Food ingredient company Nutrinova has won a legal battle against
Zhangjiagang Hope Chemicals for infringement of it's European
patent for the manufacture of the high intensity sweetener
Acesulfame K (AcK).
In Europe and the US consumer groups are keen to see food
manufacturers reduce the use of trans fatty acids in foods, a type
of fat linked to heart disease. A move this week by fast food giant
McDonalds is will be seen as a step in...
Bulk imports of Chinese honey contaminated with low levels of
chloramphenicol (CAP), a potentially harmful antibiotic and
unapproved food additive, have been discovered by US Customs and
the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this...
The European Commission said on Friday it would press ahead with
its proposals for radical reform of farm policy regardless of an
outburst of opposition by France's President Jacques Chirac.
Following the EU SCF opinion on upper intake limits of vitamins and
minerals issued earlier this week today we report that the Expert
Group on Vitamins and Minerals (EVM), an independent UK group set
up in 1997 to advise on safe upper...
In anticipation of final approval by the European Parliament of the
proposed Directive relating to food supplements, the European Union
Scientific Committee on Food (SCF) has issued it's first opinions
regarding the tolerable...
The UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) is piloting a new,
roll-with-the-times, scheme designed to alert Food Enforcement
Officers to potential food hazards while out in the field.
German researchers have found traces of the cancer-causing chemical
acrylamide, in coffee, although not in as high concentrations as in
fatty foods such as potato crisps, french fries or bread.
How was acrylamide first discovered in food in Sweden? What is the
UK Food Standards Agency planning to do about the problem? What are
the toxicological effects of acrylamide? A seminar devoted to this
new food safety phenomenon is...
Tin levels in UK canned foods are lower than five years ago and are
well within regulatory limits, according to a UK Food Standards
Agency survey released last week.
One year on and the quality of soy sauce used in catering outlets
in the UK appears to have improved. The UK Food Standards Agency
(FSA) recently carried out a survey and found fewer samples
containing unacceptable levels of the chemical...
The incorporation of genes from other organisms into food plants
has raised concerns about possible health risks and environmental
consequences. A new report from the American Academy of
Microbiology (AAM) looks at the case of a bacterium...
Adding vitamin E to irradiated meat could help reduce unpleasant
odours and colours that put consumers off, according to a study
presented at the American Chemical Society's annual conference held
this week in Boston, USA.
DuPont Qualicon has appointed UK-based company Oxoid as
distributors in Europe and Australia for its BAX system, an
automated testing platform for food-borne pathogens.
Concerns in the US about the potential for future genetically
engineered foods to cause allergic reactions has spurred the Food
and Drug Administration to hold a meeting to look into the best
methods for determining whether these...
We reported on Monday that the UK supermarket chain the
Co-Operative Group has condemned the misleading labelling of foods
claiming that foodmanufacturers are "hoodwinking" consumers. Today
the UK Food and Drink Federation,...
Signs that the functional food market is gaining ground were
revealed this week when the UK Food Standards Agency (FSA)
announced it is considering a 'novel food' application by a food
manufacturer to market 'milk and...
The UK Food Standards Agency is this week consulting on draft
regulations to implement a new European Directive that defines
chocolate. The new directive means that the UK's traditional milk
chocolate recipe can stay the same,...
On the same day that we report that the US could be moving towards
firmer rules on genetically modified foods, the American
Association for Laboratory Accreditation has accredited ISO-17025
standards to GeneScan USA, a network of...
The US Agriculture Department, trying to repair its image after the
second-largest recall in history, is considering new regulations
that would require meat companies to implement more food safety
safeguards, consumer groups said...
France has agreed to a European Union demand to end the practice of
labelling French food products in French only, Les Echos
reports. The French government is now drafting an order requiring
food companies to attach labels in at least...
Switzerland is the latest country to approve the use of natamycin,
an inhibitor of moulds and yeasts, in cheese and meat production
joining the European Union, the US, some South American and Eastern
European countries who have already...
The controversial herbal ingredient kava, kava is once again in the
news when the UK Food Standards Agency this week announced that it
is seeking views on draft regulations that would result in the
removal from sale of food products...
The US Agriculture Department, now investigating the second-largest
meat recall in history, would gain authority to issue civil fines
against companies that make unsafe food, under a bill introduced on
Thursday by three Democrats.
The European Commission is in the news again this week with the
latest proposal to strengthen food safety in the Member States.
According to a statement released on Tuesday, the Commission is to
revamp official controls relating to...
Tougher legislation on the labelling of genetically modified foods
in Europe could have a strong impact on Australian farmers keen to
enter European markets unless the government acts on genetically
modified (GM) crops, the Labour...
The European Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health
voted in favour of a European Commission proposal changing the
rules for the dispatch from the United Kingdom of bovine products
under the Date-Based Export Scheme...
The European Commission on Thursday adopted new labelling rules
that will provide the consumer with labelling information on the
presence of caffeine or quinine in drinks and foods.
The UK Food Standards Agency is the latest European food safety
agency to advise its citizens to avoid the herbal ingredient kava
kava, joining France, Switzerland and Germany.
The European Commission has approved legislation allowing the use
of two intense sweeteners, sucralose and aspartame-acesulfame,
within the European Union. Both are already sold outside the
region.
Ireland's Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday said "serious
errors" at an Irish plant had allowed a banned growth hormone to
taint pig feed in Europe's latest food scare.
Consumer representatives and experts from the fields of science,
industry and food law enforcement have been appointed to a core
stakeholder group established as part of the UK Food Standards
Agency's review of the Over Thirty...
Japanese food companies are moving to stop importing a range of
vegetables from China after findings showed that some Chinese-grown
spinach contained excessive agricultural chemicals, a Japanese
newspaper reported.
The Confederation of the food and drink industries of the EU (CIAA)
has given the thumbs up to a radical mid-term review of the Common
Agricultural Policy (CAP) as outlined by European Agriculture
Commissioner Franz Fischler this...
The European Commission on Wednesday approved a radical reform of
Europe's 40-year-old Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) that aims to
shift the focus of aid from production to the farmers themselves.
The European Union said on Tuesday it was investigating a growing
food scare in several member nations surrounding the discovery of
synthetic hormones in soft drinks and pork products.
How easy is it to ensurethat foods and ingredients imported from
outside the EU are safe, ofsufficient quality and legal? How can UK
food companies ensure completetraceability of imported food
products? These questions will be tackled...
The news this week that two California environmental groups are to
sue the nation's top sellers of French fries over acrylamide
warnings could be a harbinger of difficult times for the food
industry.
The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) has asked the European
Commission to carry out a 'root-and-branch examination' of the
sources and use of collagen fibre in prepared foods, especially in
chicken, reports the Irish...
More than nine tonnes of food found unfit for human consumption was
destroyed in the United Arab Emirates in the first six months of
this year, the Gulf News reports.
A collective sigh of relief among consumer associations and
environmentalists was almost audible across Europe on Wednesday
when plans to enforce stricter labelling of genetically modified
foods were agreed by members of the European...
Just when the Japanese food industry appeared to be settling down
after a period dogged with food scares and consumer fears, the
industry was stung on Friday by another quality-control scandal
when the government accused a company...
A European Commission Directive amending Commission Directive
96/77/EC for a fourth time was adopted unanimously by the Standing
Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health on 14June 2002,
reports the UK Food Standards Agency (FSA).
The European Parliament is preparing itself for a food fight today
over Commission proposals that would mean that any food containing
containing more than 0.5 per cent of GM organisms (GMOs) would have
to be labelled.
