Posts from the "Latest News" category
Fresh Produce Safety Centre welcomes two new supporters
The Fresh Produce Safety Centre welcomes two businesses as new supporters of the Centre: Fresh Markets Australia and the Freshmax Group.
“We are delighted to welcome Freshmax and Fresh Markets Australia to our growing supporter base,†said FPSC Chairman Michael Worthington.
“It is by the fresh produce industry coming together and working collaboratively that we will be able to achieve our mission of enhancing fresh produce food safety through research, outreach and education,†he said.
Read Article →AU: Proximity not enough
Stock & Land: Australia cannot rely on its proximity to Asia to ensure demand for its food continues to grow with the region’s burgeoning population.
At the two-day [Agribusiness Outlook Australia 2015] conference, researchers, industry leaders and business people told about 60 delegates that Australia had to leverage research and development (R&D) to increase productivity throughout the supply chain; ensure strict quality assurance programs underpinned our “clean and green” reputation; and have more concerted and combined overseas marketing campaigns for our commodities.
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CH: China ramps up food safety laws
Asiafruit: China has moved to update its Food Safety Law for the first time since 2009, with harsher penalties for food businesses in China that don’t comply with the new regulations. The new laws will come into place from 1 October 2015, with regulatory bodies to hold more power, harsher penalties for violations of the new laws, and updated guidelines for food production and labelling.
Read Article →NZ: New Zealand group seeks zero tolerance for pesticide residues in baby food
Food Safety News: A petition seeking zero tolerance for pesticide residues in baby food was discussed Friday by a committee of the New Zealand parliament, but members of the Primary Production Committee reportedly took no action on it. The Safe Food Campaign (SFC), which is sponsoring the petition, noted that the European Commission has mandated no detectable pesticide levels for baby food in EU countries.
Read Article →US: Inspectors find Listeria at Bidart Bros. cooling and packing house
Food Safety News: Inspector observations from the investigation into the role of Bidart Bros. in last year’s 12-state outbreak of Listeriosis involving commercially produced, prepackaged caramel apples found that the problem could well have originated in the California grower’s apple cooler and packing facility.
That outbreak required the hospitalization of 34 of 35 people from 12 states who were sickened. Before the outbreak ended, seven of them were dead, and Listeriosis was blamed for the deaths of at least three of them.
Areas inside the Bidart Bros. packing plant where Listeria positives were found were on polishing brushes, drying brushes, packing line drain, inside a wood bin, and on an automatic line.
Read Article →NZ: Major new markets put New Zealand food safety communication in focus
xinhuanet.com: New Zealand must recognize the importance of emerging markets like China by setting up a prime minister-led crisis management group to coordinate responses to food safety issues, a leading communications expert said Thursday.
The country and the agricultural food sector needed a high- level response group, comprising industry and government key players as well as senior communications professionals, to act quickly to reassure export markets, Massey University communications expert Dr Chris Galloway told Xinhua.
Read Article →AU: Food safety training gains global momentum
Australian Institute of Food Safety: Recent results from a global survey have shown food safety training is rapidly growing and currently almost 40 per cent of all training organisations offer it in some form. Described as ‘one of today’s most pressing public health priories,’ food safety is continuously being recognised as an area that needs multiple levels of education and a clear and accurate core skills framework.
The survey, designed by the International Union of Food Science and Technology (IUFoST), was developed along with the Global Food Safety Curricula Initiative (GFSCI). Through global education, this Initiative aims to helps battle poor food safety standards around the world and create a strong foundation with which to teach people in the food safety industry.
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Fresh Produce Safety Centre marks its first year of operation
The Fresh Produce Safety Centre celebrates its first anniversary today.
“We are delighted that the FPSC has reached this significant milestone and we look forward to consolidating and expanding our work around fresh produce safety in Australia and New Zealand,†said FPSC Chairman and CEO of PMA A-NZ, Michael Worthington.
Read Article →UK: FSAI reiterates advice to boil imported frozen berries
Food Safety Authority of Ireland: The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) today reiterated its advice to consumers to boil all imported frozen berries for at least one minute prior to consumption. The advice follows recent outbreaks of norovirus in Sweden and hepatitis A virus in Australia linked to the consumption of imported frozen berries, although there is no indication that batches of berries implicated have been imported into Ireland.
Read Article →US: Current issues in produce safety: growing areas
Food Safety News: There is nothing more iconic than the image of the farmer plowing his field, and anyone rubbing shoulders with these hard-working individuals enters a world of timeless traditions.
Food safety in any application may seem quite simple, and so it appears to be in agriculture, at least on the surface. If the growing area is free of contamination and workers are in good health, and the environment, water and overall growing conditions do not negatively impact operations, consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables should be considered a low risk for causing foodborne illness.
The evidence, however, points strongly in the other direction. Produce-borne outbreaks caused by bacteria, parasites and viruses are all-too-common events and, in many instances, investigation reveals unsanitary conditions in the growing area as the initial source of the pathogenic agent.
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