The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the National Restaurant Association are advising restaurateurs to check out their frozen vegetables to see if they have any products linked to a recent multistate Listeria outbreak. The frozen food linked to the outbreak, identified as organic white sweet cut corn and organic petite green peas, is part […]
Tag: food safety
Posted in, Dairy News, Deli News, Home Page Latest News, Industry News, National
IDDBA Kicks Off ‘Safe Food Matters!’ Campaign Focused On Food Allergens
Reaction to food allergens results in 200,000 emergency room visits and as many as 200 deaths each year. One in every 25 customers served in a day has a food allergy or is shopping for someone with an allergy. And the number of consumers affected by food allergens is increasing. The Centers for Disease Control […]
Posted in, Northeast
Federal Agency Creates Seafood Traceability Program
A federal agency has proposed a national seafood traceability program to combat illegal fishing and seafood fraud. Recently, the National Ocean Council Committee to Combat Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing and Seafood Fraud set a plan for creating a U.S. seafood traceability program. The move is seen as the next step the U.S. government is […]
Posted in, Northeast
Chipotle Commits $10M To Help Local Farmers
Chipotle Mexican Grill announced at its national employee meeting this week the formation of the Chipotle Local Grower Support Initiative, a new program to help smaller, local suppliers meet its heightened food safety standards. Chipotle closed its doors at its 2,000 restaurants for four hours on Feb. 8 to hold a meeting with its employees about […]
Posted in, Center Store, Frozen Food, Southwest
Blue Bell: No Listeria Discovered In Plants
To proactively communicate with customers about its efforts to keep its production facilities free of potential sources of contamination, Blue Bell sent out a press release Jan. 7 to outline what it is doing. Unfortunately, some of the company’s statements were misinterpreted by a large enough number of media outlets that Blue Bell was prompted […]
Posted in, Northeast
Chipotle Closes Boston Unit Following Rash Of Illnesses
Chipotle Mexican Grill suspects that the Norovirus may be the reason for gastrointestinal illnesses that have led to the closure of its restaurant in Cleveland Circle, near Boston College in Massachusetts. As many as 120 college students have reported gastrointestinal illnesses. At the time of this report, health officials said it was not linked to the […]
Posted in, Northeast
Chipotle Strengthens Food Safety Practices
Chipotle Mexican Grill has taken further actions, including DNA-based testing, to implement food safety and handling practices in all of its restaurant and throughout its supply chain. The actions began after reports surfaced at the end of October that linked 11 Chipotle locations on the West Coast to E. coli cases. The company said since the […]
Posted in, Southwest, Suppliers
Blue Bell Partners With Mérieux NutriSciences For Food Safety Services
Blue Bell Creameries has partnered with Mérieux NutriSciences for food safety-related services. In recent months, Mérieux NutriSciences has assisted Blue Bell with its food safety and quality programs, ranging from in-plant consultation, laboratory testing services, research studies and environmental monitoring program design. The partnership follows Blue Bell’s recall of all its products earlier this year and […]
Posted in, Northeast
E. Coli Outbreak Extends To Six States, And More…
Foodservice News In Brief… The Centers of Disease Control (CDC) says that three additional states have reported people infected with the E. coli. As of Nov. 20, 45 people infected with the outbreak strain had been reported from six states: California and Minnesota (two each), New York and Ohio (one each), Oregon (13) and Washington (26). […]
Posted in, National, Produce News, Store News, Suppliers
FSMA’s Produce Rule Among Latest Finalized By FDA
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Friday said it took major steps to prevent foodborne illness by finalizing rules implementing the bipartisan Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) that, for the first time, establish enforceable safety standards for produce farms and make importers accountable for verifying that imported food meets U.S. safety standards. The agency […]
Posted in, Northeast
Boston Considers Letter Grades For Restaurant Food Safety Practices
Boston’s Inspectional Services Department is considering issuing a letter grade in rating a restaurant’s food safety practices in 2016. A letter grade of A, B, C, etc. would either be posted online or displayed in a storefront window resembling the programs used in New York and Los Angeles. Ratings would be assigned to all of the city’s […]
Posted in, Grocery News, National, Store News, Suppliers
Food Retail Industry Readies For Implementation Of New Food Safety Rules
The food retail industry is readying for the implementation of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s new food safety rules. The Food Marketing Institute (FMI), in fact, is recognizing the FDA’s ongoing efforts to strengthen the nation’s food safety system with the Sept. 10 release of two rules pursuant to the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA): Preventive Controls for Human and Animal […]
Posted in, Grocery News, National, Suppliers
FDA Takes Step To Remove Artificial Trans Fats In Processed Foods
Based on a thorough review of the scientific evidence, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has finalized its determination that partially hydrogenated oils (PHOs), the primary dietary source of artificial trans fat in processed foods, are not “generally recognized as safe,” or GRAS, for use in human food. Food manufacturers will have three years to […]
Posted in, Industry News, National, Perishables
Lempert: Americans Throw Half Of Their Food Away Annually
According to a report by the National Resources Defense Council, Americans throw away nearly half of their food every year. The report also states that a 15 percent reduction in losses in the U.S. food supply could feed 25 million Americans annually. This week’s segment of The Lempert Report Innovation Series, a weekly video series […]
Posted in, West
California Cantaloupe Board Debuts Summer Consumer Sweepstakes
The California Cantaloupe Advisory Board’s Summertime Yum & Cantaloupe Fun online sweepstakes promotion is now under way and is designed to draw more people to the organization’s website and social media properties. Last year the California cantaloupe industry established a new mandatory food safety program and launched an on-line education effort designed to increase confidence […]
Posted in, National
Gorny Appointed Center For Produce Safety Technical Committee Chair
Dr. Jim Gorny, VP of food safety and technology at the Produce Marketing Association (PMA), has been appointed chair of the Center for Produce Safety (CPS) Technical Committee by Steve Patricio, chair of the CPS Board of Directors. Gorny will replace Dr. Bob Whitaker, PMA chief science and technology officer, who chaired the committee since […]
Posted in, Marketing News, National
Inaugural FMI Foundation Gala Raises $685,000
The Food Marketing Institute (FMI) Foundation hosted its inaugural Industry Leadership Dinner on April 30, raising $685,000 through the support of its food retailer members, suppliers and esteemed industry partners, and embarked on a program to enhance its scope to encompass wellness programs. “FMI Foundation’s renewed energy in pivotal industry areas, such as food safety, […]
Posted in, National, Perishables
AFFI, USDA, FDA, Appliance Manufacturers to Launch ‘Cook it Safe’ Campaign
The American Frozen Food Institute (AFFI) has partnered with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the International Food Information Council (IFIC) and home appliance manufacturers to launch the “Cook it Safe” campaign. “Food safety has long been the number one priority for America’s frozen […]
Posted in, National
First International Food Safety Training Laboratory Opens
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), University of Maryland, their Joint Institute for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition and the Waters Corp. have opened the International Food Safety Training Laboratory, a groundbreaking public-private partnership that applies government, university and private industry expertise and resources to the global food safety challenge. The IFSTL (www.ifstl.org) is […]
Posted in, National
FMI Announces Appointment of Terry Levee to Director, Food Safety Programs
The Food Marketing Institute (FMI) announced Terry Levee as its new director of food safety programs. Levee will be responsible for developing and implementing programs and activities geared toward helping retail and wholesale food companies meet critical food safety needs. He will report to Hilary Thesmar, Ph.D., RD, FMI’s VP of food safety programs. Levee’s […]