Category: Europe
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Pew/CSPI Report Calls on USDA to Modernize Meat Inspection
The Pew Charitable Trusts and Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) have released an October 2014 report urging the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to reevaluate its current meat and poultry inspection system. Seeking to identify innovations that could better protect consumers, Meat and Poultry Inspection 2.0 compares U.S. regulations to those used in…
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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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ASA Nixes “Snake Venom” Beer Claims
The U.K. Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld two complaints against a website advertising Brewmeister Ltd.’s “Snake Venom” beer as “THE WORLD’S STRONGEST BEER.” In response to the first complaint, which disputed the beer’s stated alcohol by volume (ABV),the agency questioned whether the independent analysis that determined Snake Venom’s ABV differed from the process used…
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EU Seeks Comments on Endocrine Disruptors, GM Plant Guidance
The European Commission (EC) and European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) have launched public consultations seeking comments on endocrine active substances and draft genetically modified (GM) plant guidance. In accordance with regulations governing biocides and plant protection products, the commission has asked the public “to help define criteria for endocrine disruptors” as part of its effort…
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PETA UK Director Urges Action on Foie Gras in the EU
Animal rights organization People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is currently engaged in a campaign to ban foie gras production throughout the European Union (EU). Writing in the September 17, 2014, issue of The Parliament Magazine, PETA UK Director Mimi Bekhechi urges readers to sign a letter to EU officials calling on them to…
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Dutch Agency Issues First BPA Report
The Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) has released the first part of its bisphenol A (BPA) report, which provides an overview of regulatory and scientific developments through March 2014. Slated for publication in 2015, the second part of the report will assess the European Food Safety Authority’s final opinion on the…
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“30% Less Fat” Claim Censured by Ad Watchdog
The U.K. Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld complaints against a TV commercial claiming that Kellogg’s “Special K Multi Grain Porridge” contained “30% less fat than other porridges.” According to ASA, which received complaints from PepsiCo Inc. and 14 other competitors, Kellogg Marketing and Sales Co. (UK) Ltd. argued that the advertisement’s reduced-fat comparative claim…