New fundamental science reveals how the major foodborne pathogen
Listeria monocytogenes commandeers cellular transport
machinery to invade cells and hide from the body's immune system.
A new rapid testing method for Salmonella in food has received
approval from an international certification body, giving
processors a quicker way of ensuring the safety of their products.
The European Union is reportedly considering lowering the legal
levels of alkaline phosphates (ALP) in the dairy pasteurisation
process, presenting an opportunity for lab tech firms such as
Advanced Instruments.
One cannot envy the chief executive faced with a scientific study
that casts doubt over the efficacy or safety of his core product.
But avoiding a sales slump, media vilification and even charges of
fraud means squaring up to such...
A UK food research centre has endorsed a new sensory testing
procedure to help paper packaging firms meet EU standards on
packaging components passing into the foods they wrap, writes
Chris Mercer.
Tighter controls need to be adopted by both the food industry and
consumers to limit the spread of the harmful food pathogen
Listeria monocytogenes, concludes a new report.
A new DNA-based test machine for identifying deadly bacteria is
faster, easier to use and more precise than some methods currently
used by food and beverage processors, according to research by the
US's department of agriculture.
The US milk supply chain is still too vulnerable to a terrorist
attack, says new research, warning that stricter security could
save billions of dollars and thousands of lives, reports Chris
Mercer.
Food safety for Chinese milk powders hits the headlines again as
authorities detect excessive iodine content in another Nestle baby
milk powder, according to Chinese news reports.
Europe's food safety body backs proposals to introduce the concept
of Qualified Presumption of Safety (QPS) for the safety assessment
of microorganisms used in food production.
Dairy company Campina will require its member farmers to use a
higher quality of feed for their cattle than is currently required
in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany, reports Ahmed
ElAmin.
In our current uneasy climate of product recalls, sensitivities are
high and Brussels can ill afford to fuel confusion, but in the
latest document from Europe's central alert system, the reference
to annatto, bixin and norbixin...
A new study suggests that Soleris technology is over five times
faster than conventional test methods in determining the shelf-life
of pasteurised milk.
EFSA scientific experts tackle the presence of harmful foodborne
bacteria Clostridium perfringens and C. botulinum,
compiling an opinion on the risk these spore-forming bacteria pose.
Vulnerabilities in the international food chain are evident as an
unapproved genetically modified corn leaks into feed, flour and
oils; but Europe's food safety agency says this week the illegal
Bt10 corn is unlikely to pose...
A team of US and Japanese researchers have declared that milk and
meat from cloned cattle are likely to be safe for human
consumption, although stressed that research in this area was still
very much in its infancy, Tom Armitage reports.
Several months after the UK anti-GM movement reached its peak,
environmental group Greenpeace continues to lobby against
supermarkets that advertise milk as GM-free - despite it
originating from cattle fed on imported GM maize and...
Food safety comes to the fore again as new study builds on growing
evidence that foods of animal origin, contaminated with
Escherichia coli, can lead to urinary tract infections in
women.
Markos Kyprianou, the new Commissioner for Health and Consumer
Protection in Brussels, will continue in his predecessor David
Byrne's foodsteps, pushing to maintain high levels of food safety
in the EU.
Food packaging firms enter 2005 facing tough new rules on materials
used that entered into force in December 2004. Repealing the former
framework Directive 89.109/EEC, the new regulation ((EC) No
1935/2004) lays down stricter demands...
The number of food-linked alerts in the European Union leapt by
over 40 per cent in 2003 on the previous year, with the majority
sourced in the 'old' member states.
Organic milk has significantly higher quantities of vitamin E - a
key component in contributing to the shelf-life of milk - than its
conventional equivalent, say Danish researchers, suggesting the
origins of the difference are rooted...
Scientists in Germany have applied a medical profession technique
to create bacteria-fighting packaging that can be applied to liquid
products such as milk.
Food scientists continue to roll out tools in the fight against
foodborne pathogens as researchers in the US design a new biosensor
to detect the potentially deadly bacteria Listeria
monocytogenes.
The discovery by Russia's State Trade Inspectorate of tons of fake
condensed milk on the supermarket shelves in Moscow and St.
Petersburg has once again highlighted the enormity of the task
facing the Russian authorities in clamping...
Cheese makers could improve the end product as new DNA tools lead
French scientists to identify that refrigerating raw milk for as
little as 24 hours can cut levels of bacteria responsible for the
development of desirable qualities...
The world's watchdog for food rules has given the green light to
over 20 new and amended food standards covering animal feeding,
milk products and a newly adopted definition for traceability.
Accreditation of Genetic ID's testing for detection of genetically
modified materials in raw foods, processed foods, and animal feed
has been renewed by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service
(UKAS).
Transboundary animal diseases are on the increase, say the World
Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) and the Food and Agriculture
Organisation of the United Nations (FAO). As a result, both bodies
have decided to strengthen their...
The news that an investigation has been ordered by China's premier,
Wen Jiabao, into the deaths of at least 12 babies after drinking
fake formula milk has led to a renewed quest for manufactuers to
find processing and packaging...
A new process to kill bacteria spores in the manufacture of formula
milk and milk concentrates has been launched. Developer Invensys
claims that the process destroys a substantially greater number of
bacteria spores than traditional...
Fall out from the BSE crisis that hit the UK meat industry in the
1990s could be nearly over as the EU's food safety body paves the
way for British beef to move down from its 'high risk'
classification.
The British Retail Consortium, the group which represents retailers
in the UK, has dismissed protests made by the campaign group
Greenpeace over "GM milk". The campaign group has staged a
number of protests over the use...
Celsis, the rapid milk testing company, announced that three more
dairy companies have installed their rapid 48 hour milk testing
system into their dairies. Previously the company witnessed
somewhat of a slowdown in profits, but these...
Human milk has long been thought to have an effect on reducing the
likelihood of obesity among adults, but scientists have struggled
to say exactly why this is the case - until now.
A high intake of calcium-rich foods may reduce young women's risk
of developing kidney stones, report US scientists this week, but
taking calcium supplements is unlikely to offer any benefit.
Europe's first pasteurized milk enriched with omega-3 fatty acids
has launched in Ireland, thanks to new technology that allows a
fish oil emulsion to be added to milk just before it goes into
cartons, writes Dominique Patton.
Leading producers of baby food in China are continuing efforts to
reassure consumers as the scandal over fake baby food that is said
to have killed dozens of babies continues to unfold, reports
Simon Pitman and Danny Vincent.
An electronic nose could sniff out considerable savings for food
manufacturers as researchers use the latest technology for the
early detection of 'undesirable off-odours and microbial
contaminants' in dairy and bakery products.
According to a new study, consumers in the UK are more concerned
about the potential health problems associated with additives in
dairy foods than those linked to fats in products such as butter.
DSM Food Specialties, the leading producer of ingredient solutions,
has launched a new scanning kit that it claims can identify the
presence of antibiotics in milk more accurately. The product is in
line with traditional testing systems...
Nurses in the UK are calling for an educational campaign outlining
the health risks of dairy foods. Researchers from Imperial College
London believe that in an attempt to increase yield, farmers are
artificially increasing a growth...
