Category Archives: Food Safety

Tomato Tally

This week, tomato farmers will ask Congress for aid to offset their losses stemming from the incorrect assertion that tomatoes were causing salmonella. (It was Mexican-grown jalapeño peppers.) And farmers are considering a few other options, too. The off-target warning effectively killed the market for tomatoes. By the time the FDA rescinded its original warning […]

July 28, 2008 | Also posted in Farm, General | Comments closed

Red Scare?

Many in the food safety community believe that tomatoes are not responsible for the salmonella outbreak. Nearly a month after the initial outbreak and the isolated tomatoes have been removed, people are still getting sick. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has tested 1,700 samples of tomatoes and found zero cases of salmonella. Zilch. FDA […]

July 2, 2008 | Posted in Food Safety | Comments closed

Refrigerator Recommendations

When people ask me how they can reduce their personal food waste, I often point them to five basic tips. But this recent piece in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette provides more specific advice on how best to use your fridge and handle food. For instance, this pointer: Expiration dates are most often “sell by” or […]

June 25, 2008 | Also posted in Household | Comments closed

Friday Buffet

This Marketplace (radio) piece introduces Billy Vasquez, a.k.a. the “99 cent Chef,” a food blogger who makes meals from ingredients sourced at 99-cent stores. I enjoyed this exchange on buying spinach there (no idea if it’s canned, frozen or fresh): Newnam: Do you have to worry about the dates? Vasquez: Hey, it’s still green. That’s […]

June 13, 2008 | Also posted in Events, Friday Buffet, International | Comments closed

Best Before When?

The last two weeks, English writer Jonathan Maitland selflessly sacrificed life and limb, or at least his stomach, to test “best before” dates. What began with eggs one day past their “use-by” date, ended with a bowl of Sultana Bran (Raisin Bran) 12 weeks beyond the manufacturers’ cut-off day. The “Best Before Challenge” and the […]

June 9, 2008 | Also posted in Household, International | Comments closed

When Seconds Sell First

ABC News reports that Amelia’s Grocery Outlet, an 11-store supermarket chain in Pennsylvania, is selling groceries that have old promotions, damaged packaging or an expired sell-by date. I’m sure they’re receiving their Easter stuff as you read this. 1. This story was pegged to the recession, but there’s not much new here. There have always […]

March 25, 2008 | Also posted in Supermarket | Comments closed

Friday Buffet

The beef recall saga continues, unfortunately. — — I’m sad to report that students at my alma mater are wasting lots of food. Come on, Wesleyan–you’re better than that. — — On the other side of the college coin, Columbia University has begun a “Trayless Thursdays” experiment. Ditto for Williams College. Not to split hairs, […]

March 7, 2008 | Also posted in College, Friday Buffet, International, Trayless | Comments closed

Where’s the Beef? In the Landfill

Not surprisingly, there’s been some fallout from the largest beef recall in U.S. history. You know, the one that didn’t really need to happen. Many retailers are frustrated at having to toss perfectly good food. Recently, Seattle-area landfills have started burying cases of meat that were at school cafeterias. A King County landfill received 230 […]

February 27, 2008 | Also posted in Processing Plants, Waste Stream | Comments closed

My Beef with the Recall

Yesterday, Westland/Hallmark Meatpacking Company recalled the most beef in US history. The 143 million pounds of meat was more than four times greater than the next highest amount. In fact, the recalled beef is enough to serve two burgers to roughly every American. Now imagine every man, woman and child throwing away two hamburgers (minus […]

February 19, 2008 | Also posted in Processing Plants | Comments closed

Smart Packaging

Imagine food wrapping that could indicate the presence of E. coli or salmonella. Or a swab that could signal when other pathogens are present. Sunday’s New York Times Magazine featured this technological breakthrough in its “Year in Ideas” list. While no products are available yet, a consortium of Canadian universities and companies, Sentinel Bioactive Paper Network, will soon release […]

December 12, 2007 | Also posted in Household | Comments closed