restaurants and grocery stores was not. The same group conducted one of the biggest seafood fraud investigations from 2010 to 2012 and found that 33% of the samples analyzed were mislabeled based on U.S. Food and Drug Administration guidelines.
Legislation has tried to tackle the problem, but has faced obstacles. The Seafood Traceability Rule — a law that requires seafood importers of species like tuna, grouper and swordfish to track fish species and origin — was challenged in court, but upheld last year. And fisheries are now looking to adopt the first-ever traceability program. If implemented across the industry, that could help the issue.
But it's not just fish. Food fraud has been estimated to cost the industry $30 to 40 billion per year. From cheese and honey to seafood and spices, experts have said that the issue is widespread, but difficult to solve.
"Addressing food fraud takes a worldwide coordinated effort between industry, consumer groups and governmental agencies," Peter Bracher, managing director of food safety management for NSF International Asia-Pacific, told Food Dive last year.
As for fish fraud, this latest report from the New York Attorney General could encourage more retailers, suppliers and restaurants to be proactive in preventing it. The report says that solving the problem requires reform across the industry at different stages of the supply chain. A blockchain certification system recently launched to offer consumers a way to track fish's history, which could be one way to solve the problem. New technology and more methods could be coming soon as supermarkets and suppliers scramble in response to this report.
Food Irradiation Technology Not Widely Used With Fresh Produce, But It Could Be
December 7, 2018
By Stephen Kloosterman Contributing Editor
Food irradiation technology has been around for more than 50 years as a way to kill pathogens, although it is not widely used in the food processing industry.
Now, a growing firm called ScanTech Sciences is marketing its irradiation services for use with fresh produce.
ScanTech Sciences is building its first facility in McAllen, Texas’ Rio Grande Valley ECP Center. It opened for commercial operations during the summer 2018.
The facility can process between 120-160 cases of produce per minute, said Lindsay Eierman, ScanTech Sciences’ marketing manager. The company plans to open other facilities in ports of entry, such as New York/New Jersey and Nogales, Arizona, she said. Eventually, the company’s plans are to expand to areas such as of secondary import and export markets. Savannah, Georgia, Houston and California are among its targets.
University of Georgia Center for Food Safety Director Francisco Diez-Gonzalez spoke about the potential of the technique at the Southeast Regional Fruit and Vegetable Conference in January 2018.
“It’s been proven it can reduce the count of salmonella and listeria by more than 99.99 percent,” Diez-Gonzalez said. “It’s capable of killing viruses. It also helps to reduce microorganisms that could have an influence in spoilage.”
The technology, however, isn’t widespread in its use.
“Although the technology has been around for quite some time, it was not economical for use as a commercial application until the early 2000s,” Eierman said. In 2004, Australia shipped half a ton of irradiated mangoes to New Zealand, which was the first international use of food irradiation.
Food irradiation is approved by dozens of reputable organizations, including the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control, the American Medical Association and the United Nations World Health Organization, Eierman said. It’s also currently used as a post-harvest food process in more than 40 countries.
Room to grow
“There are two primary reasons that food irradiation is not more widely used,” Eierman said. “The first issue is intellectual property and investment. The technology is very complicated and requires expertise in nuclear engineering, mechanical engineering, and food science.”
Food irradiation can include the use of gamma rays, X-rays or electron beams, called e-beams. ScanTech Sciences’ patented form of e-beam food irradiation is Electronic Cold-Pasteurization, so-called because it allows product to be kept cold throughout the process. Not breaking the cold chain of storage is an added value for food processors.
The second reason food irradiation is uncommon, she said, is simply capacity. The technology is expensive, and Eierman said there have not been very many successful food irradiation ventures.
But that isn’t to say that food irradiation is rare.
Eierman said about a third of spices imported into the United States are irradiated. Many imported tropical fruits, such as guava, dragon fruit, persimmons and mangos, are irradiated. Also, much of the food consumed by NASA astronauts are irradiated to prevent sickness, according to the FDA’s website.
Eierman said food irradiation could be a good fit for processing fresh produce.
“Electronic Cold Pasteurization is a great solution for fruit, vegetables, herbs, spices and ready-to-eat (fresh-cut) commodities such as sliced apples,” she said. “It is particularly beneficial for commodities with short shelf life (such as berries or leafy greens), commodities with a high incidence of pests (such as peaches, which have the plum curculio), and commodities that are susceptible to contamination with pathogens (such as Listeria monocytogenes in cantaloupe or E. coli in lettuce).”
Irradiation is useful for not only for sanitizing foodstuffs but also eradicating pests.
One example of this is U.S. blueberry exports. Blueberry maggot fly larvae in the eastern U.S., and their presence in blueberries restricts exports of the berries to some countries trying to avoid infestation by the blueberry maggot fly. As certain chemical fumigants are phased out, irradiation is among tools being examined in a project led the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council.
Eierman said her company’s technique of e-beam food irradiation could serve as a chemical-free alternative to methyl bromide fumigation, which remains in widespread use despite known downsides.
“Methyl bromide is a chemical fumigant that has been used for decades on imported and exported commodities as a pest control mechanism,” Eierman said. “Unfortunately, methyl bromide is a harmful ozone-depleting substance. The Montreal Protocol of 1987 was an international treaty that attempted to phase out the use of methyl bromide. However, methyl bromide remains in use because it is one of the few substances that provides effective pest control.”
Her company also hopes to combine its food irradiation services with integrated logistics, transportation and information services.
“These services reduce compliance costs associated with the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA),” she said. The Produce Safety Rule allows an exemption for produce that is going to a kill-step process. Electronic Cold-Pasteurization is a viable solution for meeting this exemption.
“ScanTech Sciences is eager to transform the food industry by providing safer, higher-quality produce,” Eierman said.
FDA certified
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has evaluated the safety of irradiated food for more than 30 years and has found the process to be safe. FDA does, however, require irradiated foods bear the international symbol for irradiation. Look for the Radura symbol along with the statement “Treated with radiation” or “Treated by irradiation” on the food label. Bulk foods, such as fruits and vegetables, are required to be individually labeled or to have a label next to the sale container. The FDA does not require that individual ingredients in multi-ingredient foods (e.g., spices) be labeled.
Tags: food safety, listeria
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FDA Names First Source In Ongoing Investigation of Romaine Lettuce Outbreak
A Santa Maria, California farm—run by a county supervisor—is the first to be identified as a source of E. coli contamination.
December 17th, 2018
by Sam Bloch
Just before Thanksgiving this year, the American public was warned to steer clear of all romaine lettuce due to an ongoing, multi-state outbreak of E.coli O157:H7, a particularly deadly strain of the bacteria that had sickened 32 people and prompted kidney failure in at least one person. In the weeks since, government agencies, including the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), have narrowed down the source of the outbreak, and given the okay to make salads again—provided, of course, that shoppers check where the lettuce is coming from.
Because FDA, which regulates 70 percent of the country’s food supply, was only recently granted the power to force mandatory food recalls, companies have, in the past, voluntarily pulled their products from stores when contamination was suspected. This romaine outbreak, however, led to a landmark agreement with lettuce producers to label their products with harvest dates and locations, so in the event of another outbreak of this scale, retailers and especially clued-in eaters who love breaking food news—trust me, you’re a rare breed—will know exactly which lettuces to avoid.
Now, there’s a new development in the ongoing investigation. The FDA on Thursday publicly identified one California farm as one of eight linked to contaminated lettuce: Adam Brothers Family Farms in Santa Maria, where sediment from a local irrigation reservoir tested positive for E. coli 0157:H7. The farm—which FDA stresses is not the sole source of the outbreak—has voluntarily agreed to recall its lettuces and cauliflowers. Because the traceback work is is still ongoing, FDA recommends avoiding romaine lettuce harvested in Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Barbara Counties.
Adam Brothers is owned and operated by Peter Adam, a Santa Barbara County Supervisor representing the fourth district, and his brothers Dominic, Kieran, and Richard, according to The Santa Barbara Independent. In a 2016 profile of Peter, a fifth-generation family farmer, the paper describes his farm, located in a floodplain, as a sprawling, 3,400-acre operation where he raises broccoli, cauliflower, celery, and cattle, employing 400 workers.
Adam, who the Independent calls the county’s “leading antigovernment protestor,” rose to prominence over 15 years ago, during a long, public fight with county planners, who designated part of his farm as an environmentally sensitive wetland, and thus, protected from any agricultural activity. He sued to overturn a stop-work order and was awarded nearly $5 million for lost profits, $892,500 for the depreciated land value, and an additional $130,000 in punitive damages.
Adam also faced a minimum three-year prison sentence for a federal Clean Water Act violation, according to the Independent, which was the result of an investigation launched by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). In that case, Adam settled for $1 million. “In the end, Adam lost millions, but the wetland designation was reversed,” the paper wrote. “He could farm the land.”
Representatives from FDA and CDC told The New Food Economy that it’s “too soon to speculate” on how the bacteria, which lives naturally in the intestinal tracts of healthy animals like cows, goats, sheep and deer, could have ended up in the reservoir. Adams Brothers said in a statement that filtered, treated water from the reservoir, which “may have come in contact” with harvested produce, has tested negative for E.coli. It’s worth noting that lettuce growers aren’t required to test their irrigation waters for pathogens.
Waterway protection rules, such as the recently-revised Waters of the United States (WOTUS), are designed specifically to protect rivers, streams, and tributaries from use by farms. Adam, the county supervisor, has been public in his antipathy for rules that govern water and land use for farming. “We level the earth here. We irrigate. We extract water and spread it over thousands of acres to grow crops,” he told the Independent. “We’ve been drilling holes up here since Jesus was a lieutenant.”
California Farm Linked To Romaine Lettuce E.coli Outbreak Recalls Additional Produce
To View The Video, Please Click Here
FDA believes market has been purged of contaminated romaine
A California farm that federal health officials traced to the recent E.coli outbreak from romaine lettuce has recalled additional produce “out of an abundance of caution,” the facility announced Thursday.
Adam Bros. Farming Inc. in Santa Maria has recalled red leaf lettuce, green leaf lettuce, and cauliflower that was harvest from Nov. 27 to Nov. 30.
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SOME ROMAINE LETTUCE SAFE TO EAT AGAIN, FDA SAYS
While none of the recalled products have tested positive for E. coli, and no illnesses associated with these produce items have been reported, the farm said: “Out of an abundance of caution, Adam Bros. Farming, Inc. is initiating this voluntary recall in cooperation with the FDA.”
“The recall was initiated after it was discovered that sediment from a reservoir near where the produce was grown tested positive for E. coli,” the farm explained.
Adam Bros. Farming Inc. added the recalled produce was “grown in particular fields” and does not involve all of its products.
“None of the filtered, treated water has tested positive for E. coli, all E. coli tests returning negative,” Adam Bros. Farming Inc. said, adding the bacteria “may cause a diarrheal illness from which most healthy adults can recover completely within a week. Some people can develop a form of kidney failure called Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (HUS). HUS is most likely to occur in young children and the elderly. The condition can lead to serious kidney damage and even death.”
While Adam Bros. Farming Inc. has been linked to the food poisoning outbreak from romaine lettuce, federal health officials cautioned that other farms are likely involved in the E. coli outbreak and consumers should continue checking the label before purchasing romaine lettuce.
At least 59 people in 15 states have now been sickened by the tainted lettuce, the FDA said.
That said, regulators said they are fairly confident that the lettuce which first triggered the outbreak has been removed from the market. The FDA told consumers to avoid romaine lettuce just before Thanksgiving.
To learn more about the recent red leaf lettuce, green leaf lettuce and cauliflower recall -- like where these produce items were distributed -- click here.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Madeline Farber is a Reporter for Fox News. You can follow her on Twitter @MaddieFarberUDK.
Company Finds New Way to Grow Lettuce, Cut Risk of Foodborne Illness
One rooftop greenhouse company in Chicago says their lettuce is safer and longer-lasting.
3:25 PM, Dec 5, 2018
4:16 PM, Dec 6, 2018
The romaine lettuce outbreak has many consumers thinking about where their crops are grown.
One rooftop greenhouse company in Chicago says their lettuce is safer and longer-lasting.
Jenn Frymark, the chief agriculture officer and manager of Gotham Greens, pulls out a head of lettuce and immediately starts to eat it.
"No, you don't need to wash it,” Frymark says. “We don't have that on our package, but there's no reason for me to wash it. I never wash any of our lettuce at home. It's amazing; nothing touches it; it’s so clean.”
Here at Gotham Greens, lettuce is grown differently.
They do it hydroponically. That means it’s grown without soil, but in a nutrient-rich water. Instead of a traditional farm field, this lettuce is grown on rooftop greenhouses.
Their space on Chicago's south side is the largest rooftop greenhouse in the country. Because of the controlled environment, crops can grow in a third of the time of a traditional field.
“We're giving this plant everything it wants: the right day temp, the right night temp, the nutrients, CO2 levels, air circulation, the water,” Frymark explains. “I mean, these are very coddled plants and they have everything they need, and they can just grow in this perfect environment and reach maturity very quickly.”
Gotham Greens sells to grocery stores in the Chicago and New York metro areas, as well as select Whole Foods stores. The product goes from the greenhouse directly to grocery shelves in a day and a half.
The company’s lettuce also lasts longer than the traditional grocery lettuce out here. Frymark says their product can last up to two to three weeks in the fridge. Additionally, Gotham Greens prices are comparable to other organic produce.
Frymark also says their method dramatically lowers the risk for foodborne illness.
“There [are] no manures, there’s no water sources that could be contaminants,” she says. “We don't have birds and animals getting into the field.”
She says the company is expanding and plans to open more rooftop greenhouses in the near future.
Trump Administration Approves Antibiotic Residue On Citrus Fruit
Medically important antibiotic oxytetracycline allowed on oranges, tangerines
Medically Important Antibiotic Oxytetracycline Allowed On Oranges,Tangerines
The Trump administration has approved a maximum level of the medically important antibiotic oxytetracycline allowed in citrus fruits. The Environmental Protection Agency decision opens the door for widespread use of the drug in California, Florida and other states on crops like grapefruits, oranges and tangerines.
This week’s approval, which failed to fully assess risks to human health or endangered wildlife, comes as leading researchers caution against expanding use of antibiotics like oxytetracycline that are critical in combating certain respiratory infections like pneumonia.
“This short-term agricultural fix is a horrible precedent that ignores the dangerous, long-term implications of overusing these medically important antibiotics,” said Nathan Donley, a senior scientist at the Center for Biological Diversity. “The more we use these medicines in agriculture, the more likely they’ll lose their effectiveness when people fall desperately ill.”
This week’s decision was prompted by a 2016 Geo Logic Corp. request that the EPA permanently approve oxytetracycline for use as a pesticide to suppress citrus greening disease on roughly 700,000 acres of citrus trees in states like Florida and California.
The EPA has indicated that it intends to approve this request, but it has yet to issue a final approval. The establishment of an allowable level or “tolerance” on food crops is one of the last steps in the approval process.
In setting the tolerance level the EPA failed to analyze how the antibiotic could affect gut bacteria in humans that play a critical role in digestion, metabolism and immune system health.
The agency also failed to assess how fruit trees treated with the antibiotic year after year could affect the development of human pathogens resistant to the tetracycline class of antibiotics. And the EPA failed to consider the potential harm increased use of the antibiotic could cause to the nation’s most endangered wildlife.
In 2016 the EPA approved an emergency use of up to 1.6 million pounds of oxytetracycline and streptomycin, another medically important antibiotic, on citrus trees in Florida. This was followed by another emergency approval in 2017 for Florida and for Florida and California in 2018.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that more than 2 million people are infected with antibiotic-resistant organisms each year, leading to an estimated 23,000 deaths.
“We’re using more of these antibiotics on fruit trees than to treat disease in humans,” said Donley. “Citrus greening disease is a serious issue, but using important antibiotics with limited effectiveness against the disease isn’t the solution.”
Antibiotics such as oxytetracycline and streptomycin have transformed human and veterinary medicine, making once-lethal infections and diseases readily treatable and curable. For more than 10 years the World Health Organization has recognized these drugs as being “highly important” or “critically important” to human medicine.
But the misuse and overuse of antibiotics has resulted in the spread of bacteria resistant to them, triggering growing international concern over the continuing long-term ability of these drugs to tackle disease.
For more information:
Nathan Donley
Tel: (971) 717-6406
Email: ndonley@biologicaldiversity.org
www.Biologicaldiversity.org
Publication date : 12/7/2018
Canadian Test Kit Promises To Identify E. coli-Contaminated Lettuce
A new rapid testing kit developed at Western University in London, Ontario, can detect E. coli in romaine lettuce long before shipments hit grocery shelves.
The Public Health Agency of Canada has warned against eating romaine lettuce because of an E. coli outbreak, forcing retailers to pull supplies from their stores.
Researchers said the Western University-developed kit detects a protein unique to the E. coli 0157 bacteria and can show results in under 24 hours. That's the same strain of bacteria causing the current outbreak in the United States and Canada.
The current test method relies on cultures being taken from possibly contaminated samples and being sent away for testing, with results taking up to two weeks to come back. By that time, the food has often been shipped to market.
Cbc.ca quoted Dr. Michael Rieder, professor at Western's Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry and scientist at Robarts Research Institute: "This technology is not only faster, but it's less expensive, it's easy to use, and it can occur right in the processing plant."
The Western University kit has been approved by Health Canada and is now being shipped to food processing plants in North America.
Publication date : 11/26/2018
Local Lettuce Grower Has A Safer Way Through Hydroponics
Acting on the CDC’s recommendation, grocers nationwide are pulling suspect romaine lettuce product from store shelves.
By Bill Hudson November 21, 2018 at 6:41 pm Filed Under:Bill Hudson, Center For Disease Control And Prevention, Local TV, Revol Greens, Romaine Lettuce
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — The nationwide recall of romaine lettuce couldn’t have come at a worse time. As families prepare for their Thanksgiving Day feasts, romaine lettuce is being pulled from their tables.
On Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a nationwide romaine recall based on 32 recent illnesses in 11 states and 18 reported illnesses in Canada.
All are likely linked to eating romaine lettuce contaminated by E. coli. It’s believed the field-raised lettuce may have been contaminated by irrigation water that contained the E. coli 0157 strain.
Acting on the CDC’s recommendation, grocers nationwide are pulling suspect romaine lettuce product from store shelves.
But in Medford, the nine-month old Revol Greens company has safer way to grow leafy greens – by raising the lettuce hydroponically indoors.
“We have eight or nine different varieties here that we grow,” said company president Jay Johnson.
Johnson says that unlike lettuce that is grown outdoors in massive fields in Arizona and California, their crops are grown hydroponically – under glass and in pools of irrigation water which they sterilize with ultra violet (UV) light.
“We started from the beginning with food safety in mind, and this is the safest way,” said Johnson. “That’s why it’s difficult to be grouped in with the broad romaine alert.”
RELATED: Romaine Recall Leaves Mpls. Nonprofit Looking For Nutritious Replacement
It’s also why Revol is working with the industry’s lobby to ask federal regulators to exempt indoor grown lettuce from the recall. Arguing that unlike field-raised crops, their romaine lettuce is never exposed to possible contamination sources from birds or animals.
“E. coli comes from the intestines of animals and birds. So [unlike] a bird flying over your field or an animal running through your field, we are enclosed with this glass greenhouse,” explained Johnson.
Even without more clarity from the CDC, Johnson says other lettuce varieties, such as iceberg and baby arugula are not impacted by the recall and will remain on grocers shelves.
Finally, Revol Greens wants to assure customers who might have its romaine lettuce in their refrigerators that it is safe to eat. Because it is grown not in a farm field, but in the company’s controlled and sterile environment.
Romaine Lettuce Scare Has Montreal Clients Turning To Local Greenhouses
With no romaine lettuce in stores or restaurants because of the E. coli outbreak, some are turning to local greenhouses for safer greens.
MICHELLE LALONDE, MONTREAL GAZETTE
November 27, 2018
As food safety authorities in Canada and the U.S continue to warn against eating romaine lettuce because of the recent E. coli outbreak, many consumers seem to be turning to local, hydroponically grown greens as a safer way of getting their salad fix.
Lufa Farms, which operates three rooftop greenhouses in the region, has seen a significant bump in new clients ordering their weekly baskets of local products. Lufa Farms co-founder and marketing director Lauren Rathmell said it seems likely the increase is because of the romaine shortage.
While Rathmell said she has no evidence that a direct correlation can be made with the increase in members to Lufa Farms with the romaine lettuce shortage, she said, “I would certainly say that the past week and a bit have been our record weeks to date by far.”
She said clients have been calling to ask specifically about the safety of Lufa’s hydroponically grown romaine lettuce at its Anjou site.
News of the E. coli outbreak has prompted most grocery stores and restaurants in the U.S. and Canada to remove romaine lettuce from shelves and menus, since the first public health notice was issued on Nov. 20.
Lauren Rathmell of Lufa Farms with bok choy that will soon be ready for harvest at the third, and newest, commercial rooftop greenhouse built for the urban farming organization, this one in Anjou. PIERRE OBENDRAUF /MONTREAL GAZETTE
The Public Health Agency of Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency continue to collaborate with U.S. agencies to try to find the source of the most recent outbreak.
In the U.S., 32 people in several states have so far been confirmed sick from E. coli contaminations after consuming romaine lettuce, and 13 have been hospitalized. In Canada, there have been 22 confirmed cases so far, including 17 in Quebec, four in Ontario, and one in New Brunswick. Eight Canadians have been hospitalized, and one has contracted hemolytic-uremic syndrome, a severe complication that can cause ongoing kidney problems or death.
The news has some people seeking out greenhouse-grown vegetables, where there is less chance of contamination from contact with feces from infected animals.
“When you grow hydroponically in greenhouses like we do, its soil-less,” Rathmell said. “So there is no manure, and there are no other contaminants coming in from outside. So there is very, very little risk. We can’t say there is no risk … but there is virtually none.”
Founded in 2011, Lufa now has rooftop greenhouses in Laval, Ahuntsic and Anjou. The company partners with local farms to provide food baskets containing not only rooftop grown vegetables but also fresh, locally produced meats, dairy products, bread, pasta, etc. Clients customize their baskets online and pick them up from locations around the city.
Rathmell said Lufa ships baskets of produce to about 14,000 clients a week, and that number has been growing, generally, by a few hundred per week. She declined to give exact recent numbers but said that in the past couple of weeks, the increase has been “in the higher hundreds rather than the lower hundreds, if I had to give you a ball park.”
Experts say there is no such thing as no risk of contamination, since seeds can be contaminated before planting and post-harvest handling by humans can also transmit harmful pathogens, but food grown in greenhouses without soil is definitely lower risk.
“There is very little handling,” Rathmell said. “The Anjou site is remarkable. It’s basically this sea of greens when you walk in. So there is almost no handling or walkways in between the crops. You plant a seedling, and about four to five weeks later it’s ready to harvest and there is just one step. We take that lettuce, roots and all, we put it in a bag and it goes straight to the customer within a day. So there are no entry points” for pathogens, she said.
But for another local hydroponic producer, the romaine lettuce shortage has not been particularly beneficial.
Martin Desrochers (left) and Sylvain Terrault of Hydro-Serre Mirabel with its water-grown Boston lettuce. Terrault says it is producing at capacity and can’t satisfy the demand for more lettuce. MARIE FRANCE COALLIER/ MONTREAL GAZETTE FILES
Sylvain Terrault, president and CEO of Hydroserre Mirabel, said his company is already producing various greens — mainly Boston lettuce, but also oakleaf lettuce, swiss chard, mâche, etc. — at capacity in its three greenhouse complexes in the region.
The company does not produce romaine, but his clients, mainly grocery store chains in Canada and the U.S., have been calling to demand more of the greens Mirabel does produce to fill the void left by romaine.
“It has had an impact, but not necessarily an agreeable one, in the sense that our clients want a lot (more greens), and we can’t satisfy (the demand), and a client not satisfied is not a happy client,” he said, adding his company has a policy of not increasing prices as a function of a punctual shortage, so there hasn’t really been an upside.