The Chicago Sun-Times reports that more people get sick every year from tainted produce than from seafood, poultry, beef or eggs, a new report by the Center for Science in the Public Interest has found.
Seafood still accounts for the most number of outbreaks of food-borne illness, but produce-related outbreaks sicken the most people.
Between 1990 and 2003, produce was behind 554 outbreaks and 28,315 illnesses, while seafood caused 899 outbreaks and 9,312 illnesses, the report found.Continue Reading Produce causes more illness than meat, eggs
Holiday Season Food Poisoning Warning
Health News reports that undercooked food and poor food-handling practices are the most common causes of food poisoning during the holiday season, health officials warned.
Salmonella bacteria — found in raw turkey, chicken and other meats — is a common source of food poisoning, said Dr. Johnathan Fielding, the county’s top public health official.
There
Vegetables, fruits cause more US food illnesses
Susan Heavey of Reuters reports that contaminated fruits and vegetables are causing more food-borne illness among Americans than raw chicken or eggs, consumer advocates said a in report released on Monday.
Common sources of food illnesses include various bacteria such as salmonella and E.coli that can infect humans and animals then make their way into manure used to fertilize plants. The practice of using manure fertilizer is more common in Latin America, which has become a growing source of fresh produce for the United States.
“Although poultry has historically been responsible for far more Salmonella infections, in the most recent years … produce seems to be catching up,” the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) said, calling for tougher federal food safety standards.Continue Reading Vegetables, fruits cause more US food illnesses
Food-Safety Agencies Mince Their Meats
Cindy Skrzycki of the Washington Post reports that after years of trying to sort out who should regulate such culinary delights as the bagel dog, the Food and Drug Administration and the Agriculture Department may be coming to a resolution.
On Dec. 15, the FDA and the Agriculture Department’s Food Safety and Inspection Service, the nation’s two federal agencies with primary responsibility for food safety, will hold a public meeting on jurisdictional issues that affect the regulation of foods containing meat and poultry.
Despite the nearness of the holidays, turkey is not on the menu.
The two agencies say their goal is “consistency and predictability”
with respect to who regulates what. Right now, if you manufacture frozen cheese pizzas, the FDA is your regulator. But if there is meat on them, the FSIS is the overseer. And, if you make both kinds, you could have both regulators in your plants.Continue Reading Food-Safety Agencies Mince Their Meats
Audit faults restaurant inspections
The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports that thousands of Pennsylvania restaurants have been licensed in recent years without the required annual inspections for sanitation and health, according to a new state audit prompted by a deadly outbreak of hepatitis A at a Beaver County restaurant in 2003.
The state’s Department of Agriculture is responsible for overseeing restaurant sanitation in all but six of the state’s 67 counties. The audit found the department renewed the licenses of about 4,000 of more than 17,000 restaurants, bars and retail food purveyors even though they had not been inspected for at least two years.
In Allegheny County, the county health department is responsible for restaurant inspections. All restaurants in the county are inspected at least once a year, and no food distributor is licensed without an inspection, a county official said Thursday. Allegheny County was not included in the audit.Continue Reading Audit faults restaurant inspections
Recall: Undeclared Sulfites in Dried Potato
Starway Inc., of Brooklyn, N.Y., is recalling Peony Mark brand dried potato (UPC bar code # 6 86529 13005 5) manufactured by JiangmenCity Xinhui Cheung Yue Foodstuffs Industry Ltd. Guangdong, China. The product contained undeclared sulfites based on routine sampling and analysis by the New York State Department of Agriculture & Markets.The recalled product was
USDA offers food safety advice for your thanksgiving meal
Per an FSIS News Release, Agriculture Under Secretary for Food Safety Dr. Richard Raymond today discussed important tips for preventing foodborne illness during the holidays with volunteers from the Capital Area Food Bank, the largest public nonprofit hunger and nutrition education resource in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. Dr. Raymond was joined by noted Washington Chef Terrell Danley.
“I encourage all Americans to join me in making food safety the most important ingredient in the kitchen this Thanksgiving,” said Dr. Raymond. “Foodborne illness is very serious but easily prevented if foods are handled, prepared and cooked properly.”
Designed to help raise awareness of the dangers associated with foodborne illness, the event featured demonstrations of safe food handling, preparation and cooking techniques that can help reduce the risk of foodborne illness.Continue Reading USDA offers food safety advice for your thanksgiving meal
Dinewise may become mandatory; Bylaw would force restaurants to make inspection reports available to public
Melanie Hennessey of Metroland – Halton Division reports that a bylaw that would make it mandatory for all Halton restaurants to have their health department inspection reports available for the public to see came one step closer to reality this week.
At its meeting Tuesday, the region’s health and social services committee supported directing staff to prepare the bylaw that would make Dinewise –the Halton-wide program where restaurants voluntarily disclose the results of their inspection reports — compulsory.
The document is to be based on a draft bylaw staff previously drew up and circulated for comments from all restaurant owners in Halton. The proposed bylaw would take effect July 1, 2006.Continue Reading Dinewise may become mandatory; Bylaw would force restaurants to make inspection reports available to public
Tips To Avoid Foodborne Illness While Preparing Holiday Meals
To avoid the risk of becoming ill from contaminated food this holiday season, state health officials Wednesday encouraged Coloradans to pay special attention to the handling and preparation of foods.
Jeff Lawrence, the food safety program manager for the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment’s Consumer Protection Division, said, “If you improperly cool foods, such as, thawing your turkey on the counter at room temperature instead of in the refrigerator. Or, if you prepare ready- to-eat foods with contaminated utensils and don’t wash your hands frequently while handling food, you increase the chance of contracting a foodborne illness.”
Lawrence said that improper cooking temperatures also may increase the risk of foodborne illness.Continue Reading Tips To Avoid Foodborne Illness While Preparing Holiday Meals
Is the food in your fridge safe to eat?: Food can look OK and still have a lot of bacteria
ABC News reports that on “Good Morning America” Weekend Edition Dr. Michael Doyle, director of The Center for Food Safety at The University of Georgia, said items like plastic wrap, aluminum foil and Tupperware may make your foods taste fresher but they won’t extend their shelf life.
And when it comes to mold, if you