Category: Issue 364
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Canadian Health Ministers Agree to Reduce Dietary Salt Standards
Canadian health ministers reportedly met in St. John’s, Newfoundland, to discuss several health initiatives, including a plan to reduce the daily recommended intake of sodium to 2,300 mg from 3,400 mg by 2016. According to a September 14, 2010, press release issued by Alberta Health and Wellness Minister Gene Zwozdesky, government officials in attendance considered…
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Belgian EU Presidency Proposes Labeling Requirements, Registry for Nanomaterials
The Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union (EU) has issued five regulatory proposals to respond to consumer and safety needs regarding nanomaterials found in mass-produced consumer products including food, electronics and cosmetics. During a recent workshop in which representatives from 12 member states met to prepare for a regulatory review of nanomaterials by…
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Michelle Obama Urges Restaurants to Offer Healthier Fare
First Lady Michelle Obama recently urged restaurants to offer healthier fare to help reduce “obesity-related conditions” in the United States. Speaking before the National Restaurant Association on September 13, 2010, Obama said “that while restaurants are offering more options and families take advantage of them more often, they aren’t always the healthiest choices.” Asserting that…
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FSIS to Hold Public Meeting on Meat, Poultry Inspection Programs
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has announced that the National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection (NACMPI) will hold a public meeting on September 29-30, 2010, in Washington, D.C., to review issues pertaining to data collection, analysis, response and transparency, and pre-harvest food safety controls. The committee…
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Leahy Introduces Legislation to Hold Food Safety Violators Accountable
U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) has introduced a bill (S.3767) that would “hold violators of food safety standards accountable for their crimes.” The Food Safety Accountability Act would establish a new offense in the criminal code by making it unlawful for any person to knowingly introduce or deliver tainted or mislabeled food into the nation’s…
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GAO Studies Perchlorate in Water and Food Supplies
A U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) report to Congress has concluded that perchlorate, which interferes with iodine uptake and poses potential effects on fetal and infant brain development and growth, is ubiquitous in the nation’s water and food supply. The chemical is a product of both man-made processes, occurring in rocket fuel, explosives and fireworks,…
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FDA Issues Warning Letter to Makers of “Viagra Coffee”
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently issued a warning letter to the New York-based manufacturer of “Magic Power Coffee,” a product that purportedly contains the active ingredient used in erectile dysfunction medications. According to the letter, INZ Distributors, Inc., has marketed the coffee as a conventional food despite the presence of hydroxythiohomosildenafil, an analogue…
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Corn Refiners Trade Group Seeks New Name for High-Fructose Corn Syrup
The Corn Refiners Association has petitioned the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) “to allow manufacturers the option of using ‘corn sugar’ as an alternative name for high fructose corn syrup.” The trade group contends that the public is confused about what the sweetener is and that “‘corn sugar’ succinctly and accurately describes what this natural…