Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 2009
| Subscribe to Newser's RSS feeds RSS | Follow Newser on Twitter Twitter

NEWS ABOUT: food contamination

food contamination stories: 37 news summaries

1 - 20 of 37 Stories | 1 2 Next >>

Switch to grid view »

INVESTIGATION

 Ground Beef Rife 
 With E. Coli Risk 

NYT investigation shows industry practices that leave lots to be desired

Oct 4, 09 8:19 AM CDT
(Newser) - A nausea-inducing feature in the New York Times tells you more than you wanted to know about what's actually in commercially produced hamburger, and why it's especially vulnerable, despite FDA regulation and several fatal outbreaks in recent years, to E. coli contamination. The Times follows the case of a 22-year-old... More »

MORE ABOUT:
food • E. coli • food contamination • beef • USDA • ground beef • slaughterhouse • hamburger

 Test Finds Mercury 
 in Every Fish 

A quarter contaminated beyond EPA safety limit

Aug 20, 09 12:04 PM CDT
(AP) - Catch a fish in one of America's streams, and there's a good chance it will have at least trace amounts of mercury. The most comprehensive survey to date from the US Geological Survey tested more than 1,000 fish from nearly 300 streams around the nation—and found mercury in... More »

MORE ABOUT:
environment • pollution • food contamination • fish • Environmental Protection Agency • trout • contamination • power plant • toxic • US Geological Survey • mercury

(Newser) - The FDA would gain broad new powers to oversee food safety under a far-reaching bill passed by the House yesterday, the Washington Post reports. The measure—representing the first major changes to food safety laws since the 1930s—would give the agency vastly increased oversight of the nation's food chain... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Congress • FDA • food contamination • House of Representatives • food safety • food industry

 Feds Confirm E. Coli 
 in Cookie Dough 

FDA still has no idea how bacteria made its way into Nestle dough

Jun 30, 09 3:07 AM CDT
(Newser) - The FDA has confirmed the presence of E. coli in cookie dough from Nestle's Virginia plant, reports the Washington Post. The plant's refrigerated cookie dough was the prime suspect in an outbreak of E. coli-related illness that sickened 69 people in 29 states. But investigators remain confounded as to how... More »

MORE ABOUT:
E. coli • FDA • food contamination • Nestle • toll house cookies • cookie dough

 Salmonella Triggers Pistachio Recall 

Huge pistachio recall issued after salmonella found at processor

Mar 31, 09 3:26 AM CDT
(Newser) - Consumers have been warned to steer clear of pistachios and any product containing them until the FDA probes the extent of salmonella contamination, reports WebMD. A million pounds of possibly tainted pistachios from a California processor have been recalled and authorities expect that more recalls will follow. Affected products range... More »

MORE ABOUT:
FDA • food contamination • recall • salmonella • Food and Drug Administration • pistachios

 Food Hazards Elude 
 Private Inspectors 

Food poisoning outbreaks traced back to dangers cut-price auditors missed

Mar 6, 09 6:43 AM CST
(Newser) - The job of monitoring America's food plants is falling more and more to private inspectors who often miss hazards, a New York Times investigation finds. Plants hire such auditors to reassure customers and reduce liability, but the companies often pick the cheapest and least rigorous audits available. Some of the... More »

MORE ABOUT:
food poisoning • FDA • food contamination • food safety • salmonella • inspection • food industry • Peanut Corporation of America

OPINION

Pay for Soup, Enjoy Insects, Mold Free

FDA's classification
of food 'defects'
a slippery slope

Feb 13, 09 1:33 PM CST
(Newser) - If you're eating, stop reading now: The FDA's rules on foreign matter in food products are a veritable entomology lesson. Maggots, fly eggs, rodent droppings, grit, mold, burlap, cigarette butts, and parasites are all OK with the agency in limited quantities, writes EJ Levy in the New York Times, adding,... More »

MORE ABOUT:
food • parasites • FDA • food contamination • insects • mold


 Warnings Crunch 
 Peanut Butter Biz 

Sales take a dive as wary shoppers steer clear of old favorite

Feb 7, 09 6:30 AM CST
(Newser) - Peanut butter makers are struggling to deal with the public relations nightmare caused by the salmonella outbreak, reports the New York Times. Many shoppers have started avoiding all brands of peanut butter and sales are down almost 25%. Companies not affected by the recall are buying ads stressing that their... More »

MORE ABOUT:
food contamination • recall • salmonella • peanut butter • Peanut Corporation of America

Peanuts Known Tainted Supplied to School Program

Agency meant to ensure food safety bought contaminated nuts

Feb 6, 09 6:54 AM CST
(Newser) - The peanut firm behind the recent salmonella outbreak sold 32 truckloads of peanuts and peanut butter to a federal lunch program for poor children even after internal tests revealed that they were contaminated with the bacteria, the Washington Post reports. Schools in California, Minnesota, and Idaho received the food in... More »

MORE ABOUT:
food contamination • children • salmonella • school lunch • peanut • Peanut Corporation of America

INVESTIGATION

 Honey Packers Fail to 
 Report Tainted Imports 

Companies often simply send honey back to importer

Jan 29, 09 2:25 PM CST
(Newser) - US honey packers often don’t tell authorities about imports contaminated with banned antibiotics or other chemicals, and instead simply send the products back, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports after a lengthy investigation. Importers can then get the tainted honey into the American market through another packer, as two Chicago businessmen... More »

MORE ABOUT:
food contamination • antibiotics • food safety • honey • imported food • Food and Drug Administration • Chinese exports

 Mercury Found in Corn Syrup 

Researchers believe contamination comes from corn syrup

Jan 27, 09 8:11 AM CST
(Newser) - A test of some of America's most popular processed foods has turned up trace amounts of mercury, the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports. Researchers believe that the mercury, found in levels far lower than in seafood, comes from plants that use caustic soda laced with mercury to produce high-fructose corn syrup, widely... More »

MORE ABOUT:
food contamination • food safety • mercury • corn syrup • food industry • contaminants

Ireland Recalls Tainted Pork, Warns 25 Countries

Contaminated meat may have been exported to 25 countries

Dec 7, 08 6:12 PM CST
(Newser) - Ireland has issued a massive pork recall after sending contaminated meat to about two dozen countries, Reuters reports. France, the Netherlands, and Belgium have all complained of dioxin-contaminated products, and Britain has told people to lay off pork for now. However, a British government body said it did "not... More »

MORE ABOUT:
France • food contamination • Netherlands • food safety • recall • Ireland • Britain • pork

 China Pulls Tainted Candy 

Sales of candy made with contaminated milk halted as crisis spreads

Sep 26, 08 4:09 AM CDT
(Newser) - Dozens of countries are hopping to get China-made White Rabbit candy off store shelves after the milk-based treat was found to contain melamine, the BBC reports. The company has halted sales worldwide, and issued warnings about candy remaining in stores. The chemical has also been found to have sickened two... More »

MORE ABOUT:
melamine • food contamination • candy • tainted milk

 Toxic Milk Poisons 6,000 Babies 

Outrage over escalating scandal as 3 die

Sep 17, 08 3:48 AM CDT
(Newser) - The toll from contaminated infant formula in China continues to mount alarmingly, with more than 6,000 babies poisoned and at least three killed, reports the BBC. Another 158 are suffering from acute kidney failure. The chemical melamine—which caused widespread pet deaths in contaminated food last year—has now... More »

MORE ABOUT:
China • milk • food contamination • poison • baby formula • Sanlu Group • Fonterra

 Farmers Hunt Wildlife 
 to Keep Greens Clean 

E. coli scare prompts extreme measures in 'America's Salad Bowl'

Sep 2, 08 12:21 PM CDT
(Newser) - To please cautious companies, farmers have turned hunters in California's Salinas River Valley, where 60% of the nation's lettuce grows. They’re stalking wild pigs, poisoning ponds and erecting fences—disrupting wildlife and destroying habitats in the process—to avoid another E. coli contamination, the AP reports. But some question... More »

MORE ABOUT:
E. coli • cattle • food contamination • spinach • wildlife • farmers

Salmonella Now Largest Food-Borne Outbreak in US

More than 1,000 cases reported; tomatoes and hot peppers still the main suspects

Jul 9, 08 7:30 PM CDT
(Newser) - The number of salmonella cases has surpassed 1,000, making it the nation's largest food-borne outbreak, says the CDC. Despite the volume of cases, investigators still can't quite pinpoint the exact cause or source, LiveScience reports. Certain types of tomatoes, hot peppers and cilantro—the main ingredients of salsa—remain... More »

MORE ABOUT:
food contamination • public health • food safety • tomatoes • salmonella

FDA Salmonella Probe Switches to Jalapenos

Investigators eying other salsa ingredients for source of outbreak

Jul 5, 08 5:37 AM CDT
(Newser) - Jalapeno peppers have pushed tomatoes off the top of the FDA's suspect list in the recent salmonella outbreak, reports the Wall Street Journal. Investigators believe salsa may be the culprit in the rash of illnesses, and after a drop in tomato consumption failed to halt a rise in cases, they... More »

MORE ABOUT:
FDA • food contamination • food safety • tomatoes • salmonella • chili peppers

Are Tomatoes From Local Farms Safer?

Mistakes can be made at any size operation, scientists warn

Jun 15, 08 10:02 AM CDT
(Newser) - Salmonella-tainted tomatoes that sickened 228 people in 28 states may be a boon to the local-food movement, but Newsweek takes a look at whether "locavores" should be so smug. Equating smaller farms with safer practices—and long-distance shipping with more time for bacteria to infect food—more produce-lovers are... More »

MORE ABOUT:
food • food contamination • tomatoes • salmonella • local produce • Food and Drug Administration

 Fla., Mexico Are Main
 Salmonella Sources: FDA 

Agency stepping up efforts to track contamination

Jun 13, 08 4:40 PM CDT
(Newser) - The Food and Drug Administration is focusing Florida and Mexico as sources of the salmonella outbreak that has afflicted 228 people in 23 states, the Wall Street Journal reports. The “vast majority” of tomatoes imported at the time of outbreak appear to have come from those areas. Officials have... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Florida • FDA • Mexico • food contamination • vegetables • tomatoes • salmonella • outbreak

OPINION

 You Say Tomato,
 He Says Salmonella?! 

Feds' 'confusing, back-assward' bumbling can't explain how insides got contaminated

Jun 12, 08 2:50 PM CDT
(Newser) - Food-safety experts continue to scratch their heads over the recent salmonella outbreak in tomatoes—and Barry Estabrook, in Gourmet, is peeved that he can't get any explanation on how the intestinal bacteria actually gets inside. One expert from a produce trade group speculates that contaminants enter through cuts in the... More »

MORE ABOUT:
FDA • food contamination • tomatoes • salmonella

1 - 20 of 37 Stories | 1 2 Next >>


from our news partners