Posts from the "Latest News" category
AU: Mango industry moves on quality standards
Australian Mango Industry Association:Â New recommendations for industry standards on harvest dry matter and retail brix that place a greater emphasis on delivering mangoes that match consumer expectations were announced at the 10th Australian Mango Conference.
The industry quality standards are focused on supplying mangoes to consumers that deliver on flavour. They aim to remove ambiguity and confusion over different quality specifications that are currently in the industry.
AMIA CEO Robert Gray said that the standards will ensure consumers get the best tasting mangoes and the standards are commercially achievable by growers.
Read Article →AU: Nurture vs nature at Cowra: Bringing up baby spinach for fussy consumer market
ABC Rural:Â Harvest of the largest crop of baby spinach in New South Wales is well underway on the outskirts of Cowra. Grower Ed Fagan said he’s nursed the 80 hectare crop to perfect condition, ready for the convenience salad market.
After the spinach is harvested it is sent to the processors to be triple washed, but before that Mr Fagan said he’d done all he could to ensure the spinach leaving his farm is perfect. “We can’t have animals roaming across here, we can’t use manure on this crop. Everything has to be spot on because we can’t have a food safety scare come from here.”
To help with quality control at harvest time, Mr Fagan is now working on an optical sorter to attach to the harvester that will knock out anything that’s below par colour-wise. “”At the moment we are trialling it so we don’t ever have any problems with foreign bodies like sticks or Poplar leaves. There’s more and more pressure on us now to make sure no one gets a leaf in their salad bowl.”
Read Article →US: Consumers are more afraid of food
Food Business News: The thrill is gone — that is, for 40% of consumers who reported in a recent survey they no longer enjoy the foods they eat due to safety and quality concerns. Nearly twice as many parents as non-parents shared these fears, said Daymon Worldwide, New York.
Read Article →US: Produce crops are safer 24 hours after rain, irrigation
Food Safety Magazine: New research published in Applied and Environmental Microbiology–a scientific journal–says that produce [spinach] farmers should wait until 24 hours after rain or irrigation to harvest their crops. The practice is said to protect consumers from foodborne illness.
Read Article →AU: Five tips to help your family avoid gastro this winter
Food Safety Information Council: The Food Safety Information Council today released five tips to help consumers avoid the spread of norovirus, a leading cause of gastroenteritis, over the winter months. This follows recent ANU research that found there are an estimated 276,000 cases of norovirus infection on average in Australia each year, leading to 150 hospitalisations and 1 death.
Read Article →US: Television cooking shows lack food safety
Michigan State University: Cooking shows and competitions have become standard fare on television over the past few years. A 2010 Harris Poll showed that eight out of 10 American adults watch cooking shows on television on a regular basis. Unfortunately, when it comes to food safety practices, television cooking shows fall incredibly short, potentially portraying dangerous practices that, if repeated in the home kitchen, could make people sick.
Read Article →UK: Global food contamination data published
Food Safety Watch: According to new data released by the Fera (the UK’s reference laboratory for chemicals in foods) HorizonScan service, Pesticides (13.5%), Salmonella (11.1%) and mycotoxins (7.1%) were the most frequently reported food contaminants globally over the last quarter.
However, taken as a category, it was microbial contaminants that accounted for the highest number of reports (approximately 25%) of food safety, quality and authenticity issues. Listeria, veterinary drugs and non-permitted food colours also featured in the top ten individual food contaminants.
Read Article →NZ: Opposition calls for outright ban on grape imports
Fresh Fruit Portal: New Zealand Labour Party’s biosecurity spokesman Damien O’Connor has called for all grape imports to be blocked, after spiders were found in recent table grape shipments from Mexico.
Since the detections were made, the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) has ordered all Mexican grapes to be withdrawn from retail shelves, and consignments in transit will have to either be fumigated or destroyed.
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NZ: Spider discoveries prompt Mexican table grape withdrawal
Fresh Fruit Portal: New Zealand’s Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI) is working with produce retailers to have Mexican table grapes removed from store shelves, after spiders were found in 10 consignments around the country.
The authorities said the spiders, discovered in several locations on both islands, are not generally considered a serious danger to humans but their effects can be more serious for the very young or for people with a weakened immune system. Importantly, these spiders do not usually bite unless disturbed.
Read Article →AU: $4 billion investment announced in Agriculture White Paper
Food magazine: Biosecurity, international trade and supply chain transparency are some of the priorities of the Agriculture White Paper.
The Agricultural Competitiveness White Paper pledged $200 million funding increase for biosecurity across Australia to improve biosecurity surveillance and analysis nationally, including in northern Australia.
The Agricultural Competitiveness White Paper also provides an additional $12.4 million over four years to modernise Australia’s traceability systems. This will provide even greater assurance that the agricultural goods we send to trading partners can be traced quickly to the point of origin so the source of any disease or residue contamination can be effectively managed.
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