Category: Issue 542
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SCOTUS Declines Review of Challenge to California’s Foie Gras Ban
The U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) has denied a petition seeking review of a Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling upholding a California law prohibiting the sale of commodities, such as foie gras, produced by “force feeding a bird for the purpose of enlarging the bird’s liver beyond normal size.” Association des Éleveurs de Canards et d’Oies…
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Belarus National Assembly Considers Bill to Restrict Alcohol Ads to Alcohol Beverages
The Belarussian Chamber of Representatives has reportedly approved draft legislation that would stop the practice of advertising products and events other than alcohol beverages with names and logos that are confusingly similar to alcohol brands. Some bottled waters, for example, are apparently promoted with names, fonts and images that are associated with vodka brands with…
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Draft French Health Bill Targets Binge Drinking and Mass-Produced Food
French Health Minister Marisol Touraine has reportedly proposed a law that would establish standards for ingredient transparency in mass-produced food, blank cigarette packets and “fixing rooms” that allow drug addicts to inject themselves in a safer environment, as well as impose fines—or possible jail sentences up to one year—for selling “products that make alcohol appear…
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EFSA Assesses Health Risks Related to Perchlorate in Food
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has published a scientific opinion calling chronic dietary exposure to perchlorate a potential concern, “in particular for the high consumers in younger age groups of the population with mild to moderate iodine deficiency.” In addition to considering scientific literature on perchlorate levels in fruit juices, alcohol beverages, milk, and…
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USDA Should Strengthen Approach to Pathogens in Poultry Products, GAO Says
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has released a report assessing the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) current approach to Salmonella and Campylobacter in chicken and turkey products and recommending that the agriculture secretary direct the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) to take steps to improve the approach. The report reviews past USDA action on…
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FDA to Solicit Public Input on Supplemental Proposed Rules Under FSMA
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has scheduled a November 13, 2014, public meeting in College Park, Maryland, to solicit stakeholder comments and respond to questions about revisions to four rules first proposed in 2013 to implement the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). The proposals address (i) Preventive Controls for Human Food, (ii) Produce…
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HHS and USDA Schedule Meeting of 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Department of Agriculture (USDA) have scheduled a meeting of the 14-member committee charged with developing the federal government’s “2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans” for November 7, 2014, from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. EST. The meeting is accessible to the public by Webcast only and…
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WTO Rules Against United States on COOL Rules
Confirming early reports discussed in Issue 536 of this Update, the World Trade Organization (WTO) has again ruled in favor of Canada and Mexico regarding U.S. country-of-origin labeling (COOL) regulations requiring pork and beef products originating outside of the United States to bear labels indicating where each step in the production process occurred. The compliance…